Mrs. Nebraska 2009
Jennifer Hart – Omaha, NE
Top 6th – Mrs. America
Jennifer Hart’s pageant story began in 2008, when she was approached by friends to compete in the Mrs. Nebraska Pageant. “I never knew how different my life would be. I decided to compete to give myself a goal and deadline to get back in shape after having my three children. From my college track days at Indiana, I found that I truly missed competing, and was thrilled to finally capture the Mrs. Nebraska title in 2009.”
Jennifer says that “Mrs. Nebraska gave her a reason to have a platform, but the people gave her the passion.” She had been fortunate enough to continue working with breast cancer survivors for the last 7 years. Working with the Susan G. Komen Cure of Nebraska, as well as the home office in Dallas, has not only tied into her job but has given her a glimpse into how strong and resilient breast cancer patients truly are. “The fire and drive to fight this disease with everything they have is eye opening and makes you take a step back and realize the important things in life aren’t “things”, they are the people you surround yourself with, that love and care about you.”
Currently Jennifer works for Eisai Oncology, based out of Woodcliff Lake, NJ. She sells a chemotherapy for metastatic breast cancer and does her best to help fight for these women every day. “It has been a humbling experience to work with these patients involved in Komen as they reach out and thank me for all of my work. If I had half the strength of these amazing women, I could move mountains.” Jennifer has continued her platform beyond her reign by being a board member and volunteer for “Race for the Cure” since 2007. “Doctors for the Cure” has been Jen’s focus for the last 5 years, by recruiting doctors around the state, no matter the specialty, to donate $300 each so that survivors can attend and run/walk with their families with no cost to them. This past year, she switched gears to “Kids for the Cure” as breast cancer affects everyone in the family, not just the patient. “Kids don’t realize the implications of cancer, and to them they think mom, grandma or auntie is like a super hero. Kids have an amazing outlook on life, they have their family that loves them, a laughter and resilience that is contagious, and it gives everyone affected with breast cancer a reason to fight!”
Jennifer and Gregg have 3 children together; Hudson, Harrison, and Hayden. Her children know what she does and know how cancer can affect a family. They always want to help their mom at Komen events because they know it means “helping families that have been affected by cancer”. “It’s always been important to teach my children to give back. This football season, Hudson wanted to wear his pink breast cancer ribbon socks during his games in the month of October to honor survivors and Harrison and Hayden are always on the lookout for pink ribbons knowing that’s what is important to me when I was Mrs. Nebraska…..and still is.” Hudson and Harrison love playing football and baseball, while Hayden is busy with dance and soccer.
In 2012, Jennifer decided to take on the role of co-director for the pageant with Jennifer Bradley. “I am honored to be a part of this great sisterhood but more so by being able to help change the lives of other amazing women who compete in our pageant system. It has been a great opportunity to show them the difference they can make within their family, their job, and the community. My journey has been wonderful and I am very grateful for the opportunities I have been given from being a part of the Mrs. Nebraska legacy.
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