Background
She was born in 1947, the daughter of a Wisconsin dairy farmer, and was already divorced from her first husband when she met Ken Hendricks in 1975.
She was born in 1947, the daughter of a Wisconsin dairy farmer, and was already divorced from her first husband when she met Ken Hendricks in 1975.
She is the widow of businessman Ken Hendricks. When they met, she was selling custom-built homes and Ken was a roofing contractor. In 1982, they took a loan to establish American Broadcasting Company Supply.
Diane Hendricks owns the Hendricks Holding Company and owns and serves as chairperson of American Broadcasting Company Supply Company, Incorporated.
She is worth United States$4.8 billion, making her the richest woman in Wisconsin. She is #2 on the Forbes list of richest self-made women.
She is a donor to WisconsinEye and co-chair of Rock County 5.0. She has served on the boards of Stateline Boys & Girls Club, and the Beloit Hospital.
She currently serves on the boards of the Beloit Foundation, WisconsinEye, Forward Janesville, Kandu Industries, Blackhawk Bank, the Hendricks Family Foundation, and Beloit College.
She has produced movies, including The Stoning of Soraya M., about an execution in an Iranian village, and An American Carol. She donated $500,000 to Governor Scott Walker"s recall campaign and was his biggest donor in 2012. She also supports Paul Ryan.
In 2014, she donated $1 million to the Freedom Partners Action Fund, a pro-Republican Super Public Affairs Committee created by the Koch Brothers.
In 2015, she gave $5 million to a Public Affairs Committee associated with presidential candidate Scott Walker.