By Maggie Beamguard
Insider Editor
Jennette Mendence will soon be trading her office in Seven Lakes North for a villa in Tuscany. The trip she is planning to the land of pasta, art and wine is in celebration of her retirement as the community manager of Seven Lakes North and South.
“While we will certainly miss Jeanette and her dedicated stewardship over the community, we are happy to learn she will kick off her retirement with her husband Buddy, who retired in late 2023, with a trip to Italy,” said Heather Guild, president of the Seven Lakes Landowners Association. “And after that she will welcome more time with her grandchildren, children, and aging parents, and working on her golf game.”
As she settles into retirement, Mendence is also hoping to take some art and ceramics classes.
Employed by Community Association Services, Inc. (CAS), Mendence served widely through Seven Lakes, including six years onsite at Seven Lakes West and about three years with McClendon Hills as part of a portfolio of properties she managed off site. She has been with CAS for 18 years.
Before she and her husband settled down in the Sandhills and she began her career in customer service with CAS, they lived all over. A military family, they moved 17 times in 22 years. “Being an Army wife, you reinvent yourself,” Mendence says. She also worked for Progressive Insurance in Florida and as head of human resources for Barillo and Sons in Colorado Springs.
Her career in community management has been anything but boring.
“I like doing projects. I do like talking and meeting with people. I like that my job is not the same everyday,” she said. Her favorite projects she has worked on are putting in new roads, working on drainage problems and installing special projects like a park or library.
“Every day is different because you’re dealing with people,” she said, “and then different things are popping up and happening along with things that are planned and sometimes they happen on a Saturday night.”
Mendence says she will miss the opportunities to learn new things. But she will not miss those Saturday night phone calls or having to make tough decisions about when to implement inclement weather plans. She also is not sad to say goodbye to those long Thursday night board meetings.
As she retires, she leaves a legacy of leadership across three of the Seven Lakes premier communities. She hopes the things she has accomplished have been positive. She oversaw projects such as the new mail house and new entrance on the west side and a big road paving project and drainage projects on the north and south sides.
“I hope people talk fondly of me and of the work I accomplished,” she said. “I’ve always loved it and tried to do my best. I’m going to miss everybody here. This is a beautiful place.”
As Mendence’s approaches her last day, set for March 22, she is finishing some projects and occupied with routine tasks. Those include getting the annual meeting notice out and boat stickers ordered. She has offered to stay a few weeks longer, should the SLLA need help with the transition to a new or interim manager.
The board has already begun the work of identifying candidates to serve as the new manager. The interview process and ultimate hire is expected to take 1 to 3 months. CAS provides an interim manager if necessary to fill any gaps.
“We have been very lucky to have Jeanette on the SLLA team — she has been on call after hours and over weekends to sort out various emergencies and has helped the SLLA Board navigate challenging issues that come with governance of a community of over 3000 people,” wrote Guild in a message to the community. “Please wish Jeanette well as she prepares for this most deserved and exciting next adventure! From the SLLA Board, we wholeheartedly thank her for her service to our community.”
Contact Maggie Beamguard at maggie@thepilot.com.
