(PHOTO BY REBECCA MILLER, STAFF)
By: Rebecca Miller
Despite the forecast for snow on the evening of February 12, 2020, a nice sized crowd of around 125 turned out for the “Meet the Candidate” event held at the Williams County Veteran’s Building in Montpelier.
The event was sponsored by Bryan and Montpelier Chambers of Commerce, The Bryan Times and Bryan Municipal Utilities and moderated by Chamber Executive Directors Dan Yahraus and Kimberly Friend. A panel formed to direct questions to the candidates was made up of Bryan Chamber President Bob Golding, Montpelier Chamber President Karrie Patten and Bryan Times Assistant Editor Ron Osborn.
The evening began with each of the candidates, who were running for anything other than Sheriff, having 8-10 minutes each to introduce themselves. Each of these candidates is unopposed within their party at this time, for the Primary which will be held on March 17, 2020. Despite the fact that all but two have no competition for the primary, they each shared the knowledge as a way for the residents of Williams County to know them better.
Kim Herman, for Clerk of Courts: 1981 graduate of Bryan High School; married to Kevin Herman; has three adult children and two grandchildren with another on the way; she began her career as a deputy clerk under Sharon Miller in May 1994; learned all aspects of the job: promoted to Chief Deputy but when Miller became ill, Herman was appointed to finish her term in 2003 and was reelected since 2004.
She is a working clerk in the Legal Division and both that and the Title Office work well with the public. She has pursued ways to better her department and has collected $73,000 for the county with some of her efforts. She has a goal of becoming paperless.
Lew Hilkert, Commissioner: resident of Williams County for 35 years, married to Gail, has four adult children and eight grandchildren. Has a number of degrees in finance; active in West Unity as past president of Chamber of Commerce, involved with Hilltop Athletic Boosters and was a trustee for the Millcreek West Unity Foundation and the County North Foundation.
He is a Military Veteran and he and his wife attend New Hope Community Church. He spoke of qualifications to be a Commissioner which are only that one must be over 18 and have no Felony Convictions. He has 50 years in Finance and retail management.
The future economic growth of Williams County needs someone to be proactive to build a better community and he also spoke of his participation in some “contentious” issues which were won by Williams County. Diligent work on some major projects, especially Kunkle.
Upgrading of the county radio system is needed and should be happening soon. The commissioners handle huge amounts of money that is for other departments and he believes a balanced budget is most important.
Heather Freese, (Democrat running against Hilkert) for Commissioner: born and raised in Williams County, served on board for Habitat for Humanity and is now with United Way. She spoke of her passion for the community.
She feels that just a small group of individuals are making decisions for the county and it is important that everyone has a voice when decisions are made. She believes all decisions should be made, whenever possible, as long as it doesn’t conflict with safety, in a public setting.
She spoke of having a specific meeting space and all meetings should take place there so that the public can be present. “This isn’t the same community we grew up in,” Freese said. “It’s changing a lot and things have been pretty contentious over the last year and I feel like it is our responsibility to clear that up.”
“It seems like it has been a tough year for the commissioners to clean that contention up. …I am hoping with some fresh eyes and ears we can make that happen.” She also stressed the importance of transparency.
Terry Rummel, Commissioner: he thanked supporters for the opportunity to be a commissioner for the past three years. He said being a commissioner is about lots of meetings and lots of phone calls, as well as the budget process.
Five points he has learned while being commissioner: 1. The job is not a small job. 2. The General fund is 16 million and it is a huge amount to learn how to handle. He felt like he finally gets it. 3. He highly commended Todd Roth and his department and Denny Miller and his team at the Maumee Valley Center for bringing in millions of dollars to the community. 4. Job is extremely hard but rewarding. 5. He is finally comfortable with how slow the government moves. To make positive changes we must collaborate and go slowly.
Todd Roth, County Engineer: married to Angie, has four daughters and has a grandchild on the way. This is his second term. He comes from public and private sectors, 20 years in public and rest in the private so it helps his viewpoint. He spoke of what his office covers, with number of different departments. They deal with three hundred county bridges, 400 miles of road, 270 drainage ditches and tiles. “I truly enjoy my job. It is the diversity and the people I work with.” He hopes to serve for many more years.
Karen Gallagher, Common Pleas Court Judge: In Williams County there are two elected judges for different divisions of the court. She is running to replace Judge Steve Bird as he is retiring at the end of his term.
She is an attorney and has been in legal practice for 34 years, all in Williams County. Has had much experience in court as a trial attorney. In May 2016 she became the Magistrate for all four divisions of the Williams County Common Pleas court.
She has been making decisions for peoples lives and feels that the combination of her experiences from the inside and the outside will make her good for the job. “We are there to make families stronger…and I look forward to building good relationships.” She spoke of moving with the times and being a powerful force.
Katherine Hartman, Williams County Prosecutor: lives in Bryan with husband and daugter, graduate of Miami University in Ohio and Case Western University School of Law. Has been prosecutor since July 2015 and assistant for seven years before that. She expressed her love for the Williams County Community. “I serve for you and your interests and your families.”
The number one focus of the office is the safety of the community. She also explained what their office does for the county. She has changed the office so that now they all are working for Williams County instead of a private practice.
She said she loves the job despite how hard it is, but “I love being on the right side of justice!” Justice, integrity, honesty, personal responsibility and fairness. “Efficiency, transparency, and fiscal responsibility with respect and civility towards all.”
Patty Rockey, Recorder: has served since 2013, married to Jason with three children, graduate of Montpelier High School, 2006 graduate of Honduras College Real Estate division, 2009 graduate of the Joanne Davidson Ohio Leadership Institute. Twenty five years experience in Real Estate.
In 2006 was appointed to serve on the Williams County Board of Elections. 2010 she was hired to be the Chief Deputy Recorder at the Records center. 2021 she ran for County Recorder. She has served on Recorder’s Association and is presently the Vice President. She argues on behalf of Williams County when legislation comes up that would hurt the people here.
She shared a number of advancements made in the office and the Records Center. Efficiency is our top priority. They hope to implement and promote property fraud alert in the next few years. They are expanding e-documents.
Kellie Gray, Treasurer: lived in Wilimas County for most of her life, married to Kevin with two children. Raised in a farming family in the 1980’s and learned that “sometimes dirt is the best character builder.” Hard work, frugality and putting God first.
The experiences we have in our young life make us who we are. Professionally she has over 17 years of accounting and purchasing in manufacturing, three years in Finance and six years serving the Millcreek-West Unity Board of Education.
These all have helped build me up to be able to do this job. She has been in the office for 10 months and has learned so much, especially that she can meet her goals. Basically, we are the county’s bank and investment manager and it deserves to be handled responsibly.
Rebecca can be reached at publisher@thevillagereporter.com