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Candidate Bios: City Council At-Large
The following is part of a series of biographies of local municipal candidates for the upcoming election.
Candidates were asked to submit a biography of no more than 500 words describing themselves and their qualifications for office. Only candidates who submitted biographies are featured.
Editing by the Banner Graphic news staff is minimal for only style and clarity purposes.
Katherine Asbell
Katherine Asbell, a 30-year resident of Putnam County and an educator for 32 years, is running for one of three city council at-large positions alongside Darrel Thomas and Mark Hammer on the Republican ticket.
Asbell has worked as an educator in both the North Putnam and Greencastle school districts. She has served the community as a classroom teacher, school counselor and building administrator, receiving her Bachelor of Science in education and Master of Education in school counseling and educational leadership from Indiana State University.
“I love this city and I’m looking forward to serving its diverse citizenry and giving a voice to all its people,” Asbell said.
“I’ve watched this city lose industry and people since the late 1980s when IBM left,” she added. “However, the people who stayed in this community have committed to watch it grow and rise from that. We have a downtown starting to thrive with unique restaurants and businesses, but of course we have room for more, and I would like to help ensure our downtown prospers.”
Asbell is a political newcomer but is deeply rooted in the community with her involvement in school functions, liaising with DePauw University in mentoring programs, and her membership in the Philanthropic Educational Organization (P.E.O.). She is an advocate for all people who are underserved, with her mantra being, “We rise by lifting others.”
Asbell expressed excitement about the Republican ticket.
“I am a huge fan of this team. Lynda Dunbar knows her stuff. She has vast knowledge of finance and business. She is a determined person who will get things done and will listen to our stakeholders. The experience of Mark Hammer and Darrel Thomas is second to none, and Mikayla Johnson, Stacie Langdon, Tina Nicholson, Cody Eckert and David Masten are the hardest workers I’ve ever seen. They all have so much experience in government, finance and infrastructure. I’m very confident in their judgment.
“One thing people should know is that I’m not detrimentally partisan. I look for the best people for the job to make my city a better place. I am friends with both Democrats and Republicans and recognize that good human beings love people for their diverse qualities. It takes many different kinds of people to make Greencastle the amazing city that it is, and I hope to be a part of helping it be a safe, inclusive city. We need more affordable housing, more green space, and to be a place where teachers and other business professionals want to come to work and live. I would love to see our school population grow again. To do that we need to get people to see what I see: a city with opportunity, where there are jobs, housing and where people feel safe and secure. I think Lynda and our team can do that.”
Asbell has four children: Alexander, Donovan, Mary Katherine and Quinn. Her husband, Phillip, is a lifelong Greencastle resident and owner of Dick’s Barbershop.
Kim Fidler
Kim Fidler is a former South Putnam High School Spanish teacher and currently works with teachers, secretaries and custodians in public schools from Terre Haute to Vincennes as a UniServ director.
She has two children, Denny Fidler of Greencastle and Chelsea Fidler of Sparks, Nevada. Kim is a member of the Gobin United Methodist Church. She has worked with the Greencastle chapters of the League of Women Voters, the NAACP and Delta Kappa Gamma.
Kim is the chair of the Putnam County Democrats. She has volunteered with the Reelsville Volunteer Fire Department, the St. Andrews Non-Food Pantry and serves as vice president and as a board member on Main Street Greencastle. Kim played a vital role in the renovation of Cloverdale Main Street following the collapse of buildings.
Kim has an extensive background in education and in working with members of the Indiana General Assembly for the past 33 years. She believes that state and federal policies directly affect people at the local level.
Her experience in working with policies at all levels will contribute to her ability to serve people well on the Greencastle City Council. Kim is running for an at-large position and will represent and serve the people of Greencastle, as she has represented and served people throughout the State of Indiana.
Kim is a graduate of Cloverdale High School. She also obtained bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Indiana State University. Kim is currently an ABD doctoral student at Indiana State University.
