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Jennifer Dunn is taking care of business

(Editor’s Note: The following is the latest in a series of feature stories highlighting The Ohio State University South Centers Staff)
Bradford Sherman
South Centers/CFAES

There is nothing else in our area quite like the Endeavor Center, a unique gathering place for business-minded people to meet, learn, and even house their start up.

With the bevy of people coming through the door every day, it takes a special person to make sure those guests have everything they need so that important meeting, training session, or event goes off without a hitch. For the Endeavor Center, that person is Jennifer Warfe-Dunn.

Dunn has filled this role, and picked up other duties along the way, since beginning her career at South Centers in 2011. Her working title is Program Assistant, but it does not begin to describe all of the different roles she fills on a daily basis. She might be best known for handling the booking of all meeting rooms for the Piketon and Jackson facilities, but also performs administrative duties for partners housed at the Endeavor Center and the South Centers business team, as well as coordinates meetings, events, catering services, deliveries, and more.

Moreover, just as important as all of that – she is the first point of contact for anyone visiting in person or calling by phone. Anyone who has business at the facility on a regular basis knows that hers is the face of the Endeavor Center.

“It is the different people we get to serve here,” Dunn said, when asked about what she enjoys most about her job. “You get to meet someone new from the area, or traveling from afar. We have individuals who come from all over the United States and internationally.”

“You have the same core set of responsibilities including customer service, coordinating meetings, and taking care of logistics, but it is like a different job every day, in that there is always a different face.”

Dunn certainly carries a reputation for being professional, meticulous and for her top-notch organization – all while juggling many various responsibilities. So, what is her secret? It is all in the planning and being ready for anything.

“You have to have a Plan B if Plan A fails,” she explained. “When you deal with unpredictable things on a daily basis, you had better have a backup plan. If the electricity goes out, or if the first network for Wi-Fi goes down, you need a backup ready for those things.”

When Dunn, a self-admitted tomboy, is not taking care of clientele at work, she is probably busy at home taking care of her beloved goats, Chet, Cherry, and Peaches on her little home farm, or one of her many cats or dogs. She also enjoys cars, gardening/canning, and attending flea markets in search of one of her favorite collectables, Fiesta dinnerware.

However, her favorite and most unusual hobby also deals with collecting; she owns over 100 pieces of Pepsi memorabilia. The collection includes bottles, advertisements, matchbook covers, bills of sale, and more.

To collect that much Pepsi, she must really love the drink, right? Not necessarily.

“My husband and I like to travel, and one day we purchased a Pepsi sign at an antique store – that is how it got started,” explained Dunn, who rarely drinks sodas at all. “But If I do drink a soda, it is going to be Pepsi.”

She earned a degree in business management and merchandising from Antonelli College (formerly Antonelli Institute) and prior to joining OSU, she worked primarily in retail, but also sold advertising and built visual displays in specialty stores. 

Born and raised in Adams County, Dunn currently resides in Peebles with her husband, Denver, and youngest son, Cade. She has two other sons, David and Zane, who are already grown and out on their own.