Kankakee Times

Kankakee County Republican Women's (KCRW) member Jayne Lehman Raef recently outlined her distinguished role in helping shape Illinois policy and invited women to join KCRW.

A nurse by training as well as a corporate manager, Raef said she became interested in shaping Illinois policy early in her career, gaining experience with a top Fortune 500 firm and discovering that she enjoyed the challenges of a competitive environment.

“My team consistently reached top levels of performance during my time there and I found the competition invigorating,” Raef said. “(Perhaps) that is when the competitive political bug bit me.”

Beginning with her membership in the Bourbonnais Elementary School District 53 board, Raef engaged with fellow Bourbonnais residents and at the same time launched initiatives for improvement and recognition of her home turf.

With assistance from Superintendent Dan Hollowell, Raef said she facilitated the district’s success in attaining an “Excellence in Governance” award – one of only 18 districts recognized statewide – from the Illinois Association of School Boards (ASB) in 2014, according to the Kankakee-based Daily Journal.

KCRW, a grassroots group promoting GOP principles and policy through advocacy and education, isn't the sole focus of Raef’s work; she maintains policy involvement on local, state and national tiers.

Besides maintaining active participation locally in Kankakee, Raef serves as a vice chair for the Illinois Federation of Republican Women and the National Federation of Republican Women, where she oversees leadership development and strategic planning.

In addition to educational policy work, Raef has had a hand in enacting legislation. She facilitated the passage of HB1498, which became Public Act 99-0235, involving exceptions to the Open Meetings Act. The measure originated as a District 53 resolution based on state law that allows for closed meetings for discussion of security matters to ensure protection of students, staff and public in the schools from threats of violence.

Additionally, in the spring of 2015 she became the second vice chair of the newly formed Illinois Republican Women PAC, noting that the position was particularly galvanizing for her. “I am now even more energized to raise the funds necessary to place statewide Republican candidates in (the) General Assembly,” Raef said regarding that appointment.

Raef said she also assisted the Illinois Federation of Republican Women as membership committee chair, a position she referred to as “the best job on earth” prior to her selection as its second vice president in February 2016.

“I am blessed to be traveling up and down and across the state to help women’s groups get off the ground, to energize them, and to challenge wonderful Republican women to function at their fullest using their particular gifts ... and to let them know how much we love and need them,” Raef said.

Although she finds herself in demand all across Illinois, Raef has not forgotten her Kankakee roots.

“KCRW was the (birthplace) of much of this opportunity for me,” she said. “I have enjoyed my involvement with KCRW and its powerhouse women (and men) that are wholly committed to the growth of women in politics and invested in the betterment of Illinois and the United States of America through the philosophy of the Republican Party.”

Formed  three years ago, the Kankakee County Republican Women’s organization sponsored a bus tour across the state for Illinois candidates in 2014, which Raef referred to as “a landmark event for IFRW and for Illinois.”

“If you … are looking for a place to exercise your interest in anything political, humanitarian, and social, please look seriously at KCRW and at the parent organization, Illinois Federation of Republican Women,” Raef said.

The KCRW is affiliated with the Kankakee County Republican Central Committee and is committed to electing, supporting and holding accountable Republican leaders in Kankakee County. That committee meets every second Thursday of the month at 715 Meadowview Center in Kankakee.