Parkland’s Advocate

Hitchen majored in education and enjoyed a long career teaching in Lakewood’s Clover Park School District and Spanaway and Graham’s Bethel School District. She was intentional about getting to know her students and their families, which led her to grow frustrated with Pierce County’s neglect of Parkland and Spanaway.

“Before there wasn’t transportation, there weren’t parks, there weren’t community centers, and there weren’t support systems for kids and families in crisis,” Hitchen says. “When I had teenagers threatening to commit suicide and deputies were showing up instead of a crisis worker, when I had families doing parent-teacher conferences in tents behind a local bar, it was clear to me the system was broken.”

“A lot of the challenges were related to this area being unincorporated,” Hitchen continues. “The county wasn’t meeting the needs of this community, and that was a reflection of county leadership.”

Hitchen was encouraged by neighbors and colleagues to run for Pierce County Council. She wasn’t someone who’d always dreamed of running for elected office, but she was adamant that her community needed an advocate on the council – so she answered the call to serve.

Since being elected in 2020, Hitchen has worked hard to collaborate and problem-solve with colleagues, community leaders, agencies, organizations and neighbors. She’s advocated for additional behavioral health services, collaborated with small business owners, supported the county’s opioid task force, and worked hard to help pass an ordinance that will generate funds to build new affordable housing, permanent supportive housing and emergency shelter housing across the county.

“Jani is a fierce advocate for her community, and someone who leads and legislates from her deep sense of empathy and compassion,” says fellow County Councilmember Ryan Mello. “She’s been a much-needed champion for local youth, survivors of domestic violence and our unhoused community. She’s a dynamic and irreplaceable member of the council.”