MENTONE — Four candidates are in the running for positions on the Mentone Town Council.

Shelly Krueger

Shelly Krueger

Shelly Krueger has lived in the Mentone community for 31 years and is married to Larry Krueger. They have raised eight children. The youngest is a senior in high school, five of their children have served in the armed forces and three are currently active. Three daughters-in-law have also served.

Krueger is a one-year breast cancer survivor. Her faith in Christ has been an important part of her life and she believes he has made her the person that she is today. She has been a part of Big Brothers Big Sisters and has spent time with a little sister for three years. Four years ago, she started the Mentone Community Farmer’s Market, where community members can sell homegrown produce and handmade items without a setup fee.

She has worked at Bell Memorial Public Library for more than 12 years and works with the teens, adult programs, the newsletter and the webpage.

Q: How do you plan to address the issue of safety in Mentone and how do you feel the council can work to improve relations with the town constituents?

A: “That’s something we are definitely going to be addressing. I have been working on a police policy for most of the year and trying to work with our police department to get that passed because, up to that point, there was no policy at all of any kind. Many of the small communities have a police policy and thats’ really important to have in place and that’s one thing I’m going to continue to work on.

“Right now, the county, we’ve spoken with Mr. Rovenstine and he’s agreed to fill in and help out if and when we replace our deputy, so that’s something we’re going to be working on in the future after the election.

The community is important to me and we have other issues. I’ve always tried to work with them and I wan to continue to do that.”

Q: What do you feel that the town strengths are and how can these strengths be utilized to attract commerce and residents to the area?

A: “We have a really great library. I think it’s comparable even to Warsaw the quality of books we have and programs we have are excellent. We have a great grocery store, three resale shops, Dollar General.

It’s a very nice community to live in. Our tax base is lower, Tippecanoe Valley Schools are good schools if you want a school that’s a smaller school. I think those are all good things that would be a good thing to draw into our community. We have other small businesses we have a coffee shop a Subway and a really nice restaurant, Teel’s has been an established restaurant in our area. People come to that restaurant from all over and those are things I think are really great about our community.”

Bobby Asher

Bobby Asher

Mentone resident Bobby Asher has been knocking on doors to meet residents face-to-face inquiring as to their concerns and sharing his visions for the future of the town. Asher is a homeowner and a 18-year resident and has great concern for the town he calls home. He is a certified EMT, has taken an active role in the Four Way Ambulance Service in Mentone for eight years and has donated many hours volunteering to help community residents.

Since attending a number of recent town council meetings, Asher has decided that Mentone needs “common sense leadership” and made that his campaign motto. “I have been reading Indiana Code and feel our town could benefit greatly if we would follow the regulations put forth for town governments,” Asher said. Considering where tax income originates, he also plans to listen and communicate with residents.

Q: How do you plan to address the issue of safety in Mentone and how do you feel the council can work to improve relations with the town constituents?

A: Safety, I believe, is one of the priorities that needs to be addressed. Although we are a small town, we have crime like every other town. I believe that we as a town need to look at having adequate law enforcement. We also need to utilize our reserve officers more, to give our full time officers days off.

I believe that our community hasn’t had a voice in the town decision making for a while. I feel that everyone in our community needs to be and should be heard, as well as acknowledged, because we are all part of what makes our town what it is and what it has the potential to become. Although we, as people, may not see eye-to-eye on decisions that are made, there is always more than one way to find a solution to a problem.

Q: What do you feel that the town strengths are and how can these strengths be utilized to attract commerce and residents to the area?

A: “We are a small, quiet town with much strength. I would like to bring attention to just a few of those strengths. We are a community driven society and have several public safety departments that rely on volunteers to run and serve the community that we live in. Without that inner drive to help, our community would not be what it is today. That drive to serve continues into several businesses; from great food establishments to hometown resale stores. I believe our community has the potential for growth. As we grow, I believe that we need to work hand in hand with our community to retain our current residents and businesses and work with our chamber of commerce to help entice additional businesses to contribute to progressive growth for new and current residents; to show people what a great town we already have.”

Tim Croy, Jill Gross

Attempts to contact candidates Tim Croy and Jill Gross were unsuccessful.