About Jim – Personal Background – Business Owner
About Mayor Jim Hollenbeck
Jim’s love for the City of Marseilles is evidenced by his commitment to it. He donates his entire salary back to support local and area organizations and happily spend countless hours volunteering for service projects while working on beautification efforts – including weeding, watering flowers and mulching. He also donates equipment from his snow plowing business to City plowing efforts during periods of considerable snowfall to help clear roads faster and assists with maintaining the creek beds for adequate flow and flood control.
Jim’s entire professional life has been in public service for the City of Marseilles and the State of Illinois. He is proud and honored to leverage his nearly 50 years of experience, expertise and knowledge as a City staff member and elected official, as well through his service to the State of Illinois – to continue to serve Marseilles as the Mayor of Marseilles.
Through all of his experiences working for, and representing Marseilles as an elected official, his goal has been constant; to move this community forward. His belief is that this can only be done by working together. He thanks everyone who has supported this aim, including the overwhelming majority of his fellow City Council members, and the entire City staff. Without their service, none of the City’s accomplishments would have been impossible – because there is No I in Team.
Through his years serving the City of Marseilles and the State of Illinois, Jim has been humbled to be the recipient of numerous letters of commendation from local, State, and Federal agencies regarding investigative skills and accomplishments, including the Meritorious Service Medal and Life Saving Medal.
Please click below to learn more about Jim; as a family man, business owner, and public servant.
Personal Background
Jim was raised in Seneca and attended Illinois Valley Community College and then the University of Illinois at Champaign’s Police and Fire Training Institutes. He always knew he wanted to be either a police officer or a firefighter because he liked helping people. He moved to Marseilles in 1975 and was hired first as an officer for the Marseilles Police Department. Two years later, he added Marseilles Fire Protection District firefighter to his resume and remains an active firefighter – fulfilling both of his professional goals as a youngster. Jim went on to rise in the ranks at the Police Department, before ending his career there as Acting Police Chief when he moved on to work in law enforcement for the State of Illinois. After he retired, he found a new way to serve his community and was elected to the Marseilles City Council for a total of 12 years before being elected Mayor – a role he has served in since 2019.
Jim is married to his wife Sheila and is the father of four children; Mike, Aaron, Kenneth, and Ashley. Mike is a Certified Public Account, Aaron followed in Jim’s footsteps and is a Sergeant with the LaSalle County Sheriff’s Department, as well as a Marseilles firefighter. Kenneth is a construction worker, and Ashley is a surgical nurse for OSF Healthcare. Jim and Sheila are the adoring grandparents of six grandchildren, Cameron, Cade, Aadyn, Konnor, Holden and Becket.
Jim is active in their community and church along with Sheila, and serves on various boards.
Business Owner
Jim founded Jim’s Snow Removal and Ice Control LLC in 1979 and presently has eight trucks that provide services in the Marseilles, Seneca and Ottawa areas. In 2020 the business expanded when Jim partnered with his good friend Anthony Caseselli to also do excavating and Bobcat work.
Public Servant
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