Beahm joined the Willa Cather Foundation team in November 2022. She grew up in Keene, New Hampshire, just a few towns over from where Willa Cather is buried in Jaffrey. She came to Nebraska after college to get her start as a reporter and news anchor, spending seven years at KHAS-TV (NBC 5) in Hastings. She also worked as a news director for KHAS Radio in Hastings, and eventually transitioned into higher education, where she served as an admissions counselor, associate director of admissions, and communications manager at Hastings College, and then Clarkson College. She received her B.S. in broadcast journalism and an M.A. of liberal arts from Texas Christian University. In addition to her regular jobs, she has served on the Hastings City Council since 2017. She is also an avid reader and writer and has won numerous awards for her personal essays and broadcasting. Beahm lives in Hastings with her husband, Brad, and their furry children.
You’ve been working as the Development Associate at the Willa Cather Foundation since Fall 2022. What drew you to the job? What convinced you to make the commute to Red Cloud?
I have worked in the nonprofit sector since 2014, and the work really speaks to me. As a fan of Willa Cather, I had been hoping for an opening at the organization that would fit with my prior experience, challenge me professionally, and inspire me daily. This role checked all of those boxes. As a donor to the organization for years, I’m proud to not only support the mission, but to help others find meaning in our work.
What is your favorite thing about Red Cloud?
I really enjoy how Red Cloud has embraced and promoted its history. I am drawn to communities that act just as Red Cloud has–restoring and protecting the town’s prominent properties and revitalizing the historic downtown.
You have been a member of the Hastings City Council since 2017. What do you like most about serving on the council? Are there any challenges?
I covered city council meetings for years as a reporter and anchor, but I always felt disconnected from the process and the issues affecting the community. After leaving a career in the media, it was so important for me to finally be able to give back with knowledge I had gained. City council is tougher than most people think–no issue is ever cut and dry, and citizens are fiercely protective of their community. I really enjoy being able to serve a part of the city that is often overlooked, but it’s tough knowing that there are never enough resources to get done all that we wish we could.
Tell us a little bit about your job at the Cather Foundation. What do you like most about it?
As the development associate, I am responsible for stewardship activities related to fundraising and donor relations. I also assist with grant writing and fundraising communications. This role combines so much of what I enjoy–relationship management, writing, and all things Cather. I hope that when I ask for support for our organization, my love for our mission is evident.
I am drawn to communities that act just as Red Cloud has–restoring and protecting the town’s prominent properties and revitalizing the historic downtown.
What’s one thing you wish everyone knew about the Willa Cather Foundation?
I think people often forget that there’s something in our organization for everyone. Whether you’re interested in historical preservation, supporting visual and performing arts, you’re a literature enthusiast, or an environmentalist, we have the programs to inspire you. We love Cather’s written works, but our mission is about more than that–we promote Cather’s legacy by protecting and sharing with visitors the places that inspired her and by offering access to the arts that cultivated her own creativity.
Do you have a favorite TV show and/or podcast?
I am a creature of habit, so I find myself watching and rewatching shows I’ve seen dozens of times before. My favorites are Gilmore Girls and MASH with a little Cheers thrown in. During baseball season, though, you won’t find much else on our TV or radio but Red Sox games.
Do you have any hobbies or interests you’d like to share?
I love to read, and I play the piano (not amazingly, but I enjoy it). Mostly, though, my time outside work is spent traveling to see my family in New Hampshire, Maine, and Canada. I love to backpack, and I miss the smell of the pine trees in New England, so quick weekend getaways to hit the trails in the Black Hills of South Dakota with our dogs are really important to me.
Whether you’re interested in historical preservation, supporting visual and performing arts, you’re a literature enthusiast, or an environmentalist, [the National Willa Cather Center] has the programs to inspire you. We love Cather’s written works, but our mission is about more than that–we promote Cather’s legacy by protecting and sharing with visitors the places that inspired her and by offering access to the arts that cultivated her own creativity.
Do you have any pets?
My husband and I have a little zoo in our home. We have three quite entertaining cats, a hyper tri-colored corgi, and an Australian shepherd mix who looks like Benji. Thankfully, everyone gets along, and we find we can’t be anywhere in the house without all of them by our sides.
What would your high school teachers or guidance counselor say about you if we asked?
