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Text
of a press release issued by Jennifer McKeever's campaign on Monday, March
5, 2007
"Jennifer McKeever is a mother, a business owner, and a community
activist. She is proud of her success, and she knows that it was not always
clear that the path would lead her here.
Jennifer was born in Long Branch, NJ on March 26, 1972. As a child she
lived in Germany while her father was in the military. They later moved
to New Jersey and Illinois where her mother was a nurse's aide and her father
had several jobs, finally working at the police dispatch center for Dupage
County. Her family was on food stamps for a while and her mother attended
nursing school part-time while working full-time. The family moved to Virginia
in 1995 after her mother graduated. Her mother began her career as an intensive
care nurse at the University of Virginia, where she still is today and her
father worked at the 911 dispatch center in Charlottesville. Jennifer and
her brother started J.T. Henley middle school in Crozet, VA.
Jennifer L. McKeever
1140 Locust Avenue Charlottesville, VA 22901; (434) 296-6824;
Member, Virginia State Bar
EXPERIENCE
HiltonMcKeever, PLC Attorneys & Counselors at Law
Charlottesville, VA
Founding Partner, February 2006-present
* Practice areas include business, real estate, education and estate planning.
Develop budget, prioritize needs, promote business and exceed expectations
of clients.
Potomac Legal Aid Society, Inc.
Falls Church, VA
Staff Attorney, July 2002-May 2006.
* Advised clients of legal rights under Virginia law in family, consumer,
housing and employment. Negotiated on behalf of client's interests including
obtaining settlements for housing clients to prevent eviction, retrieve
security deposits and obtain needed maintenance.
Rappahannock Legal Aid Society, Inc.
Fredericksburg, VA
Staff Attorney, August 2001- July 2002
* Litigated custody, protective order, housing, and consumer in Juvenile
and Domestic Relations and General District Courts. Represented clients
in neglect and employment administrative hearings. Participated in area
domestic violence and housing task forces.
Charlottesville-Albemarle Legal Aid Society
Charlottesville, VA
Law Clerk, Summer 2000, 2001
* Researched and wrote memoranda on litigation strategies involving utility
surcharges in public housing. Interviewed and counseled clients on housing,
employment and consumer issues.
Virginia State Senator Emily Couric
Richmond, VA
Legislative Intern, 1998
* Gathered support for Senator's proposed legislation including funds for
school construction. Responded to constituent inquiries. Represented the
Senator in meetings with lobbyists.
COMMUNITY SERVICE
Chair, Community Development Block Grant Task Force, Charlottesville 2005-present.
Member, Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, Charlottesville, 2006-present.
Member, Rotary Club of Charlottesville, 2006- present.
Member, Chamber of Commerce, 2006-present.
Member, Charlottesville Albemarle Association of Realtors, 2007.
Board of Directors, Locust Grove Neighborhood Association, Charlottesville
2005- present
Member, Board of Directors, Hope House Fredericksburg, VA 2001-2005
Member, Board of Directors, Rappahannock Counsel on Domestic Violence 2001-2003
EDUCATION
American University, Washington College of Law, Washington, D.C.
J.D., May 2001 cum laude
Honors:
* Fellow, Marshall-Brennan Program, taught Constitutional Law to Washington
D.C. high school students
* Recipient, Arthur Matthews Memorial Scholarship 2000, awarded for superior
representation of public interest clients.
The University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA
B.A. History, May 1998
Piedmont Virginia Community College Charlottesville, VA
A.A. Liberal Arts, May 1996 |
Five months later Jennifer's parents were separated. Jennifer stayed
with her father and brother in Greenwood. Today Jennifer's father lives
in Baltimore with his wife, Sherry, a major in the Air Force, and has two
step-children; one an Iraq veteran, and one currently serving in Iraq.
Jennifer graduated from Western Albemarle High School in 1990. She briefly
went to Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA. She returned and worked
at College Inn and St. Maarten's Cafe to support herself as she attended
Piedmont Virginia Community College. She graduated with an AA in Liberal
Arts from PVCC in 1996 and transferred to the University of Virginia. While
at UVA she interned for Senator Emily Couric. Jennifer graduated from UVA
in 1998 with a Bachelor in Arts degree in History.
Senator Couric inspired Jennifer to attend law school, and in 2001 she
graduated from American University's Washington College of Law in Washington,
D.C. While in law school she taught Constitutional Law to high school students
through the Marshall-Brennan Fellowship, and worked summers with the Legal
Aid Justice Center--then called Charlottesville-Albemarle Legal Aid Society.
After law school, Jennifer started her career at Rappahannock Legal Services
in Fredericksburg and Potomac Legal Aid Society in Falls Church. Jennifer
started her law firm in 2006 emphasizing estate planning, real estate and
business issues.
Jennifer married Chris Wiles in 2002 and she became a mother twice in
two years, David was born in 2003 and Andrew in 2004. Chris and Jennifer
moved their family home to Charlottesville two years ago. In that time they
have bought their first home in Locust Grove and Jennifer has founded Hilton
McKeever LLC with her partner, Holly Hilton. She has taken an active role
in making Charlottesville a better place to live by working on the Community
Development Block Grant Task Force and on the Parks and Recreation Board.
Jennifer has immense gratitude for the support she was given by the community
of Charlottesville, and is working to return that support as a mother, business
owner, and public servant. It is her hope that her two sons, and all of
the children in Charlottesville will be supported, so that they may live,
learn, and remain in the community where they grew up." (electronic
mail, March 5, 2007)
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