Trustee Kate Perkins is the President of the Board. She and her family have lived in Warrenville for over 30 years. She has a master’s degree in computer science from the University of Wisconsin, and before she retired, she was a software engineer with Alcatel-Lucent. Kate served as secretary of the Board of Trustees in 2013 and 2014. In 2015, she led Elect Your Fire Trustees, the referendum initiative that changed the Board from an appointed Board to an elected one. She was elected in the first election of trustees in 2017. Kate enjoys serving her community and volunteered with both the City of Warrenville’s Emergency Management Agency and the City’s Bicyclist & Pedestrian Advisory Commission for several years. Kate became interested in emergency response when she served as the leader of a medical emergency response team at Alcatel-Lucent.

Trustee Jeff Carstens, Secretary of the Board, is a lifelong Warrenville resident. Working through college in an auto body shop, he earned a BA in Business from North Central College in 1989 and a JD from IIT Chicago Kent College of Law in 1992. Preferring business and the technical challenges of his college job to a law career, in 1995 he returned home to take over the body shop and renamed it Phoenix Auto Body, which he has run ever since. Unable to volunteer as a firefighter with all that is required, he has always been a supporter of the District in any way possible over the years, not only repairing many of the vehicles, but also hosting a hands-on training session at his shop on how to deal with some of the latest automotive technologies our personnel might face on an accident scene, and finally becoming one of the Trustees to help run the District and keep it at the high professional level it has attained. Married since 1992, he and his wife Monica chose to raise their family here in Warrenville, and both their sons Aaron and Ben, are now POC firefighters in the Warrenville Fire Protection District.

Trustee Denise Pertell was elected to and has served as Treasurer of the Board since 2017. Denise has been a resident of Warrenville for 40+ years and raised her family here.  Her experience with the Fire Protection District began in 1980 as a member and past President of the Firefighter’s Auxiliary. She is still active in the Auxiliary.  Her volunteer spirit has enabled her to be deeply involved in Warrenville and has assisted in numerous community events and activities. She has served as past President of Warrenville Youth and Family Services and as a council member of Trinity Lutheran Church.  She has also served as a past President and steering committee formation member of the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce, FOCUS: Women in Business.  Additionally, Denise participated in a selected Mastermind group of women concentrating on the enhancement of their skills in the business environment. Denise has a B.S. in Business Administration and graduated summa cum laude from Elmhurst College. Through her professional career, she has acquired a broad background in evaluating, planning, and providing continuous improvement within the business environment

Trustee Joe Rogers has been an elected Fire District Trustee since May 2021. The Rogers family has been a strong part of the Warrenville community since the mid-1860s and the Fire District since its establishment in the late 1930s. Mr. Rogers became a 5th generation firefighter (through his great uncle Chuck Paver who was the 2nd Fire Chief of the District) and got his start in the fire service at 18 as a Paid-on-Call firefighter with the Winfield Fire Protection District. After four combat tours with the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, he returned home and carried on the family tradition with the Warrenville Fire Protection District and resigned after the rank of Firefighter Lieutenant. Mr. Rogers has worked in many positions in local government including managing operations for the DuPage County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Currently, he is the Security Chief for Fermilab, contracted by the Department of Energy. Mr. Rogers is an avid member of the community and has served as the Warrenville VFW Post 8081 Commander and is a Charter member of the Warrenville American Legion Post 589. He has a B.S. in Fire Service Administration and is currently working on his Master’s degree in Public Administration and resides in town with his lovely wife and two boys ages 2 and 3.

Trustee Al Thompson