Like most things in life, the more you put into it, the more you get out of it. Jo Emerson, mayor of White Bear Lake, puts a whole lot of herself into her job—and she loves every minute of it.
On a sunny afternoon in February, Emerson walks into Donatelli’s with her husband Sam to have lunch served by fifth-grade students from Willow Lane Elementary. She had received a hand-written invitation from one of the students, a young girl who would later stand tableside and smile shyly as Emerson complimented her on the letter and a job well done. Emerson has attended the lunch each of the years she’s been in office; she recently started her second term, where she ran uncontested. “[The lunch] is such a great event,” Emerson says. “The kids are so excited and work so hard. They even have to create resumes and interview for the jobs they get here.”
The owner of the restaurant stops by the table for a visit, a council member says hello, Emerson chats with the superintendent of schools and folks from the fire department wave from a few tables over. She’s completely at ease, out and about in the city she loves.
And with what seems a preternatural ability to connect with people, along with her many other leadership qualities, it’s hard to believe she hasn’t been doing this her whole life. An Army brat who attended nine schools in 12 years when she was growing up, she longed for the kind of city where she could put down some roots, where folks knew one another and were genuinely interested in making it a downright great place to live, build a business and raise a family. White Bear Lake was that perfect place, and she and Sam moved to the area in 1988 (“We’re newcomers,” she says with a laugh).
A banker by trade, Emerson says she was “downsized” in the mid-’90s and began thinking about what she wanted to do next. She joined the White Bear Lake Area Historical Society board and volunteered at her church. She felt the need to do more, so she started with the environmental advisory board, and then applied for the variance board. “I thought that would be interesting,” she says. From there she moved to the planning commission. “You get to know the staff and how the city works and things like that.”
And when the mayor’s seat came up for election, friends and acquaintances told her she should run. “I went home and asked Sam what he thought,” she says. “And he said, ‘I’ve already had two phone calls about it; I think you should go for it.’ ”
She filed in May 2009 and was out door-knocking in August. “That was the best part about campaigning because you get to meet people,” she says. “It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun.”
That first Election Day was a long one. And with the help of some of her kids (she has four of her own and Sam has three), she kept track as the results rolled in. When the checkmark appeared by her name on the television screen declaring her victory, it finally sunk in. “Oh, I won!” she said to Sam.
And she is definitely a hands-on mayor. In addition to her official duties of presiding over city council meetings, signing contracts, resolutions and ordinances, and ensuring the city runs smoothly, she likes to participate in a variety of events. She’s participated in the Citizens Police Academy, hit the streets with the street sweepers and toured the sewers. She’s donned 75 pounds of fire gear, climbed four flights of stairs at the fire tower on McKnight and County Road E and inched her way down the pitch-black smoke-filled stairs. “You couldn’t even see the person in front of you,” she says. “It gave me a real sense of what firefighters have to deal with.”
But as much as she likes to get out there with city staff, it’s her interaction with community members that really brings her joy. “I don’t have a full-time job, so I am available during the day,” she says. “I think it’s important to be out and kind of a cheerleader for your city.”
She judges chili contests at apartment complexes, visits senior centers, rides on the LaFrance fire truck in the annual Fourth of July parade and lays the wreath at the annual Veterans’ Day event, one of her duties she finds especially meaningful. And don’t get her started on how she felt the day that the downtown streets were filled with hundreds of people for the creation of the world-record ice cream sundae. “That was just unbelievable,” she says with a smile, adding that she gets asked to bring the official Guinness plaque with her when she visits classrooms in the district.
Asked about another favorite moment in her job thus far, she recounts attending a D.A.R.E. graduation and seeing a young girl with a kerchief on her head. “I asked the teacher if the girl was undergoing therapy for cancer,” she says. “I told her I understood the privacy of it, but asked if it would be OK if I talked to her. The teacher brought her over and I said to her, ‘I am a cancer survivor. You’re all finished now with your treatment; now you have to get strong, get your education and you can come back here and be mayor or police chief.’ The girl just beamed.”
It probably won’t come as a surprise to learn that Emerson is the new president for the Minnesota Mayors Association, a director at the League of Minnesota Cities and on several other boards and associations.
But in the end, it’s her love for White Bear Lake that keeps her moving toward the future. “We still maintain that small-town flavor, and that can’t be re-created,” she says. “This is such a great town with great people. My hope is that we continue to be a vibrant, wonderful community to live in.”
In Their Own Words
“Jo has ushered in a lot of municipal environmental initiatives, particularly water conservation, reducing the city’s environmental impact and shepherding other demonstration projects and incentives in our community; that’s been a hallmark.
“She represents the city well; she’s a very good diplomat and a very good ambassador. It’s kind of fun because I go to a lot of other meetings and so many people have met our mayor, speak very highly of her and hold the city in high regard because of that.”
—Mark Sather, City Manager, City of White Bear Lake
“Jo is a historian at heart and the history of our city is one of the things that she appreciates most about White Bear Lake. She is an ardent supporter of the WBLAHS, but she is also a member of many other organizations, which she pushes to preserve their history and tell their story.”
—Sara Markoe Hanson, Executive Director, White Bear Lake Area Historical Society
“Jo Emerson has been a remarkable mayor in the city of White Bear Lake. At our elementary schools, Jo has rock-star status as a frequent mystery reader during February ‘I Love to Read’ month. She values the importance of education and the work of our educators, which was especially apparent during our successful 2011 referendum levy and 2013 capital projects levy.
—Dr. Michael Lovett, Superintendent, White Bear Lake Area Schools
