Editor’s note: Wausau Pilot & Review will publish a series of Q&As in the days leading up to the April 3 spring election for contested seats in the Wausau metro area. For a sample ballot and general election information, visit the Marathon County election information page. Watch for more election coverage and be sure to bookmark our elections page here. Candidates, listed in alphabetical order, were given the opportunity to answer identical questions in the interest of fairness. Their unedited answers are listed below.
Letters to the editor are encouraged through Monday, April 2. Email editor@wausaupilotandreview.com.
Marathon County Board of Supervisors, District 30
Richard Gumz, Incumbent
Age 60+. Lifetime town of Holton resident. Dairy/beef farmer, bus driver, writer.
Government Experience: Town Chair 17 years. County Board 12 years.
Community Involvement: 4H Leader, 25 years. Dorchester community emergency services, President of Athens Fair board for 12 years, Colby PTO President 2 years, Abby Free Church member.
Political affiliation (if any): Independent
Why are you running for office?
Rural Marathon county needs a voice who understands local issues and local government. I bring a compassionate and recognizable personality to the board.
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing county officials in the next two years?
Infrastructure, Roads, Internet, Jail, Drug abuse, mental health, Nursing home
If new resources were available, what one area of county services would you feel most needs additional resources?
Jail because of drug problem
Should any part of the county budget be shielded from cuts? And if so, which area?
You never want to say any dept. should be shielded. Every dept must be accountable. I would cut zoning.
What do you see as the most pressing needs for infrastructure or capital projects in the county?
Doing early maintenance on Blacktop roads extends the life of those roads and saves money by prolonging the road life before reconstruction.
What is your assessment of the county’s overall financial position? Where do the biggest threats to the county’s financial stability lie?
It is excellent. We have an approximately final 1.5 million payment in this year’s budget and will spread the 4.5 million capital debt passed this spring, over the following three years at 1.5 for three years and the 3+million for the therapy pool will go out for a 20 year plus payback
What is your vision and strategy for addressing the opioid addiction crisis?
Using the therapy pool more instead of opioids for pain. And having more group therapy at North Central Healthcare.
What, specifically, will you do to improve the quality of life for the people of Marathon County?
I will encourage more people to seek out a church, get involved there and join support groups that many churches nowadays have available. Don’t limit yourself, look around and find a church that works for you!
Anything else you’d like voters to know?
My advantage is I wear the same hat in local township government as I do at the county board. My opponent does not. She is a city mayor with city problems and this is basically a more rural district. She has never attended a towns association meeting, so has no idea who and what rural marathon county issues are.
Lori Voss, Challenger
Lives in Abbotsford. Business owner, Hawkeye Dairy Store in Abbotsford and EMT with Central Fire District. Mayor of Abbotsford. Mother of 2 and taxpayer.
Why are you running for office?
I have been asked over the past few years if I would consider running in “our” District 30 in Marathon County. My answer has always been “I need to get my children through high school and college before I take on more responsibilities.” My daughter has finished college and is getting married this summer and my son will graduate UW Stout in May 2018.
I have lived in this district my entire life. (Minus two years) Our family farm was in District 30 and now my home and business are both in District 30. I’m very interested in everything that takes place in Marathon County. When we had the farm, I showed at the Central WI Fair and later in life I was able to have my children show there also. I was a 4-H leader for 6 years. We met a lot a people and made a lot of lifelong friends. In fact every year we still go and check out the fair and see the animals. We also still help out when asked. It’s great watching our youth succeed and later see how much they have grown.
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing county officials in the next two years?
In my opinion the biggest challenges facing county officials in the next two years are budget restraints, road repairs, mining and the local jail.
If new resources were available, what one area of county services would you feel most needs additional resources?
If new resources became available, I’m sure we could use more money spent on infrastructure and the necessary equipment to do it; seems it doesn’t matter how big or small your community is there’s never enough funding to go around. If such a windfall were to occur, wouldn’t it be nice to extend a hand and help our neighbors out too?
Should any part of the county budget be shielded from cuts? And if so, which area?
Infrastructure, Health and Safety would be nice to shielded from cuts. These are your workers; they are also our backbone to keep the keep the county functioning. We can’t do without any of them and unfortunately their jobs are not becoming any easier or less dangerous.
What do you see as the most pressing needs for infrastructure or capital projects in the county?
A pressing issue for the county is the jail. Unfortunately crime hasn’t cut down and neither has our drug and alcohol problem. Along with that come the mental health issues that are addressing all of our communities.
What is your assessment of the county’s overall financial position? Where do the biggest threats to the county’s financial stability lie?
Overall I think Marathon County does very well with its funding and budgeting. The biggest threats in my opinion would be infrastructure and our jail. Intertwined in those is mental health. People are not sure where to go for help any more. Many hospitals have cut programs dealing with mental health. Unfortunately mental health like drugs and alcohol are not a onetime fix. You can’t go one time or even possibly through even one program and you’re cured. It’s a lifetime of change and old habits are hard to break.
What is your vision and strategy for addressing the opioid addiction crisis?
The opioid epidemic is ravaging the entire United States. From the latest I read over 64,000 people died in 2016 from opioids in comparison to 58,000 US Soldiers that died in the Vietnam War. As an EMT; we (everyone involved in health and safety) see the rise in the use of opioid addictions and how young people start using. Minor children live in many of these homes; they see and feel the effects of what’s happening around them. Carfentanyl, an elephant tranquillizer has come to our area about a year ago. As health and safety providers we attend training on this type of stuff, one particle of this on “our” clothing and we can carry it home to our families and death can occur. This is so sad and so very scary. I thank God, when we have an officer on scene prior to EMS personnel having to go into these situations. The answer, I don’t know that’s a good question! As a parent, I’ve attended every community event with my children to see the effects of drug use. When my children were in school it was “The Faces Of Meth.” The same 8-10 people showed up at these events. Attorney General Brad Schimel is touring the GREAT state of WI and meeting with law enforcement and local leaders regarding the challenges the state is facing with this and other public safety concerns. I’ve been to one of those meetings; many of us spoke about mental health and the crisis it is in. We also talked about getting into schools and starting discussions of addictions at a younger age; but again how do you get parents to participate with their families at these events? It’s going to take ALL of us, pulling together, working together to come up with Plan A and start strategizing on how and what we can do. Plan A fails, have a back-up plan. Law enforcement can’t do it alone. I give these men and women a lot of credit. The situations they have to go into aren’t getting any easier or safer.
What, specifically, will you do to improve the quality of life for the people of Marathon County?
To improve the quality of life in Marathon County, maintaining and creating new infrastructure is a benefit to all of us. Continually striving to improve health; mental health and addiction uses by working together.
Anything else you’d like voters to know?
I’ve been on Abbotsford City Council for approximately 10 years. I’ve been on and chaired about every committee. Being on city council I also served as council president a few years and now I have been the Mayor for almost a year.
I’ve also been an EMT for 8 years, prior to consolidation; I was assistant chief for one year.
I also served this great country as a US Soldier in the Army National Guard for 6 years.
As you can see, I enjoy serving this great country and our local communities. Many of you are also aware that when you have community projects or events, it’s always the same people you can count on to help or volunteer their time; I’m one of those people. Please vote Voss on April 3rd, 2018.
