A sizable contingent of County Commissioners from all over the state of Michigan made their way into the White House in Washington D.C. today, but no individual contingent was larger than the delegation from Berrien County alone. Seven members of the Berrien County Board of Commissioners advanced onto the White House campus according to a White House spokesman who says they joined 73 colleagues from other county boards in sessions “to develop and promote relationships between the Donald Trump Administration and the influential leaders of local Michigan communities.”
Traveling to D.C. for the events were County Commissioners David Vollrath, Debra Panozzo, Donnie Meeks, Ezra Scott, James Curran, Mamie Yarbrough, and Teri Freehling. Van Buren County Commissioner Richard Godfrey also joined the sessions.
The spokesman said in a late afternoon dispatch from the nation’s capitol that “the County Commissioners will participate in localized policy discussions with members of White House staff, as well as hear individualized presentations from various federal agencies with the intention to improve and build stronger relationships with local governments.”
Today’s event continues the Administration’s localized outreach efforts. Previous administrations have never held a White House event dedicated solely for local County Commissioners, and Berrien County capitalized on the opportunity. One Van Buren County Commissioner was on hand, none turned out from Cass County.
The following individuals attended today’s event:
Trump Administration:
Secretary Betsy DeVos, Secretary of the Department of Education
Administrator Linda McMahon, Administrator of the Small Business Administration
Justin Clark, Director of Intergovernmental Affairs & Deputy Assistant to the President
Billy Kirkland, Deputy Director of Intergovernmental Affairs
This is the list of County Commissioners provided by the White House:
Michigan Participants:
| County | Position | Name |
| Alcona | Commissioner | Gary Wnuk |
| Alger | Commissioner | Milton (Jerry) Gerald Doucette |
| Allegan | Commissioner | Tom Jessup |
| Alpena | Commissioner | John Kozlowski |
| Antrim | Commissioner | Christian Marcus |
| Barry | Commissioner | Ben Geiger |
| Barry | Commissioner | Vivian Conner |
| Bay | Commissioner | Vaughn Begick |
| Berrien | Commissioner | David Vollrath |
| Berrien | Commissioner | Debra Panozzo |
| Berrien | Commissioner | Donnie Meeks |
| Berrien | Commissioner | Ezra Scott |
| Berrien | Commissioner | James Curran |
| Berrien | Commissioner | Mamie Yarbrough |
| Berrien | Commissioner | Teri Freehling |
| Calhoun | Commissioner | Steve Frisbie |
| Calhoun | Commissioner | Gary Tompkins |
| Chippewa | Commissioner | Conor Keating Egan |
| Clinton | Commissioner | Ken Mitchell |
| Clinton | Commissioner | Dwight Washington |
| Crawford | Commissioner | Rick Anderson |
| Delta | Commissioner | Gerard Tatrow |
| Delta | Commissioner | Patrick Johnson |
| Genesee | Commissioner | David Martin |
| Genesee | Commissioner | Drew Shapiro |
| Genesee | Commissioner | Ellen Ellenburg |
| Grand Traverse | Commissioner | Carol Crawford |
| Grand Traverse Tribe | Regulator | Thurlow McClellan |
| Gratiot | Commissioner | Jan Bunting |
| Hannahville Indian Community | Chairman | Kenneth Meshigaud |
| Huron | Commissioner | Todd Talaski |
| Ingham | Commissioner | Sarah Anthony |
| Ingham | Commissioner | Brian McGrain |
| Ingham | Commissioner | Bryan L. Crenshaw |
| Jackson | Commissioner | James E. Shotwell |
| Kalamazoo | Commissioner | Dale Shugars |
| Kalamazoo | Commissioner | Stephanie Moore |
| Kalamazoo | Commissioner | Julie Rogers |
| Kalamazoo | Assistant | Andrew Smith |
| Kalkaska | Commissioner | Stuart McKinnon |
| Kent | Commissioner | Emily P. Brieve |
| Kent | Commissioner | Stanley J. Ponstein |
| Kent | Commissioner | Robert Womack |
| Keweenaw | Indian Com munity President | Warren Swartz |
| Leelanau | Commissioner | Debra Lee Rushton |
| Little Traverse Bay | Vice Chair | Stella Kay |
| Mackinac | Commissioner | James B. Hill |
| Mackinac | Commissioner | Diane Patrick |
| Macomb | Commissioner | James Carabelli |
| Macomb | Commissioner | Phil Kraft |
| Macomb | Commissioner | Robert W. Smith |
| Macomb | Commissioner | Veronica Klinefelt |
| Manistee | Commissioner | Jeffrey A Dontz |
| Mecosta | Commissioner | Marilynn Vargo |
| Mecosta | Commissioner | Linda Howard |
| Midland | Commissioner | Scott Noesen |
| Midland | Administrator | Bridgette Gransden |
| Oakland | Commissioner | Adam Kochenderfer |
| Oakland | Commissioner | Doug Tietz |
| Oakland | Commissioner | Hugh D Crawford |
| Oakland | Commissioner | James “Wade” Fleming |
| Oakland | Commissioner | Shelley Goodman Taub |
| Oscoda | Commissioner | LaNita Olsen |
| Oscoda | Commissioner | Patrick Kelly |
| Otsego | Commissioner | Ken Borton |
| Otsego | Commissioner | Robert Pallarito |
| Ottawa | Commissioner | Allen Dannenberg |
| Ottawa | Commissioner | Donald Disselkoen |
| Ottawa | Commissioner | Gregory DeJong |
| Ottawa | Commissioner | Michael Haverdink |
| Saginaw | Commissioner | Kathy Dwan |
| Saginaw | Commissioner | Kyle Harris |
| Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians | Chairman | Aaron Payment |
| Shiawassee | Commissioner | Jeremy R. Root |
| Shiawassee | Commissioner | Brandon Marks |
| St. Clair | Commissioner | Jeffrey L. Bohm |
| St. Joseph | Commissioner | Allen J Balog |
| Tuscola | Commissioner | Matthew Bierlein |
| Van Buren | Commissioner | Richard Godfrey |
| Washtenaw | Commissioner | Jason Morgan |
Photograph
In the photograph accompanying this story on Moody on the Market:
- S. Small Business Administrator Linda McMahon poses with Michigan County Commissioners during the White House Conference in the South Court Auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Tuesday, August 8, 2017, at the White House in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks)