I think they would say that they’re not surprised to see me working in the role I am today. I was quite social in high school, but always the bookworm, too. I think they’d share that I was a leader, very driven, and that I refused to take no for an answer. A position that allows me to network with people, write, and promote an American author wasn’t on the career aptitude test, but probably something they would have envisioned for me.
What are you most proud of?
I am proud of the life I’ve built and the happiness I’ve found. I never expected to stay in Nebraska more than a couple of years after college, but I fell in love with the beauty of this state. A few years later I fell in love with a boy. If you had asked me in college where I would be living and what I’d be doing for a job, my life today would not match those answers, but I’m happier than I could have ever imagined. I’m proud that I trusted my instincts about the image and reality of a purposeful life.
Do you have a mantra or mission statement you live by?
On the wall above my desk at home I have a little note paper with the quote, “In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take.” It speaks so perfectly to the big decisions we all have to make throughout our lives.
What historical figure or celebrity would you most like to have dinner with? Why?
I’d probably have to say Badger Clark (1883-1957). He was South Dakota’s first poet laureate, and he lived in a cabin in Custer State Park for thirty years. I envy him for his life of frugality, his days spent writing in his modest little home, fishing every day, and meditating in the fresh Ponderosa-pine forests of the Black Hills. I know he’d cook us something simple and delicious, we’d have coffee on the porch, and then we’d talk for hours about our love of nature and the simple joys of living off the land. If a conversation with him could be half as inspiring and satisfying as his poetry, I would relish hours hearing his perspective on life.
Do you have any recommendations on what the Red Cloud community could do to welcome newcomers?
Welcoming newcomers is something Red Cloud has been doing since its founding, and to me that’s a beautiful thought. I have lived in Nebraska since 2007, yet I still have folks reference the fact that I’m not from here. That’s disappointing. I think it’s so important to embrace outside ideas, while also taking time to share what makes your community great. A dinner among new friends is never a bad idea; in the end, we all just want to fit in and feel like we belong.
Who has been the biggest influence in your life? Explain why.
I would have to say my mother (mum). I don’t think you realize until you’re an adult just what your parents sacrifice to make your educational or professional dreams come true. She never held me back as a child, she trusted me as a teenager, and she gave me the freedom to explore the world as a young adult. I realize now how hard it must have been for her to let me go to college in Texas and then take a job in Nebraska after graduation. Our time together has always been limited by proximity, but when we’re together at our family lakehouse in New Hampshire or during a holiday with relatives, it’s like no time has passed nor miles kept us apart. She’s the hardest-working, most selfless woman I know, and she has no idea how great she is.
I never expected to stay in Nebraska more than a couple of years after college, but I fell in love with the beauty of this state. A few years later I fell in love with a boy. If you had asked me in college where I would be living and what I’d be doing for a job, my life today would not match those answers, but I’m happier than I could have ever imagined. I’m proud that I trusted my instincts about the image and reality of a purposeful life.
Who is your favorite actor?
I love Cary Grant. North by Northwest is my favorite movie. Lee Marvin is a close second for his performance as Ben Rumson in Paint Your Wagon.
What is your dream vacation?
Most people wouldn’t see it as a “vacation,” but mine would be to spend half a year hiking the Appalachian Trail from Maine to Georgia with my husband. While we do enjoy our tropical paradises, a walk in the woods is the best way to recharge and reset.
What’s your favorite place to visit in Nebraska?
I love the Cather Memorial Prairie. I first visited the prairie in the spring about five years ago now, and it’s a place I keep returning to. I grew up on the east coast, and I miss the ocean terribly. The waving prairie grasses mimic the patterns of the sea and make me just a little less homesick. The Nebraska Sandhills near Ash Hollow are a close second.
I have lived in Nebraska since 2007, yet I still have folks reference the fact that I’m not from here. That’s disappointing. I think it’s so important to embrace outside ideas, while also taking time to share what makes your community great. A dinner among new friends is never a bad idea; in the end, we all just want to fit in and feel like we belong.
Do you have any advice on how Red Cloud and the Cather Foundation can attract more visits from Tri-Cities residents?
I think the greatest thing we can do is spread the news about all of the events and opportunities we have in Red Cloud. There are great activities for people of all ages and interests.
Contact Jeniffer about fundraising, sponsorship, and development opportunities:
jbeahm@willacather.org * 402-746-2653
Credits:
Jeniffer Beahm * The National Willa Cather Center