Dennis Jaeger Receives MCRA’s 2007 Distinguished Service Award
As presented by Diana Taylor at the 2007 Convention
Good Afternoon. It is my privilege to present this year’s Distinguished Service Award, which is the highest honor that can be bestowed upon a member of our association. It is presented annually to a reporter, in recognition for their contributions to the Association and to the profession. This year’s recipient is a remarkable individual - someone who has definitely gone “above and beyond” the call of duty by donating countless hours and truly “giving back” to their profession.
Here are a few facts about this year’s honoree. This individual:
* Is a Registered Merit Reporter;
* A Certified Court Reporter;
* A Certified Shorthand Reporter in both Missouri & Illinois;
* Has worked as a freelance reporter their entire career;
* Is still a working reporter;
* Has been a firm owner since 1982;
* Has traveled all over the country;
* In addition to deposition work, has reported conventions, labor arbitrations, and meetings;
* Has done a lot of daily copy work;
* Has reported numerous airplane crash cases;
* Was a member of our state association back when it was known as the Missouri Shorthand Reporters Association;
* Has made many trips to Jeff City, dealing with legislative issues;
* Served as MCRA Treasurer, Vice President, and President;
* Was involved in obtaining a salary increase for official reporters;
* Was president when the association instituted a statewide pro bono program;
* Pushed for mandatory certification;
* Is a fantastic writer;
* Graduated from reporting school in 11 months;
* Has an extremely high translation rate;
* Never shadows;
* And can produce 1700 pages in a month.
What an impressive list!
Our honoree was born and raised in Minnesota. While in high school, this person attended court reporting classes for half days their junior year and senior year; then went on to reporting school, graduating in only 11 months! The only problem was, this amazing writer was only 19 and was too young to swear witnesses!
Our reporter’s first job is with Jackson Reporting, a firm in Kansas City. One of the main reasons for taking this job is because this reporter can take assignments that don’t involve swearing witnesses. Jackson Reporting does a lot of national as well as international business, and this reporter moves to Seattle, Washington, and works there for 18 months, taking assignments all over the U.S. and doing a lot of daily copy cases.
For six years this talented reporter is the “requested” reporter for the National Governors’ Conference, which is a meeting of all the state governors of the United States.
Our reporter moves to St. Louis and works another 16 years there for Jackson Reporting. In 1982 our reporter, along with two business partners, form a freelance firm, which, after 25 years, continues to provide reporting services to the legal community in the St. Louis Metropolitan area.
It’s during the 1980s that our recipient began to get involved with MCRA, serving first as Treasurer in 1982, Vice-President in ‘83 and ‘84, and President in ‘85 and ‘86. This person also volunteered many hours - serving on committees, grading CSR exams, and was a frequent speaker at Meramec Community College’s Court Reporting program.
Our honoree, along with Carolyn Keeling and Debbie Reithmeyer, demonstrated CAT software to the Missouri Bar association at its annual meeting in 1985. This was the very first demonstration ever given to the Missouri Bar.
It was during this person’s presidency that MCRA instituted a statewide pro bono program. During their tenure on the board, and through appearances in Jefferson City as an MCRA representative, official reporters in this state received a graduated salary increase in 1985 and ‘86. This reporter’s dream was to have a CSR mandation for freelancers, and so they revitalized the push for mandation during their presidency. They finally saw this dream come to fruition several years later. Interestingly enough, the Distinguished Service Award, which was begun in 1984, was established during this person’s tenure on the MCRA Board of Directors.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is an honor and a privilege to present to you this year’s Distinguished Service Award recipient - Dennis Jaeger!
Dennis, if you would join me up here, please.
Dennis, please accept this plaque, in recognition and thanks for your outstanding contributions to MCRA and to the reporting profession.
One of Dennis’s friends wrote, “MCRA could find no greater icon for distinguished service than Dennis.” Another wrote, “He has shown outstanding leadership qualities that helped MCRA become a very strong state court reporter association.”
There are just a few more things that I’d like to share with you about this most deserved recipient.
Dennis’s wife Jan is here today. She is also a reporter. Dennis and Jan have three children and five grandchildren.
Actually, it’s interesting how Dennis and Jan met. They both were employed by Jackson Reporting. Dennis was working in the St. Louis office when Jan came to the firm in 1959. Between out-of-town assignments, Dennis stopped at the office to drop off some notes and pick up supplies for his next assignment and met Jan getting off the elevator. Jan had just started working there, and she was quite nervous about meeting Dennis, because he had already developed quite a reputation among the reporters. Little did she realize that she was about to meet her future husband. Two years later they were married.
Dennis was one of the first reporters in St. Louis to produce transcripts with a CAT system. In the 1980s, he collaborated with Hal Carr, another reporter in the area, building his dictionary from scratch on a mainframe computer. Later Mr. Carr opened an Xscribe Computer Center, which many St. Louis reporters enrolled in, and Mr. Carr exclaims that Dennis was the most prolific reporter on his system, averaging 1700 pages per month.
Dennis served for many years on the MCRA Board. He was a strong, effective leader, and has a great sense of humor. His board meetings were productive, and they got down to business in record time, but they also had an enjoyable time.
Another strong trait of his is that he really backs his people. In his firm, if there were ever any complaints, he always stood behind his reporters.
Dennis is a very, very hard worker, and puts in lots of hours. Oftentimes he would get up before dawn and put in a couple of hours at home, before going into the office.
Yet somehow Dennis seems to find time to pursue interests outside of reporting. In addition to being an antique impresario, he’s a gourmet cook, and many a reporter has enjoyed a gourmet meal at his home in St. Charles, Missouri.
Mark Concannon, who is Dennis’s good friend and business partner, shared the following story:
“Growing up, Dennis excelled in spelling and remembers the spelling bees where it was the boys against the girls. Dennis takes great pride in saying, ‘I was always the last boy to go down before the girls won the spelling bee.’”
Dennis loves crossword puzzles. He takes them on jobs and works on them between witnesses. If he’s watching TV, he works on them during the commercials. If he gets stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, he works on them while he’s inching along. After all these years, he is still fascinated by words.
In doing some research on Dennis, I heard of a couple of very interesting stories. Something about a belly dancing costume? And another about one of your roommates at a convention having to sleep out on the balcony? Well, unfortunately we’re running out of time and I don’t have time to go into those! Maybe if you catch Dennis afterwards, he’ll share some of these stories with you.
Dennis, several friends & colleagues sent in letters, congratulating you on your award. I won’t read them now, but will present them to you at this time. There are letters from Mark Concannon, your long-time business partner; Fred Schaefer, Carolyn Keeling, Debbie Reithmeyer, and Sue Williamson; and St. Louis Attorneys Marvin Lindmark, Celynda Brasher, and Peter Yelkovac.
In closing, there’s one more story that I would like to share with you about our honoree.
Court Reporter Jane Carey once asked Dennis's wife Jan, only half jokingly, why anybody would want to be MSRA president. Jan said that “Dennis felt it was his responsibility as a member to do his part and take his turn. It was as simple as that.”
Dennis, you’ve certainly “done your part” and then some. From all of us, thank you, and congratulations on this award, which you so richly deserve.