Janet Carlson
Board Member
Commissioner, Marion County, Ore.
Number of years involved in NACo: 15
Years in public service: 17 years as an elected official, plus 21 as a public school teacher and state/county government staff
Occupation: County commissioner
Education: B.A., Willamette University, political science; M.A., Brigham Young University, political science; PhD, University of Oregon, special education and community resources
The hardest thing I’ve ever done is: Run for an open seat in a targeted state legislative race, walking 12,875 doors and winning by just 180 votes.
I dream I have is to: Have the time to work out every day.
You’d be surprised to learn that I: Produced more than 100 episodes of “How Are the Children?” on local cable access.
The most adventurous thing I’ve ever done is: Transition from WordPerfect to Word. (I still miss WordPerfect…)
I’m most proud of: My family — husband, three grown children and five grandchildren.
Every morning I read: Facebook, emails and the local newspaper.
My favorite meal is: Salmon and a baked potato.
My favorite way to relax is to: Sing in the car with my karaoke tapes (yes, tapes).
My pet peeve is: Seeing inappropriate capitalization and misplaced commas in county documents.
My motto is: “Live by faith, not fear.”
My favorite movie is: Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
My favorite music is: ‘60s and ‘80s pop.
My favorite U.S. president is: Abraham Lincoln.
My county is a NACo member because: We understand that counties accomplish more when we work together.
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