Central Dewitt Hall of Fame Induction Class 2009

Central Dewitt Hall of Fame Induction Class 2009

Dennis Dammerman is a 1963 graduate of Central High School. Dennis was a resident of Grand Mound attended Grand Mound High School through his sophomore year of high school, then moving to Central High School in the fall of 1961 to finish out his high school studies. Dennis joined General Electric in 1967 and had a 38 -year career with the company, retiring as the CFO in 2005.

If Central Community High School’s class of 1963 had named a “man most likely to succeed, ” it probably would have been Dennis Dammerman, who retired from a 38 -year career with GE (General Electric), is being honored next week as an outstanding graduate by the Central Hall of Fame. He attended Grand Mound High School through his sophomore year, when the Central Community School District was formed through consolidation. His career path eventually led him to GE’s No. 2 position behind the company’s long-time CEO, Jack Welch, who was named CEO of the century by Fortune magazine. Dammerman’s success came as a surprise to no one who knew him. “He’s one of the smartest people I ever met, ” says Dick Kelly, a good friend who was a year behind him in school. “He won the Clinton County Spelling Bee when he was 10 or 11. ” Dammerman was an active student — a member of the student council and National Honor Society and involved in drama. “He’s tremendously gifted and a fun guy, ” Kelly continued. He was not very athletic, but he was a genius. Everything was easy for him. If anyone could pull off (such a prestigious career), it was him. ”

His mom, Louise Lichtenstein of De. Witt, saw the same characteristics in her youngest child. Although he often “had his nose in a book, ” Dennis played well with other children and also got along with older folks. She describes her serious-minded son as “inquisitive, dedicated and determined. If he decided to do something, he did it well, ” she recalls. ductee elf The After deciding to investigate one summer whether blondes really have more fun, Dammerman and Kelly’s older brother, Jim, bleached their hair with the help of Luanne Keiner. Reading the instructions for the bleaching agent, they discovered after the treatment, they should let their hair dry naturally. “We hopped in Jim’s car, and with Luanne at the wheel, we drove up Humeston Road at about 90 mph with Jim and me hanging our heads out the window until our hair was dry. “I worked with my father (an electrician in Grand Mound) all that summer, and he never once mentioned my hair looked different. “After that summer, I can confirm blondes do have more fun. ” Dammerman admits to having skipped school one day with his friend Karen Sorenson, but he was bright enough to protect himself against punishment by taking along the school’s foreign exchange student, Jaja Muhammen, who was living with the Sorensons. They pulled off the caper

without repercussions. During Dammerman’s senior year, he worked at Ray Cole’s Shell gas station, where he got his first experience as a businessman. “One Sunday evening, a man from Maquoketa limped into the station with a 1953 Plymouth that appeared to be on its last legs. “I told him I would give him $5 for the car and give him a ride home, ” Dammerman recalls. “He accepted. The next day, I replaced the fuel pump, and the car ran perfectly. I then sold the car to Pete Matthiesen for $50 — the beginning of my business career. ” Dammerman went on to the University of Dubuque, where he graduated in threeand-a-half years before joining GE on the companay’s financial management plan. He continued studying hard and working harder, Lichtenstein says. “The work day never ended for Dennis. He worked ‘til the job was done, ” his mother says proudly.

Dammerman worked his way up the line through the corporate audit staff, GE Lighting, Capital Services and GE’s Consumer Products division as well as the Commercial Financial Services Department. In 1981, he was named vice president and general manager of the Real Estate Financial Services Division. He served as senior vice president – finance and chief financial officer from 1984 until his retirement in 2005. He had joined GE’s board of directors in 1994 and been director of capital services for 16 years. 1998, CFO Magazine presented Dammerman the first Lifetime Achievement Award for CFO Excellence, which recognizes “someone who, over the course of his tenure, effectively has changed the perception of what finance is and what it can be, and who is universally respected and admired by his peers. ” Today Dammerman is chairman of the board of Capmark Financial Group Inc. , a director of American International Group and a director of Blackrock Inc. He is a trustee of Skidmore College and the New York Racing Association. He has a son, David, and a daughter, Heather, and two grandchildren. Lichtenstein says despite all his success, Dammerman still is a Grand Mound boy. ”