Letter to the Voters: Adam Will, Recorder Candidate

Letter to the Voters: Adam Will, Recorder Candidate

(EDITOR’S NOTE: The Meigs Independent Press does not participate in advertising for or endorsing candidates. The submissions from candidates are a service to the voters and the people of Meigs County. Candidates were invited to write an open letter to the voters. It is published as submitted, unedited.)

My name is Adam Will and I am one of the seemingly dozens of candidates running for Meigs County Recorder in the March Primary.

If you would, please allow me to introduce myself. Like many of you, I have lived in Meigs County my entire life. I live just a mile from where I grew up, near the farm my family has had for generations. I am the son of a schoolteacher and a nurse. My grandparents were a brick mason, a kindergarten aide, a factory worker, and a homemaker. They taught me the value of honesty and integrity. I was raised with the belief that you helped others, that it was just part and parcel of who you were expected to be. 

My wife, Christina, and I have three awesome kids: Libby, Sophia, & David. They bring so much joy to our lives. They are a big part of why I want to continue to see Meigs County move forward.

My journey of helping others started in 1998, at the age of 13, when I joined the Chester-Shade Historical Association and helped procure a $50,000 grant from the Kellogg Foundation. When I was 19, I became a minister in Reedsville, serving a small congregation. In 2010, tornadoes, and not from Southern, came through and devastated that part of our county. I witnessed the best of our county when I saw hundreds of volunteers help neighbors and folks they didn’t even know. That’s what we do in Meigs County: we take care of each other.

Since 2008, I have served on the Eastern Local School Board. I have been Vice-president, President, and Legislative Liaison. I am proud of the work we have done to keep kids safe and produce well educated young adults. 

In 2011, I started my own business, researching property ownership in the oil and gas industry. I’ve worked in three states and dozens of counties. I’ve works for oil and gas corporations, local attorneys, private companies, utility companies, a railroad, and for landowners right here in Meigs County. I’ve consulted for several attorneys. I’ve researched hundreds of parcels and pored over hundreds upon hundreds of deeds. 

In fact, today I am the only property researcher available in Meigs County. When a landowner calls in to the Recorder’s Office looking for a document, the Recorder’s Office gives out my name and number. That level of trust means a great deal to me. I worked hard to earn it, and I will bring that trust into the office, should I be fortunate enough to be elected.

It’s time to get our current computerized records online. Yes, it’s going to cost money. But so does every other improvement we’ve made in this county. I hope to bring about a public and private cooperative to make Meigs County records available and more accessible to our citizens. Once that is done, I hope to move on towards making indexes to documents available and implement a strategy where down-time in the office is used toward getting more documents scanned. This may not sound like a lot, but for banks and lenders, legal professionals, and landowners, this will be a huge improvement. 

Besides preserving documents and making them available, the Recorder must oversee the office, managing personnel and a budget. As a pastor of a growing congregation, I have had to learn to work with all sorts of different people to reach a common goal. I understand that teamwork makes the dream work. As a school board member, I’ve been involved in every contract negotiation we’ve had in 12 years. I know the importance of compromise to accomplish the greater good. I’ve worked with our treasurer/CFO as a member of the finance and audit committee overseeing a budget bigger than our county general budget. I know how to keep within budget while getting stuff done.

I believe that my passion and my experience make me the best candidate for the next Meigs County Recorder. I’m privileged to be running with (not against) 3 others who are fine men. And while I’m sure any of them could learn to do the job, I’m asking for your support. Win or lose, we are Meigs County, and we have so much to be proud of. I’m running for Recorder because I am proud of who we are and because I believe I can help us become better yet. Remember, others might, but Adam Will!

Sincerely, 

Adam Will
Pomeroy, Ohio

Adam Will, Candidate for Meigs County Recorder