Mary Jo Minor began her journey with the family business in the early 90’s when she purchased management contracts from her father, Harvey, for existing properties that were being managed by H.E. Mills Construction – a company started by Harvey in 1949 and is the roots of Mills Property Management, Inc. Since then, Mary Jo has successfully expanded the company to over 1,900 homes, apartments, and commercial properties, and specializes in several areas of housing, such as government financed properties, student housing, luxury housing, and association management for home owner’s associations.

In addition to expanding the company’s services and sales, the business has also successfully transitioned from the first generation to the second generation and has begun planning for their second transition. Today, the family members working in the company are second generation Mary Jo Minor and Wendy Peterson, and third generation Mallory Minor and Jessica Hardt. To help with the transition process as well as communication, estate planning, and other family business is­sues, the family has enlisted programs at the PFBA to help further their education and give them the support they need.

“Being involved in the Prairie Family Busi­ness Association is a continuing reminder that we are on a journey that is worth the effort and the sacrifice. We have access to so many resources and other fam­ily businesses that have traveled similar paths and are willing to share their story and offer support,” Mary Jo stated.

The Minor family regularly attends the annual confer­ence, as well as PFBA webinars, but one of their biggest supports comes from their involvement in the Affinity Peer Groups. “We have set goals and timelines for stepping into more leadership due to the participation and accountability from a peer generation and business family group.” The family knows their journey is a continuous one, but they have taken the necessary steps by participating in these programs to help ensure they are on the right path.