Lisa Jahnke

Lisa Jahnke
Marquette

Over the last year, Lisa Jahnke of Marquette has stepped up in a big way to help her community navigate the pandemic. Early on, she joined the Masks for Marquette volunteer initiative to help make and distribute protective gear for medical personnel, frontline workers and school children.

As a result of her effort, Masks for Marquette has provided over 45,000 pieces of protective equipment, including masks, gowns and intubation guards. Additionally, every student in the Marquette Area Public Schools received one of the masks thanks to the project. Lisa was also instrumental in the group receiving a grant for supplies from the Community Foundation of Marquette County.

In March of 2021, Lisa also began volunteering with the Marquette County Health Department to help residents get vaccinated. She began working phone lines to assist in registration and scheduling of appointments. She then began volunteering during the clinics, greeting residents, pushing wheelchairs, checking paperwork and helping wherever else needed. She has served an average of 10-15 hours a week with the health department where her work has impressed personnel.

Annually, Lisa serves to help raise funds to make life a little easier for families who have a child battling cancer. She volunteers with the Marquette Beautification & Restoration Committee and serves on the boards of Grow & Lead: Community and Youth Development and the Community Foundation of Marquette County.

Lisa credits her parents as being her inspiration for wanting to serve others. They both are retired from the Air Force and even in their 80’s, they continue to volunteer with both the Gwinn VFW and the local senior center. Prior to the pandemic, Lisa would go with them to the VFW to assist with bingo. Service is a cornerstone in her life and has been from a young age, thanks to the examples that her parents have set for her.