Occupation/Current Position
Operations and Training Manager, Vendor Compliance Coordinator Donnell Systems, Inc.
Education
BS from IUSB
Campaign Phone
5749047993
Campaign Email
info@loricamp.com
My top two priorities are responsive government and fiscal responsibility, the foundation of effective local leadership.
Responsive government means actively listening to residents and ensuring their input shapes decisions throughout the process, not just after the fact. Fiscal responsibility ensures taxpayer funds are used wisely and transparently, supporting public safety, infrastructure, and economic development.
Together, these priorities build trust, strengthen accountability, and create an environment where businesses grow and jobs expand.
As a lifelong resident, I'm committed to making local government more accountable, effective, and aligned with the real needs of our community.
Maintaining and improving roads and bridges is the county's most pressing infrastructure need. They are essential to safety, mobility, and long-term economic growth. Poor conditions increase costs for residents and limit business investment. Priorities should focus on urgent repairs and long-term planning while maximizing existing resources and aggressively pursuing state and federal grants.
I would only support a tax increase if a project is truly necessary, backed by a clear plan, measurable outcomes, and meaningful public input. Residents deserve full transparency and accountability in how funds are used.
My approach ensures infrastructure spending is efficient, results-driven, and supports sustainable development that strengthens opportunities for residents and businesses alike.
Preparing for reductions in property tax revenue requires disciplined planning and strong fiscal responsibility. The county must prioritize essential services like public safety, road and bridge maintenance, and core community programs residents rely on every day.
Every department should be reviewed for efficiencies, with a careful look at operational and nonessential spending to ensure resources go where they have the greatest impact, without micromanaging departments.
Growing the local economy by supporting small businesses and attracting quality jobs will strengthen the tax base over time.
My approach balances fiscal prudence with community priorities, protects critical services, and makes transparent, accountable decisions that keep the county stable and economically resilient.
Each large development should be evaluated individually on its own merits, with a careful, fact-based review of jobs, economic impact, infrastructure demands, environmental practices, and long-term community effects. Blanket assumptions about any industry are ineffective and can lead to poor decisions.
Residents should have meaningful input early in the process, with opportunities to review proposals, ask questions, and provide feedback before decisions are finalized.
Economic development and fiscal responsibility must work together to support sustainable growth that benefits the community while avoiding unnecessary strain on roads, utilities, and public services.
My approach will remain community-focused, transparent, and fact-based, ensuring projects align with St. Joseph County's present and future needs.
I will be accessible by email, phone, and community meetings, and will prioritize consistent, two-way communication so residents always have a direct line to me.
Being responsive means residents are informed, included, and respected throughout the decision-making process. Transparency can be strengthened by providing clear, easy-to-understand budget summaries, sharing information earlier, and improving meeting access through timely notices and convenient participation options.
Public input should meaningfully influence decisions, and residents should be able to see how their feedback is considered and applied.
While the council has made great progress, more can and should be done to build trust.
I am committed to accessible information and genuine engagement so residents' voices clearly shape the county's decisions and actions.
Pay decisions for key roles should be fair, transparent, and fiscally responsible. Increases should be based on job performance, responsibility, and comparable positions in similar markets.
Decisions must be openly communicated so residents understand why they are appropriate and justified.
At times, it is necessary to pay market rates to retain high-performing staff in administrative and critical roles. Losing their expertise can disrupt services and cost more in the long run. This principle should apply across departments where skills are specialized or difficult to replace.
This balanced approach ensures taxpayer dollars are used wisely while maintaining strong, effective, and reliable leadership for the community.
Occupation/Current Position
Accountant
Education
Bethel College Bachelors Degree , IVY Tech College Associates Degree
Campaign Phone
5742502828
Campaign Email
davefthomas@gmail.com
To effectively serve the people the Democratic County Council must listen to our fellow citizens and understand what they want, need, & expect; as I did for 12 years as Democratic County Commissioner. This is not rocket science, We Are the People, our citizens are our neighbors, friends, and friends we have not met yet.
Secondly, the County Council must develop the best fiscal roadmap to achieve those goals in a sound manner; as I did for 12 years as County Commissioner. In my 12 years as the County Commissioner, I never voted for a tax increase, as I worked for a better solution; and I showed up to work, I never missed a meeting or vote in 12 years. I learned & know a great deal about the county, and the roadmap of the various levels of county government, some which I developed to protect our taxpayers’ freedoms & their dollars.
The most pressing infrastructure need is the current edifice, formerly known as the County City Building. Is that still the name? The city moved out, taking their rental payments and share of operational & repair expenses with them.
Having served as the Democratic Commissioner for 12 years, I know the building is structurally sound. From reading the Tribune I understand developers hope to buy it; proving its value. With the loss of the city from the building, an honest and modern county asset foot print has to be developed, which includes the potential relocation of satellite offices back into the empty areas. However, the radical closing and selling of county property & heritage has to stop. Portage Manor closed, and other vital pieces of land sold, or being targeted by influential speculators wanting a quick profit at our expense
The property tax reductions will probably not affect the county bottom line as bad as some say, with fund replacement from the proposed changes in the distribution of the COIT, County Option Income Tax. The cities are the ones who are really going to struggle. A greater County concern should be the potential loss of federal & state grants.
Sound fiscal management should be the plan everyday, not just when bad news arrives. A small county department can not survive lazy % reductions. Cuts must be surgical. When I became Democratic Commissioner, the inherited Fiscal Plan was to fire 300 workers. My Accounting skills wrote a new budget that saved all 300 workers, and the vital services they perform, while building a $25 million surplus for growth & reserves to survive more economic down turns, pandemics, and unfunded State Mandates.
The County Council should always be wise to protect our people, land, water, & air; and factor in the future needs. Large scale developments can often be “white elephants” consuming too much, and offering little benefits. The moment enjoying the “thrill of landing the big one” might not be worth the chase, or the catching in the long run. Businesses exist for the “profitable quarter,” while these are our lands, homes, & drinking water, for us & our future generations.
A sound balance must be maintained, and the County Economic Development departments probably need a new compass, which the Democratic County Council can help offer through appointments, legislation, & budgeting TIF funds. From serving 12 years as the Democratic Commissioner, I am already familiar and experienced with these & other matters. Growth must be “smart.”
The Democratic County Council is very transparent in the budget process, but educational steps could be implemented for our citizens to better understand the $135 million budget, its process, funds, and fund restrictions. Often the process can appear overwhelming, or in a format most people are not familiar with it, but as a 12 year Commissioner, and Accountant, I understand the budget very well and often wrote it. After I wrote it the first time, my fellow dedicated Democratic Officials joined me to learn & understand the options, steps, & reasoning.
My first budget was to replace the Fiscal Plan to fire 300 staff members due to a perceived deficit. When I reworked the budget, I saved all 300 jobs, and the vital services they perform for our safety & protection, while building a $25 million surplus which allowed for reserves & growth.
When serving 12 years as the Democratic Commissioner, and building the past budgets, I always felt “raises” are a Tier 2 item, and should not be discussed until all Tier 1 items, covering all other operational expenses were budgeted; and if then there was adequate funds available, offer structured raises, offering a greater % to those on the lower end of the wage scale; because if you “flat rate” raises for all, the higher wage staff gobble a majority of the funds, leaving most co-workers not properly compensated. “Key staff” normally are on the higher end of the pay scale, and would probably not receive any huge raise from me, because there is just not that much money. Inherently our key staff understand this when they accepted the position, and maybe even see the county as vocational work, and they want to make our community better.
