Prominent Rotary Club member becomes 1st student alumni recognized in JWP Hall of Fame

Cliff Gardner was a man dedicated to the city of Janesville, something that was instilled in him many years ago as a Janesville High School graduate.

Gardner is recognized for his many accomplishments in his life as a Janesville alumni, as he is the first student alumni inducted to the JWP Academic and Fine Arts Hall of Fame. He will be posthumously inducted to the hall of fame on Monday, May 20.

Education

Gardner graduated from Janesville High School in 1956, and was awarded a Medal of Leadership and Service from the Janesville American Legion. His service in the community during his high school years carried over throughout his entire life.

Gardner continued to give back to the Janesville community through education by volunteering assisting Janesville and JWP sports. He also was an associate Business Law instructor at the University of Minnesota Technical College in Waseca in the 1970s.

Right after his high school graduation, Gardner did his under-graduate studies at St. John's University in Collegeville. During his studies there, he was accepted by the Institute of European Studies to study one semester at the University of Vienna in Austria.

The program allowed him to travel throughout Europe, including Rome, Italy and attended the 1958 Easter Services at the Vatican, which involved a Mass and blessing from pope Pius XII at St. Peter's Cathedral.

During his college studies, Gardner met Annette Takle of Walnut Grove and they married in 1962. Gardner was admitted to the Minnesota State bar Association in 1962 and the couple decided to move from St. Paul to Gardner's hometown Janesville the same year.

For law school, Gardner took night classes at the William Mitchel College of Law in St. Paul and worked as an insurance claims adjuster during the day. He graduated in 1968 ranked number three in his graduating class and was awarded a Juris Doctorate Degree.

Law

Gardner was an attorney in Janesville for most of his life and joined his father and mother in their law firm, which became Gardner & Gardner, Attorneys at Law. Gardner then merged his practice with the Patton, Hoversten, and Berg Law firm where he continued to practice law until his retirement.

"Growing up in Janesville, my parents had great faith in Cliff as their tax consultant and their attorney," said Marcia Dimmel-Schultz. "This tradition continued for my husband and I as a young farm family as Cliff guided us in estate planning and countless other situations."

Gardner served as the City Attorney for the towns of Janesville, Pemberton, and Elysian at various times, but what he is most noted for is his contributions to the Janesville Rotary Club.

Rotary Club

"I have so many fond memories of Cliff, many of them connected to Janesville Rotary," said Pastor Larry Griffin, who was the Senior Pastor at Trinity Lutheran in Janesville from 1990-2019. "His love for God, his country, his family, and the Janesville community was amazing."

For 30 years, Gardner served as the Janesville Rotary Club Youth Exchange Coordinator for 30 years. Cliff and Annette enjoyed hosting exchange students who came to Janesville under the program. One of the students was Dave Edhouse.

Edhouse is from New Zealand and was a Rotary exchange student in 1989. He came to Janesville and was fortunate to have Gardner as his councilor.

"I'm now a father and a grandfather and looking back as a seventeen year old boy away from his family, I remember myself as a reasonably good kid, but there were times I needed good advice and support and Cliff was always there for me," Edhouse said.

Gardner had friends from all over the world due to his involvement with the Rotary Club. But the closest relations Gardner had were based in Janesville.

"I will always remember Cliff as a pillar of our town," said Dimmel-Schultz. "He did so much with the Rotary, our foreign exchange program, and countless philanthropic contributions and projects."

Marjory Lau Gilsrud of Madelia had a great relationship with Gardner, as he was her Rotary Dad.

At the beginning of her senior year, Gardner encouraged Gilsrud to pursue her dream of becoming an exchange student after the passing of her dad. Gardner drove Gilsrud to the interview as well as to the classes to prepare Gilsrud to be an exchange student.

Gardner kept in touch with Gilsrud during her year abroad and they kept a close relationship together through the years.

"Cliff was truly one of a kind," Gilsrud said. "Our community was truly blessed. He truly was a role model to many in Janesville and to many Rotary students throughout the world."

Gardner passed away in January of 2021, but his legacy will always be remembered in the Janesville community.