Diane Hendricks

Diane Hendricks
Born Diane Marie Smith
1947 (age 68–69)
Wisconsin, United States
Residence Afton, Wisconsin, United States
Nationality American
Occupation Co-founder and chairperson, ABC Supply
Net worth $5.3 billion (February 2016)[1]
Spouse(s) Ken Hendricks (deceased)
Children 7

Diane Marie Hendricks (born 1947) is an American businesswoman, film producer, and philanthropist from Wisconsin.[2] She is the widow of businessman Ken Hendricks.[2][1]

Early life

Hendricks was born and raised in Wisconsin,[1] the daughter of dairy farmers. She graduated from Osseo-Fairchild High School in 1965, and had been divorced from her first husband for ten years when she met Ken Hendricks.[3]

Career

In 1975, she was selling custom-built homes and Ken was a roofing contractor. They married and became business partners. In 1982, they used their lines of credit to secure a loan that enabled them to establish ABC Supply.[3]

Diane Hendricks owns the Hendricks Holding Company, and is the owner and chairperson of ABC Supply.[2][4][5] In March 2012, Forbes estimated her net worth at US$2.8 billion;[4] Bloomberg estimated it at $5.3 billion as of February 2016.[1] [6] [7]

Philanthropy

She is a donor to WisconsinEye, and co-chair of Rock County 5.0, a five-year public/private initiative to advance Rock County’s economic development vision.[2][5] She has served on the boards of the Stateline Boys & Girls Club, Beloit Memorial Hospital, the Beloit Foundation, Forward Janesville, Kandu Industries, Blackhawk Bank, and the Hendricks Family Foundation. Hendricks serves on the Board of Trustees of Beloit College.[2]

Hollywood producer

She has produced movies, including The Stoning of Soraya M. (2008), about an execution in an Iranian village, An American Carol, (2008), and Snowmen, (2010).[5][8][9][10][11]

Political donations

She donated $500,000 to Governor Scott Walker's recall campaign, and was his biggest donor in 2012.[4] She also supports Paul Ryan.[5] In 2014, she donated $1 million to the Freedom Partners Action Fund, a pro-Republican Super PAC created by the Koch Brothers.[12] In both 2015 and 2016, she donated $2 million to Freedom Partners Action Fund.[13] In 2015, she gave $5 million to a PAC associated with presidential candidate Scott Walker, but has had $4 million refunded.[14]

In the 2016 U.S. presidential election, she gave over $5 million to the Reform America Fund, a super PAC which has opposed Hillary Clinton and supported Republican U.S. Senator from Wisconsin Ron Johnson.[15] Hendricks has served as an economic advisor to Donald Trump's presidential campaign.[16]

Personal life

She has seven children and 17 grandchildren, and lives in Afton, Wisconsin.[2][1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Diane Hendricks Net Worth". The Richest. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Our Team: Diane Hendricks". Hendricks Holding Co., Inc. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  3. 1 2 Zipkin (as told to), Amy (November 21, 2009). "The Business Must Go On". The New York Times. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 Spivak, Cary (May 30, 2012). "Beloit billionaire pays zero in 2010 state income tax bill". Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Romell, Rick (December 25, 2010). "Widow a power in Beloit, beyond". Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  6. ↑ Ten Questions For Diane Hendricks, Forbes, 11.04.10
  7. ↑ "Diane Hendricks". Forbes. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
  8. ↑ "Diane Hendricks Producer". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  9. ↑ Dickinson, Hilary (May 24, 2010). "Hollywood comes to Beloit". Beloit Daily News. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  10. ↑ Holden, Stephen (June 25, 2009). "An Iranian Village Mob and a Wife's Execution". The New York Times. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  11. ↑ McCarthy, Todd (October 4, 2008). "An Iranian Village Mob and a Wife's Execution". Variety. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  12. ↑ Vogel, Kenneth; Allen, Mike (October 14, 2014). "Koch donors uncloaked". Politico. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Freedom Partners Action Fund Contributors, 2016 cycle". OpenSecrets. Center for Responsive Politics. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
  14. ↑ "Million-Dollar Donors in the 2016 Presidential Race". The New York Times. February 9, 2016. Retrieved April 1, 2016.
  15. ↑ Bice, Daniel (October 25, 2016). "Bice: 5 donors pump $1.7 million into pro-Johnson PAC". Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
  16. ↑ Arnsdorf, Isaac (October 27, 2016). "Another super PAC spends millions against Clinton". Politico. Retrieved 28 October 2016.

External links

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