Kenosha County Executive Jim Kreuser Receives Award From the Historic Kemper Center

The Kemper Center Board of Directors presented Kenosha County Executive Jim Kreuser with the 2021 Penny Enroth Award at its annual meeting held Tuesday, August 27.

Each year, the Penny Enroth Award is given to an individual who has contributed greatly to the operation of Kemper Center in its cultural, historical, and recreational role in the Kenosha community and beyond. The award is named after Penny Enroth, a 1958 graduate of Kemper Hall. She, along with a group of other alumnae and civic leaders, led the fight to preserve and keep Kemper Hall and the Durkee Mansion from private development after it closed as a school in 1975. Due to her efforts, Kemper Center was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

"Jim has worked closely with Kemper Center to help maintain and preserve the historical significance of both Kemper and Anderson Arts," said Pat Mott, Kemper Center Board of Directors Chair. "He, like many in Kenosha, find our complex a unique and valued asset. He has been a tremendous strength and guiding leader in helping to assure Kemper Center continues to grow and be a place in Kenosha that everyone wants to visit and enjoy its rich history and cultural significance in the community."

Kreuser played an integral part in the Anderson Arts Center's $4.3 million renovation, a project that was jointly funded by the County and City of Kenosha. The Arts Center reopened in February 2020 after a year-long construction project that restored and preserved the historic integrity of the building and installed a high-tech energy efficient heating and cooling system. He is also one of the Kemper Center's most loyal supporters of culture and arts and is partnering with Kemper to present the Kenosha County Suffrage Celebration on August 24 during its Twilight Jazz summer concert series.

"The Kemper Center campus is an integral part of the Kenosha County Parks system and our county's history," said Kreuser. "I'm pleased that Kenosha County is preserving this beautiful gem along the shore of Lake Michigan for future generations. It is due to the commitment of people like Penny Enroth that we are able to do so. It is humbling to receive an award in her name."