Patriots meet candidates

By Cindy Wood/Van Wert Independent

Bringing jobs to Van Wert, and getting drugs out of Van Wert were just two of many hot topics local candidates addressed at Tuesday evening’s Heartland Patriots meeting at Trinity Friends Church.

With the election just under a month away, candidates addressed those issues and more, and also highlighted their accomplishments and experience while stumping for votes.

Three candidates for Van Wert City Council, including Stan Agler, Brent Crone and Louie Ehmer, spoke about a variety of issues. Candidate Jeff Agler was ill and not able to attend the meeting.

Agler noted his experience as a councilman and former mayor, and asked those gathered to become aware of community issues and get involved. “It’s important to be involved and ask questions,” Agler said. “I think it’s good to see new people running for council. Get to know them. It’s important because they have one vote each on council. Let them know what your thoughts are.”

Crone, a former councilman and Van Wert City Schools board member, said he isn’t afraid to challenge the issues, and ask the tough questions. “I think residents would remember that occasionally I did offer challenges on the issues if they weren’t in the best interest of our residents,” he said, adding, “and when necessary, I did vote no but only after consideration was given to the issue on how it would affect our senior citizens, people on fixed incomes, unemployment or people who couldn’t find a job with a decent hourly wage.”

Ehmer also noted his accomplishments and work on the city’s mega-site, and he said he wants to be a part of making Van Wert a more progressive city. “I owe a lot to Van Wert. I was forced to move here because of my job 28 years ago, and that was a little resentful because I liked living in Detroit, but once I got down here and my kids started school here I fell in love with this place and really got involved in the community and my record speaks for itself,” he said.

Pastor Paul Hamrick asked candidates to address what he called a “drug epidemic” in Van Wert, and he asked what residents can do, along with council, to combat the increasing drug problem in Van Wert. Ehmer said the city boasts an aggressive task force that seeks to control the drug issue, while also noting that residents can participate in getting drugs off the streets by simply being involved. “The best thing, absolutely, that people can do is reporting any suspicious activity to the police department,” he said. “We have very aggressive drug enforcement, but if we don’t know about it, you can’t just go out and get them.”

Agler agreed, and also said education about the dangers and effects of drugs begins in the home. “It has to start in the home. Even that isn’t always successful, because you have people out there selling and pushing drugs,” he said. “The character has changed, and it’s not that easy to correct, but it starts in the homes and churches.”

Both candidates for city law director were in attendance and current law director Greg Unterbrink noted over 30 years of experience in law. Unterbrink addressed the issue of lenient sentencing noting a recent nationwide decision to make crimes involving drugs such as bath salts and “spice” felonies. “There has to be a balance between punishment and rehabilitation,” Unterbrink said of lenient sentences. “I know it strikes some as being too lenient, especially in cases of heroin addiction, but a lot of these people are victims of their own addiction. That’s not an excuse, it’s just reality.”

Unterbrink’s opponent, John Hatcher said his experience in many different municipal courts around the area would serve the city well, as would new ideas he would bring into the law director’s office. “I’ve had the opportunity to see how many different courts operate, which would be a great benefit to the community,” Hatcher said. “I bring a lot of new ideas in my approach, and the way I would approach the position is the same way I would approach it with any client sitting across from the table. The first question to answer is can you do that legally, and secondly, should you do that. There are lots of things you can do, but shouldn’t do.”

Write-in mayoral candidate Ken Mengerink was unable to attend the meeting due to a previous commitment. Don Farmer, also seeking the mayoral seat, told those gathered he wants to see a positive change in Van Wert. “I’m talking about the mental attitude in Van Wert,” he elaborated. “By and large, most of our citizens do have a love for Van Wert and feel like we could be doing better than we are doing now.” Farmer went on to say that if elected to serve as mayor, he would put in a hard day’s work every day, and would concentrate on bringing much needed jobs to Van Wert. “One by one if we have to,” he said. “We have to bring jobs to our people, and we have to see positive changes. People want change. If elected, we’re going to load up a positive bus, and invite the people that only dwell on the negative to get on that bus with us. If they don’t want on the bus, then we’re going to tell them to get out of the way, because the bus is coming through.”

Absentee voting is currently under way at the Election Board, giving residents an early opportunity to cast their ballots. The election will be held Tuesday, Nov. 8.