Frannie Heine | Peoria, IL

Born and raised in Peoria, Frannie Heine knew from a young age that she wanted to travel and work with people. While earning a degree in Human Resource Management from Illinois State University, Frannie started working at Maui Jim Sunglasses assembling boxes and her career took off from there.

Frannie’s roles at Maui Jim have included Human Resources, Global Operations and Logistics. “At the age of 24,” notes nominator, Michael Eckhardt, Frannie “was entrusted with the oversight of Maui Jim’s end-to-end operations in the Middle East and Africa, including logistics, customer experience, after-sales and financial management.” She spent five years in Dubai, UAE before being promoted in 2018 to oversee Domestic Fulfillment and Global Logistics here in Peoria. In this role, Frannie oversees all transportation, warehousing and fulfillment functions, leading a team of more than 70 logistics professionals. Frannie appreciates working in a role “where collaboration, cultural nuance and problem-solving come together in a way that fits how I think and work.”

Returning to Peoria after five years in a bustling, global city was not easy for Frannie. “Coming home and settling into Peoria brought more reverse culture shock than I expected—less travel, a slower pace and a very different day-to-day life. It took time to figure out how to really appreciate where I was.”

For Frannie, a key part of regrowing her Peoria roots has been getting involved with local organizations that strengthen community connection and access. She served on the Board of Directors for ArtsPartners of Central Illinois from 2018-2025 and continues to support the Development Committee and the Ignite Peoria planning team. She also served on the Board of Directors for Peoria Grown, a local food-insecurity nonprofit, from 2020–2022.

Eckhardt finds the stories of “talented boomerangs like Frannie particularly compelling,” explaining that, “After several years in Dubai, she could have lived anywhere in the world—yet she chose to return to Peoria…She has been extremely successful in her personal career, while also carving out the space to invest in a surprising number of local non-profits (while also raising two little girls!).”

Frannie jokes that her two daughters, Jojo and Edie, “are equal parts feral and hilarious.” She appreciates having a lot of family close by and parents who often travel from Colorado to see their grandkids. “My parents made real sacrifices to build a better life for us and growing up with that example shaped how I think about responsibility, resilience and showing up for others. It influences how I lead and how I show up as a parent.”

In her spare time, Frannie enjoys hiking (“the Peoria Park District trail system is incredible”), camping and “convincing my daughters that attending art events is, in fact, a fun family activity.”