Eighteen-year-old mayor urges young people to get involved
By Jean Caspers-Simmet
simmet@agrinews.com
Date Modified: 02/02/2012 9:11 AM
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AREDALE, Iowa —Jeremy Minnier has done a lot of interviews since he was elected Aredale mayor by receiving 24 write-in votes.
The 18-year-old was interviewed by CNN, MSNBC, National Public Radio, a news outlet in China, and the requests keep coming. On Nov. 10 he had 43 messages on his cell phone from people seeking interviews.
"At one point he wondered if he should continue with the interviews," said Dave Bowman, Minnier's FFA advisor at Hampton-Dumont High School where Minnier is a senior and president of the FFA chapter. The two talk nearly every day about FFA business, and since the election, Minnier often bounces ideas off him.
"We talked about it, and I decided I'm young, and doing the interviews is a way to get more young people involved," Minnier said. "Volunteer, help your community, church, FFA. 4-H... be neighborly. Take an interest in something."
He thinks his message is resonating.
"I get a lot of comments on my Facebook page," he said.
A student ambassador from India recently thanked him for what he is doing and urged young people to help their neighbors because people are starving.
"You are an inspiration to teens, keep it up," wrote a student from the University of Wisconsin.
Minnier said he's he's actually pretty quiet in person. His twin brother, Jamie, plays football and lift weights. Minnier has no interest in sports. He plays saxophone in the band. When it comes to school, he's more of a hands-on learner.
His parents are Dick and Mary Minnier. Dick was mayor of the Butler County town when they got married, but that ended when the couple had children. Since then Dick's done a stint on the city council. Minnier has an older sister, Alexis, and he proudly explains that her husband, Shawn Dietz, is the new mayor of Hampton at 29.
"NPR called us the political dynasty," he said.
Minnier points out that he won the mayoral post as a write-in candidate. Just before the election, community members (he's not sure who) put an advertisement in the Hampton Reminder to "Write-in Jeremy Minnier on Nov. 8." He knew nothing about the ad until it ran.
"I hadn't thought about running, but after that happened, I thought I can do this," Minnier said. "Two days before the election I gave out cards that said what needed to be done if people wanted to write me in. My name needed to be spelled correctly. That's what got a lot of people's votes."