Nancy VanMilligen

TH: How do you describe your management style?
NV: My management style? I enjoy people. I enjoy working with people. I prefer an organization that's very flat, where you really bring people together around an issue and say how can we best work together to be successful.

TH: How do you get things done?
NV: As a management team or personally?

TH: Personally.
NV: Personally. How do I get things done? That is an excellent question. I work long hours. I'm a list maker. I have to write everything down. I'm a pretty efficient multi-tasker. You almost have to be. I love what I do and I just keep at it.

TH: Regarding the foster care system. If you had a magic wand and could make those necessary changes to the foster care system, what would be at the top of your list?
NV: Recruiting and retaining and supporting quality foster parents would be No. 1. No. 11/2. No. 1 would probably really designing the system where children are seen as the focus. Children have to be the center of the decision-making, and that's not how it is. I would like to see it more community-based, where the community supports families. The best way for a child to grow up is within their own family. How can we avoid foster care in the first place would be a great place to start.

TH: From a practical standpoint, are there things you'd like to see the legislature - bing, bing, bing - to make some changes, whether it's taxes or programming or staffing offices. We've got that magic wand; let's use it.
NV: I know. I wish it was that simple to come up with an easy solution or to say let's overhaul the system because that would be my temptation. I guess I'd go back to focus on the child. Build strong families. Support families as they're raising children. That's why I'm involved in empowerment and the empowerment board. I'll let you ask the questions. Having 20 hour answers.

TH: I know you don't have much spare time or free time, but when you get that little bit of time, what do you like to do?
NV: I love to spend time with my kids. I go visit Kenny in St. Paul and Mary in Iowa City and just do things around Dubuque with Pat, Joe and Chrissy. They are each a unique and wonderful individuals and bring me great joy. I love to ride my bike from Sageville now to Balltown. The new highway has that, I think it's an eight-foot bike lane. You ride along the bluffs and the river. It is just beautiful. I love to read. And I give up many hours of sleep late at night reading. Mike and I swim early in the morning and I really enjoy that. To me, it's very relaxing and makes me feel healthy and strong.

TH: What are you reading right now?
NV: What am I reading? I just finished "Cold Mountain," which was an interesting style of writing. I truly enjoyed it. I read, I'm a very eclectic reader. I just ready "Truman," by David McCullough. I enjoyed that. "Up Country," about Vietnam. A very descriptive, fascinating book. "The Secret Life of Bees." I enjoyed that greatly.

TH: What CDs do you have in your vehicle right now?
NV: Some classical. James Taylor. Paul Simon. A lot from our era.

TH: Any other thoughts on areas where you'd really like to see Dubuque grow or improve?
NV: I was in Bulgaria last summer. In all of eastern Europe, there's that element of connectedness and community that probably comes partly from less cars, less air-conditioning, less television, but in the evening where everybody comes together at the community center and there's music and there's card playing. I see some of that happening down on Main Street, where you see more people walking down and going to different places and doing things. Along with that other piece of connectedness and community, that really was very appealing to me and Mike. How did we lose that along the way?
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