New Hope Mayor Kathi Hemken Bids Farewell With Final Cookie Bake
Each year, Kathi Hemken, the longtime mayor of New Hope, bakes hundreds and hundreds of cookies for city staff. This year is her last time taking on that tradition.
Hemken announced her decision to not run for re-election last December. And this year, she’s hanging up her apron after her last holiday season as mayor.
But in the meantime, she’s cooking up 1,258 cookies for New Hope city staff. That’s ten dozen designated for city staff and contractors — plus extras, just in case.
It’s her way of saying “thank you” every year. She explained that as mayor, her role was to encourage those around her.
“I don’t do anything. I don’t have a hammer, I don’t build anything,” Hemken said. “What I can do is I can bring people together, and I can let them do their job.”
Outgoing New Hope Mayor Kathi Hemken puts a batch of cookies into the oven.
Well-Oiled Machine
Hemken was first elected as mayor in 2008. She won re-election again in 2012, 2016 and 2020. She said she’s been doing the cookie bake since about 2012.
After 12 years of baking en masse, Hemken’s operation looks like a dance.
Part of that is thanks to Hemken’s preparation, which starts in the fall. She writes handwritten notes, collects ingredients and prepares the dough. She prepares six different kinds of cookies, including white chocolate cranberry, peanut butter stars, peppermint and chocolate cherry.
Tuesday’s operation was comprised of unpacking dough balls, putting them on cookie sheets and baking them in the large kitchen at St. Joseph, a catholic church in New Hope.
This phase of work started early this morning and went through the afternoon. After baking, Hemken puts them back into plastic bins and brings them home to bag — it’s a system.
But another reason the operation runs so smoothy is because of her helper: friend and former coworker, Lorraine Kloss. Their connection goes back years, when Kloss trained Hemken to be an election judge.
“Did you ever think we’d be back here baking cookies?” Hemken asked Kloss.
“40-some years later?” Kloss responded, laughing.
Though Kloss only joined Hemken’s two-person team two years ago, she’s happy to help.
“Kathi doesn’t just serve the city. She serves every single person in the community, from what I’ve known of her all these years,” Kloss said. “She’s way beyond being a mayor. She’s such an advocate of helping people, so I want to help her, too.”
Lorraine Kloss and Kati Hemken work together to assemble peanut butter star cookies.
Past, Present and Future
Now, it’s the pair’s last December baking hundreds of cookies. Longtime New Hope Council Member John Elder won the mayoral race, and will be taking over for Hemken. She said he won’t take over the tradition — but that’s fine with her.
“I want him to succeed in his own way,” Hemken said. “This has been my thing. And it’s been a lark for those 12 years that I’ve been doing it.”
Though this tradition retires with her, the city’s built many things during Hemken’s tenure that will still stand. Namely, a wide variety of housing throughout the city.
‘They tell me that we put $200 million into the New Hope economy,” Hemken said.
She said it wasn’t all her. She was just the cheerleader, and cookie maker.
“All of these things are really things that help build community,” Hemken said. “If you don’t have community, you don’t have anything.”
Hemken said she’ll spend her retirement prioritizing family, friends and travel. She’ll still bake, but likely 20 or 30 dozen instead of 100. And to city staff — she said this year’s cookie delivery starts Tuesday night.