Kim will appreciate your support and your vote.
Mark Hammer
I, Mark Hammer, have served the citizens of Greencastle for 28 years on the city council, the first 20 as Second Ward representative and the last eight as city councilor at-large.
When I first ran for office in 1995, I never imagined I would serve such a long tenure, but as each term ended it was clear to me that there were many and varied reasons to seek another term. That is as true today as it was in the past.
While the reasons this year are as varied as usual, all of them are related to continued service to the community in which I grew up, in which Jeanette and I have raised our family and in which I have served professionally as a local CPA since 1982. As always, there are projects that are in various stages of planning and completion. Chief among those in 2023 has to be the long-anticipated community center, which has been discussed and designed over the past couple of decades.
Also, we are on the verge of finally extending sanitary sewer service to the Toddson Drive neighborhood, which was annexed into the city nearly 40 years ago. Once this is completed , along with the current replacement of the aging Albin Pond Road water main, which has experienced many major breaks recently, we’ll need to address the extremely poor condition of this roadway, along with necessary improvements.
This naturally leads to another of my priorities — updating and improving our infrastructure. Many of our city streets, sidewalks and pathways are in a dismal state of repair. The city administration needs to develop a multi-year plan to prioritize major and neighborhood streets, sidewalks and pathways that need improvement, upgrades and maintenance. While U.S. 231 through our city is arguably the prime example of a roadway that needs to be addressed, and has been for many years, this is an Indiana Department of Transportation project of which the city has no control and only limited input.
Working with the leadership of a new city administration, my desire is to see this community continue to thrive and advance into the future. I am very excited with the prospects we have with our slate of Republican candidates in 2023. Never before in my previous seven elections has the GOP fielded a more qualified, talented and diversified group of candidates across the board.
Greencastle hasn’t had a Republican mayor in nearly 40 years, and in only eight of my 28 years on council has the GOP held a majority of the seats. With a strong, proven leader in Lynda Dunbar as mayor and with our well-qualified seven candidates for city council, alongside our clerk-treasurer candidate, I am looking forward to serving again as one of your three at-large city council members and leading our community over the next four years.
Therefore, I humbly request your support for our entire slate of Greencastle Republican candidates. Thank you for your consideration, your vote this fall and for your past support.
Derek Jorgensen
My name is Derek Jorgensen. I am a Greencastle citizen and taxpayer. I am an independent thinker with a family, a mortgage and a job, just like many other citizens in Greencastle. My wife Monica grew up in Greencastle. We have two amazing children who both attend Greencastle Schools. I work as an engineer at Crown Equipment Corporation, where I have been employed since 2010.
I am running for Greencastle City Council at-large. As the only independent candidate on the Greencastle ballot this November, I wish to represent all citizens and taxpayers of Greencastle. I do NOT represent any political party, social club, business or other special interests. I believe it is important for anyone elected to public office to represent the people and not a political party.
In my years as a voter, I have witnessed both political parties doing some surprising things they have tried to sell as “good” for the public. These events have happened at both a federal and a local level. Part of my decision to join the race was based on a Greencastle City Council vote held in 2022.
In November 2022, our Greencastle City Council had the opportunity to reduce the city council size from seven members, down to five members due to the results of the 2020 census. It was pointed out during this meeting that changing to five members would save the city roughly $150,000 over a 10-year period. That’s a $15,000 a year average savings.
Despite this information, six of the seven council members including three Republicans and three Democrats (including all at-large members) voted to keep the council at seven members. Both parties put their interests ahead of financial responsibility with our tax dollars.
I frequently hear politicians talk about what the “Founding Fathers” intended for our nation. With that being the case, I’ll share a quote from the farewell address of George Washington. Regarding political parties, he stated, “The common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest and duty of a wise people to discourage and restrain it.”
This November, I urge you to exercise your right to vote and make sure your voice is heard. Early voting begins Oct. 11 and election day is Nov. 7. Together, let’s work to give Greencastle a brighter, more people-centered future.
