January 20th, 2026 Democratic Meeting Minutes

January 20th, 2026 Democratic meeting summary

Call to order by Bill Breeden: 6:30pm. Pledge of Allegiance.

Approval of the minutes: November minutes approved and copies on the front table.

Treasurer’s report: Current balance was reported with the electric bill still outstanding.

Happenings this month:

1.) We had a candidate information panel with Anton, Frank, Sandy and Linda moderating and fielding questions. This was also available online.

2.) Legislative breakfast Saturday at the Owen Valley Christian Fellowship off State Rd. 43 at 7:30 in the morning. Anton Neff will be the moderator at that event.

3.) Anti-ICE protest on January 11th was attended by 27 people. It was a short flash, over-night notice. Candidate Filings: Filing has begun and ends February 6th at 12 noon. Anton already filed for re-election and also filed for Washington 1 Precinct committee chair. There is a list of all the open seats that Frank Coffin compiled. The recorders job is open and per Linda is the easiest job in the courthouse. We would like to see someone file for Senator from District 39. Emphasis was made that we would love to get as many Democrats on the ballot as possible. A list was read of Republicans that have already filed.

Theresa Kendall spoke of the Mid-states Corridor that Mike Braun is pushing. New to Owen County, former chair of Dubois County Democratic party, she is part of a group called Property Rights Alliance which is composed of property owners affected by the proposed corridor. Indot has announced it is postponing or cancelling 340 projects. The Corridor is a 3-billion-dollar project that will destroy 100-year-old farms and benefit Braun’s trucking business. More info: midstatescorridor.com. Or google: mid states corridor reviews. Facebook: Stop the Mid-States Corridor Project. 

Discussion on Supporting Candidates: Duane Cheney: Composing lists from Social Media accounts with like-minded people from their comments and cross referencing that with voting records. With the lists, use them to drive people to get them out to vote. We need to share candidate info.

Outreach Committee: Monthly meeting on Jan. 7 th

Brainstorming ideas:

1.) Earth day event with maybe fruit trees

2.) Memorial day, placing flags at the cemeteries

3.) Chicken Chuck

4.) July, August, and September: dinner with the candidates; town hall Q/A.

Little pantries are ongoing. Suggestion was made to take pictures of the boxes; Collin will post so people know what is available in the boxes. Volunteers are still needed to pack boxes besides doing the deliveries. In need of empty boxes. Special thanks to Pam Browning for donating pet food for pantries.

Building report: Set up shelves for food pantry. Asked for help hanging and organizing pictures and marking cabinet contents. Legislative Update and opportunities: Judy Darnell gave a report on current legislation and had handouts. If interested in details, contact Judy.

Tivoli sign up: Signup sheet on the front desk.

Bill is leaving for Minneapolis tomorrow to join clergy from across the country to march against ICE.

Meeting adjourned.

NEXT MEETING: February 17th; Supper/Social 5:30-6:30; business meeting 6:30-7:30

Submitted by Ann and David Henk