Fayetteville’s Voice: Mayor Pro Tem Kathy Keefe Jensen

Kathy Keefe Jensen embodies her hometown—the City of Fayetteville—as much as any community member can. She is a part of a military family in a city that is the largest municipal partner to the largest military base in the world. She is a local business owner, and a nationally renowned one at that, earning widespread praise for her formal wear store that has been in business more than 20 years. She is a city council member, having been elected six times and presently serving as Mayor Pro Tem.

And yet, she understands that the perception of her and the perception of Fayetteville do not align. She recalls a conversation she had with a stranger years ago at the Fayetteville Regional Airport. While waiting to board their plane, the person said to her, “I love your look. You must not be from around here.”

“I will never forget that,” Jensen said. “Born and bred. I am Fayetteville.”

It is that disconnect that motivates much of her public service work, for which she understands that going above-and-beyond is the only route to success. Already a dynamic, innovative community, Jensen is dedicated to raising Fayetteville’s status as high as possible, in the eyes of business, outsiders and residents alike.

“I already know and love my community, and now it’s time others understand that too,” Jensen said. “Understanding the Fayetteville community means recognizing the richness of our culture, and depth of our history, and the strength of our unique identity as a community deeply connected to service. It’s just as important that we help others see what makes our city so special—from a vibrant downtown to exciting economic growth. Fayetteville is not just a place to live—it’s a place to thrive.”

Jensen spent her entire upbringing in Fayetteville, briefly leaving to attend East Carolina University before returning to attend Methodist University and later to work for the family business, overseeing the property management and financial part of the company.

When she met her husband Jerry, a soldier from Nebraska stationed at Fort Bragg, they traveled the country and the world following his career, living in numerous locations around the United States and Europe. They ultimately decided to return to Fayetteville to raise their family. Around this same time, Jensen started her own business, An Affair to Remember.

That status quo—plenty busy on its own with five children and a small business—remained until 2012, when Jensen attended a city council meeting. She was unhappy with how some problems had been addressed in her neighborhood, and in getting closer to the city’s leadership of the time, she determined that she could do better.

“It was as simple as that,” Jensen said. “I went to some meetings and I said, ‘I’m running for council.’ And I did. And I won.” She was elected to her first term in 2013.

Immediately, she appreciated the weight of the role. “I was the dog that caught the car,” Jensen said. “I didn’t realize how much it was. I didn’t realize how much impact local government has on day-to-day living. How much impact it has on our children. What I did realize, though, was that I liked it.”

Jensen, as she describes it, comes from a family of politicians. Her father, John Keefe, served for years as a Cumberland County commissioner, as did her brother Jimmy Keefe, who also served on the Fayetteville City Council. “I always stayed out of it,” Jensen said. “I wanted nothing to do with it. But the moment I got involved, I thought, ‘Oh yeah.’ I knew I liked it. I knew I could make an impact.”

Jensen calls herself a systems person. She likes to see how the machine works and how everything fits together, and almost immediately upon joining elected office, the system of local government became clear. “I could see things moving, pieces moving, to get to where you needed to be,” Jensen said.

She could also more clearly see Fayetteville’s place within the larger North Carolina landscape. It was an objection she had held for years, albeit not from a position of leadership. She recalled the field trips with her kids, the family outings, the conferences and meetings she attended—they were rarely, if ever, in Fayetteville. “Now seeing how things worked, I thought, “Why not Fayetteville? Why can’t these things be here? I saw that I could make a change there.”

Elevating Fayetteville’s standing has been a central priority and theme of Jensen’s work, and she has found success through her time in office. One example Jensen highlights is a recent success with Fayetteville Regional Airport, where the city was able to secure nearly $61 million in federal and state grants for the total renovation from 2017 to 2024. “For years, we said it was too big of a project, that we couldn’t get anything done. Well, we got it done.”

Jensen was also instrumental in the passage and execution of a $35 million parks and recreation bond, which, from 2017 to 2023, allowed for the construction of several parks, sports complexes and senior centers, improved existing parks, built five splash pads around the city, and renovated the minor league baseball stadium. “When I came on council, we had one pool and one splash pad in the entire city,” Jensen said. “These things are important, to the city but also to our families.”

Perhaps her greatest local pride is the Fayetteville-Cumberland Youth Council, which she helped create and charter in 2015. The Youth Council is a local civic group comprised of high school-aged kids and younger. It serves as a development organization, allowing them access to the decision-making process and levers of local government; a community group, as the members engage in volunteerism across the city; and an advocacy organization, where the members of the Youth Council serve as the collective voice of the city’s under-18 population. “We have the best Youth Council in North Carolina,” Jensen said, adding that 100% of Fayetteville’s Youth Council members go on to college after their participation. “It changes lives.”

Succeeding in these initiatives is challenging enough for Jensen and for Fayetteville, as it is for communities across North Carolina, given the financial, cultural and political navigation required of any decision. Here, though, the challenges are unique because Fayetteville is not just its own town—it is also the largest city partner to the largest military installation in the United States. Jensen, a military family member herself, understands the exceptional obligation of supporting the military base with each local government action, of serving a city of majority veterans and of providing services targeted to those veterans, such as housing support and mental health resources.

“It’s a different life,” Jensen said. “The people here live a different life. And those outside of it, they don’t understand.”

Jensen’s aspirations are purely local. She has no intention of state or federal office, but every intention of serving Fayetteville for as long as she can. So much of that work, as she puts it, is shining a light on the greatness that is already present and the potential of what the community can be. She won’t take no for an answer.

“When people say something can’t be done, I say, ‘Why? Why can’t it be done? Why not Fayetteville?’ I’m going to say it, I’m going to do it, I’m going to find a way,” Jensen said. “We’ve come a long way, but we’re not finished yet.”