I can be contacted at dj4gcc@gmail.com.
Gary Lemon
Gary Lemon is running for one of the at-large positions on the Greencastle Common Council. He has served in this capacity and enjoyed working with all council members. He believes wise expenditure of citizens’ tax dollars is essential, ensuring that those tax funds significantly impact the city’s future.
“We have made major progress in the past two decades and must continue investing in the city to have a brighter future,” Lemon said. “It is incumbent on the city to evaluate where tax dollars are spent so that the city will have an even brighter future.”
He serves on the Greencastle Redevelopment Committee, Friends of the Park, and the Putnam County Aviation Board. On the Friends of the Park Board, he serves as chair of the investment committee. Gary is a professor of economics and management at DePauw, where he has been employed since 1976.
Gary is the author of “Savvy Investing: Strategy for Successful Investing.” Savvy Investing was listed as one of the 16 must-read investment books. He is a former chair and a current member of the investments committee at Lincoln Variable Insurance Product Trust. This Fortune 250 company is a subsidiary of Lincoln Life; as part of the Investment Committee, Gary helps oversee more-than-$90 billion portfolio and more than 100 mutual funds.
He is a past director of DePauw’s Robert C. McDermond Center for Management & Entrepreneurship and past director of the university’s Management Fellows Program, an honors program at DePauw for students planning to work in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. He is a former member of the Greencastle City Council and Greencastle/Putnam County Development Center. He has worked with many city and county leaders making Greencastle and Putnam County a better place to live and work.
Gary has written articles and appeared on television and radio programs related to investing, and he conducts investment seminars for individual investors wanting to construct investment portfolios.
Before joining the DePauw faculty in 1976, he worked as a financial analyst for General Electric Co. in Syracuse, N.Y. He earned his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in economics at the University of Kansas.
He and his wife, Susan, reside in Greencastle and have two sons who graduated from Greencastle High School and received master’s degrees from Indiana University. Susan is a retired social worker.
“In my opinion, the city’s most pressing need is to encourage new housing development. We are in the enviable position of having a very low unemployment rate, but that has led to a problem with housing availability for those who might want to live and work in the city. Although I do not want to see the city become a real estate developer, I think we should do everything in our power (e.g., provide infrastructure) to provide what resources we can to encourage the development of housing in the city.
“I hope to use my expertise in finance and accounting to help make decisions that will maximize the benefits to all city residents. I have seen the great strides the city has made during the past two decades and the hard work it has taken to get to the point we now enjoy. I aim to continue this work and make the city an even better place to live and work. I hope you will join me by voting for me. Together we can make Greencastle an even better city. I appreciate your consideration.”
Darrel Thomas
Darrel Thomas is seeking re-election to the Greencastle City Council as an at-large candidate. Thomas has served on the council for more than a year, having been appointed to his current position in February 2022 to fill out the remainder of a term.
Prior to his time on the city council, Thomas spent 17 years on the Putnam County Council, the majority of that time as president.
Thomas retired after serving 32 years with the Purdue Extension Service, as well as a little more than a year as 4-H educator for the Fountain County Extension Office.
He has been active in community activities, serving as president of the P.I.E. Coalition and as president of the Putnam County Leadership Academy. He also founded the Greencastle Parks Department SPARK program, as well as serving on the Putnam County Plan Commission, Putnam County Fair Board and Putnam County Ag Day Committee.
Besides this, Thomas has also served on the board of directors of the National Association of Extension 4-H Educators and is an inductee into the National 4-H Hall of Fame.
A veteran, Thomas served in the U.S. Navy in Vietnam.
He is a graduate of Honey Creek High School in Terre Haute, as well as earning his Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees from Indiana State University.
Thomas has two daughters, Kara Hazlett (husband Matt) and Lisa Chadd (husband Mike), and three granddaughters, Kayla, Rachel and Josie.