Board of Directors Candidates
District 1
Lawrence Young and his wife, Delores, reside on West Base Road in Greensburg. The couple have three children and eight grandchildren.
Young has farmed at the same location for 40 years. He also worked as a lineman for eight years which helps him relate to the situations and work Decatur County REMC lineman experience. Young started his own electrical business five years ago after working at Printpack for 28 years.
Young enjoys woodworking, gardening and spending time with family. He also enjoys watching his grandkids play sports and develop into wonderful young adults.
In his first three-year term as director, Young has made himself available to the DCREMC membership to listen and answer questions. Throughout his term, he was involved in interviewing and hiring DCREMC’s new CEO, voted to move residential rates from seasonal back to flat rates, and actively participated in the extensive cost of service study recently completed. He also attended all committee and board meetings and worked to obtain the Credentialed Cooperative Director (CCD) certification from the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA).
Young has enjoyed serving the members of DCREMC. He is committed to acting in the members’ best interest and would consider it a privilege to serve another term as director.
Mark Gearhart and his wife, Diana, reside on County Road 420 W. in Greensburg. A Decatur County native, he has served the community in a number of different capacities.
Gearhart spent 16 years as groundskeeper for the Decatur County Fairgrounds and drove the same bus route for Decatur County Schools for 26 years. Gearhart has also served as a church deacon, Sunday school teacher, trustee, and youth leader. He enjoys volunteering at the Greensburg Bread of Life once a week.
Gearhart believes serving as director of DCREMC is a good way to give back to the community. He understands that this role is challenging but is committed to listening, learning, and serving the members and his hometown.
Suzanne (Swango) Parmer and her husband, Mark, reside on County Road 400 N. in Greensburg. The couple has two children — Cole and Sidney.
Parmer is a graduate of North Decatur High School and IUPUI. She has been a co-franchisee/owner of H&R Block offices in Southeastern Indiana for 17 years and currently is the business manager and senior tax preparer of her H&R Block office in Greensburg. Parmer is active in the community through her board work with the Decatur County Community Scholarship Foundation, the Eli Lilly Scholarship committee, the Krista Eldridge Scholarship board, the St. Catherine of Sienna Parish council and finance committee. Parmer also currently serves on the Home Builders Association of Southeast Indiana.
Parmer is interested in the challenges of serving as a board member and looks forward to gaining knowledge about Decatur County REMC. She believes it is important for members to be aware of federal tax credits available and to be educated on ways to reduce energy use and lower utility bills. As a lifelong Decatur County resident, Parmer welcomes the opportunity to serve DCREMC members.
District 2
Tom Crowe, his wife, Carol, and the couple’s son, Alex, reside on County Road 400 N. in Greensburg. He is the owner of Southeastern Water Systems, which sells and services residential and commercial water treatment equipment.
Crowe is a member of St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church, is a 34-year volunteer firefighter with Clarksburg Fire Department and holds a water treatment and wastewater treatment license through the State of Indiana. He enjoys hunting, fishing and watching his nieces and nephews play sports.
Crowe was elected to the board for his first term in 2016 and has enjoyed serving the members of Decatur County REMC. He has dedicated his time on the board to learning and understanding the electric cooperative industry. Crowe is currently serving his second year as board chairman and was also elected by his board peers as the DCREMC Hoosier Energy board representative.
Carl Riedeman resides on County Road 120 E. in Greensburg. He is a lifelong Decatur County farmer and DCREMC member.
Riedeman served seven years on the FSA board and the Greensburg Youth Football, Baseball, and Slowpitch Softball boards that directed the construction of the new Youth Sports Complex.
Riedeman said he wants to be on the DCREMC board of directors to serve the members of the cooperative. His first focus as a director will be on the financial details of the organization — analyzing the accounting and spending process to focus on the needs of the cooperative. His goal is to establish a financial plan so the REMC will be on a path to be debt free and at the same time, minimize annual margins.
He doesn’t want to strap the next generation with debt and wants to clarify what he believes are massive amounts of capital credits. In addition, Riedeman will also work to establish the most reliable system in the Hoosier Energy system at the lowest possible cost to the members.
His second objective will be to work toward true transparency. Riedeman believes there should be no secrets withheld from the members — all members should be treated equally. He believes all financial information should be made available to any member who wants to see it. He added that the word “confidential” should only be used to protect personnel files. He feels the cost of service study and our annual budget should be made available so any member can see it to verify all the members are truly equal and the directors are making decisions that are in the best interest of the members.
Nominating Committee Candidates
District 1
Steve Clevenger and his wife, Belinda, reside on Cleo Lane in Greensburg. He retired from Eastgate Electric Supply after 30 years where he worked in sales, purchasing, and served as president.
Clevenger is a member of St. Mary’s Church and is involved in the Knights of Columbus, Gibault School, and Special Olympics.
Clevenger is interested in serving on the nominating committee because he believes in making our community a better place and believes this opportunity will allow him to have an impact.
Dennis Dickman and his wife, Vera, reside on County Road 280 W. in Greensburg. He worked as a material handler at Batesville Casket for 15 years and has farmed for 40 years in Decatur County.
Dickman has served on the Decatur Countuy REMC nominating committee in the past. He has also served on the Farm Credit advisory board and on the USDA county committee.
He is an active member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church. Dickman looks forward to serving his cooperative through the nominating committee.
District 3
Micah Lohrum and his wife, Mandy, reside on East Base Road in Greensburg. Lohrum is an electrical journeyman, certified Generac service technician, and works as an electrical contractor with a focus on solar, renewable energy, and generator installations and services. He has owned and operated Lohrum Electrical, LLC since 2011.
Lohrum is involved with the Hospital Foundation of Decatur County’s annual gala event and serves as an EMT for Rescue 69.
As a member and local business owner, he strives to bring his electrical experience as well as customer-relationship management skills to the nominating committee. He is committed to finding directors who mean well and will do what is best for DCREMC and all its members. Lohrum seeks to understand and listen to all perspectives.
He loves his Christianity, family, job, and community and hopes all can see that.
Marilyn Davis (late husband, Gary) resides on East Base Road in Greensburg. She has been an active member of the community through work and volunteerism, touching many lives.
She has worked at Jackson’s Nursery, Rosemund Elementary School, Highpoint Orchard, and has been an independent entrepreneur (designing flowers, weddings and operating a cleaning service). Additionally, Davis has volunteered for New Directions, has been an active member of St. Mary’s Church for 44 years, serving in a number of capacities. She is also involved with St. Lawrence Auxiliary, Clinton Home Economics Club, Extension Homemakers, and the Decatur County Fair food auction.
Davis looks forward to serving the members of Decatur County REMC by staying involved and active in the community and continuing to learn more about DCREMC to make good, informed decisions.
