Janis Ringhand

Janis Ringhand exemplifies the ability to create a path to succeed and even thrive in a small town.

Janis Ringhand exemplifies the ability to create a path to succeed and even thrive in a small town. She made a career out of helping local businesses with their accounting. Then, out of the blue, she received a phone call that compelled her to consider involvement in local politics. One thing led to another, and through persistence and hard work, she became a member of the Wisconsin State Senate.

Janis and her siblings were all born in Evansville. Her mother, Donna (Estes) Brzezinski, was an Evansville native, and her father, Ralph Brzezinski, moved to Evansville from Illinois. Ralph’s father, Ralph Sr., was a Polish immigrant who arrived in the States just before World War I. He supported his large family by buying chickens and eggs from local farmers and then packaging and reselling them to local stores, restaurants, and bakeries in Chicago. Some of Janis’ favorite memories are when she accompanied her grandfather on his rounds collecting eggs. Ralph and Donna’s children, of whom there are six, took turns accompanying their grandfather. In order of birth, they were Rick, Janis, the twins Mark & Ann, Jim and Ken.

During high school, Janis worked part-time at the East Side Grocery for George and Oscar Redland, her grandmother’s brothers. Originally called The Swiss Cheese Grocery, it was located on the northeast corner of E. Main and Union Streets. At that time, business was good because Evansville had a lot of vehicle traffic passing through between Chicago and Madison. Once the I-90 Interstate Highway was built, the traffic dramatically decreased, and local businesses began to suffer.

Janis married Gordon Ringhand in 1969, one year after she graduated from Evansville High School. He came home from military service in May of 1968, and they started dating when she was still in high school. He worked at Highway Trailer in Edgerton until it went out of business. He then moved on to Janesville Auto Transport Company, or JATCO, as it was commonly known, working as a diesel mechanic. They have two children: a daughter, Shawn, and a son, Dan.

In addition to being a mom and a wife, Janis worked outside the home for the Wisconsin Department of Health & Administration for two years. After that, she took a job at the Evansville branch of the Merchants & Savings Bank. After a few more years, she decided to move on again, broadening her career opportunities. She enrolled at MATC, and after a couple of years, she graduated with a degree in Finance & Accounting. Instead of working for someone else, she went into business on her own. She began providing accounting and tax services for small businesses in the Evansville area. She also served as the Head Bookkeeper for Union Cooperative, now known as Landmark Services Cooperative, which was and still is a large local employer.

In 1989, she began working for Larry Ringhand, Gordon’s brother, at Ringhand Meats while still providing services to other small local businesses. These included filing income taxes, conducting inventory, preparing payroll, etc. By 1997, Ringhand Meats had grown so much that Larry built a new plant on the southeast corner of Water & Main Streets. With the increase in business, Janis decided to discontinue her accounting service.

During this period, Janis received a phone call from Harlin Miller, who asked her to consider running for a seat on the City Council. After all, her degree in finance made her exceptionally qualified for the job. Although she had never considered it before, she decided to take the plunge, and in 1998, she ran for a seat and was elected. At the time, Steve DiSalvo was the Mayor. The rest of the Council comprised Andy Anderson, Jeff Hanson, Kent Katzenmeyer, Diane Roberts, Paul Baker, Tom Cothard, and Ron Jennings.

Janis served two terms as an Alderperson and found that she enjoyed the work. At that time, one of the major issues was the need for additional housing to accommodate the growth Evansville had begun to experience. The Evansville Community School District was very leery of the rapid population growth because they were concerned about whether the existing infrastructure could accommodate it. Other significant issues were moving the city towards renewable energy and rebuilding the infrastructure: streets, sewers, water mains, etc.

In 2002, Janis ran for Mayor against Paul Baker. The race was cast as a local versus an outsider, even though Paul had been a resident for several years and had served on the City Council. Janis won, and in two years, she was reelected. Once she had a taste of politics, she decided to expand her horizons even more. In 2004, she ran for the vacant State Assembly seat as a Democrat against Brett Davis, a Republican. The former incumbent, Republican Mike Powers, had retired, so it was an open seat without an incumbent to run against. At the time, the district included all of Green County, including Monroe, which leaned Republican. But first, she had to win the Democratic primary against Gof Thompson, a Green County banker. Janis finished second. But she was not deterred. In 2006, she ran against him again, coming within 200 votes. In 2010, she received a phone call from the Democratic caucus in Madison, asking her to run a third time. She agreed, and her opponent was Dan Hanktke, a builder from Monroe. There wasn’t a Democratic primary this time, so she was automatically in the general election. Janice finally won by a large margin of 12%. She served two terms in Wisconsin’s Assembly.

In 2014, Tim Cullen, the Democratic State Senator for the district that included Evansville, retired, so that seat became available. The district included one-third of Green County. But it also included Beloit, Orfordville, Brodhead, Evansville, and Janesville, communities that either lean Democratic or are at least 50/50.

Brian Fitzgerald was the Republican opponent. He was quite wealthy but had a poor personality, and Janis easily beat him. She served two four-year terms. However, it was a bittersweet experience because the Republicans had a majority in the Senate. This meant that for a Democrat to get a bill passed, it had to have a Republican sponsor. Whenever Janis asked a Republican colleague to sponsor a bill, the answer was always no. So, she spent most of her time working on her constituents’ issues and local government concerns. However, Janis did have some knowledge about the healthcare industry because of her eight years of service on the Stoughton Hospital Board. So she leveraged that knowledge and backing from Hospital Associations to sponsor many healthcare bills. She became a healthcare expert in the Senate, which drew Republicans to her as well. Sadly, one of the bills that Janis worked on that still hasn’t passed is to provide Paid Medical Leave Insurance.

She served on the Economic & Workforce Development Committee, which dealt with apprenticeship programs, training, and funding to reimburse education costs for apprentices. She also worked on the Dairy Task Force, which tried to attract and train people to the agriculture industry. Other committees she served on were the Council on Women’s Rights, Sex Trafficking, Health Care, and the Building Commission. The Building Commission oversaw repairs and maintenance of the Governor’s Residence and the Capitol Building.

After a career in service, Janis retired from the Senate in 2023. She now spends her time playing with her five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren and making her famous Ringhand’s Beer Mustard, which I have to say is delicious!

Janis didn’t have anything handed to her. She created a skill set at MATC, which she parlayed into a career of providing critical business services for small mom-and-pop businesses. She became the Head Bookkeeper at the Union Co-op, which was even then a large business. Once she was asked to serve in politics, even though she had never considered it, she worked hard to learn, rising to the Mayor’s seat on Evansville’s City Council. Looking beyond that, she didn’t shy away from the challenge of campaigning multiple times for a seat in the Wisconsin Legislature and, finally, the Senate. This in itself is no small feat! Janis had the skill set and drive necessary to work in government. Her career experience served her well. Even more importantly, she’s a hard worker with a strong desire to learn. Finally, she is also approachable and friendly. Janis Ringhand is definitely one of Evansville’s self-made success stories.