Gunnison County Republicans

District 1 Republican candidate for Gunnison County Board of Commissioner, Dave Taylor knocked it out of the park in his quest to be printed on the November ballot. As a “write-in” candidate during the primary, he was tasked with getting the minimum 143 write-ins in order to move on to the November General Election ballot.

He did it in spades!! The unofficial count as of Wednesday morning was 984 to the 143 he needed! Congratulations, Dave! We will do everything in our power to support your campaign run up in to November!

Now, we wait until July 10 to see who Dave’s Democrat opponent will be. The County Democrat party has until then to fill the vacancy, left when John Messner resigned to take a Commission job in Denver.

Unaffiliated fourth-generation Gunnison resident running for county commissioner.

June 22, 2020 – The paperwork is done and it’s official that Trudy Vader, a fourth generation Gunnison resident, is running for District 2 county commissioner.

As someone who is not affiliated with the two major political parties, Vader has the option to petition onto the November 2020 ballot. Unaffiliated voters do not hold a caucus or assembly, therefore unaffiliated candidates do not have that path to be printed on the primary ballot. She is now tasked with obtaining 173 valid Gunnison County registered voter signatures by the July 27 deadline.

Vader’s family in Gunnison County dates back to an 1881 ranch started by her great-grandfather Palmer H. Vader. Palmer was known for his progressive ranching and dedication to serving the folks in Gunnison County. Trudy worked for some time on the family ranch training horses. Later on, as a single mom of two, Kayla and Scott, she achieved a K-12 art education degree from Western State College in 1994 and graduated with a master’s degree in art from Adams State College in 1998. Her final degree was an ED.S. in administrative leadership and policy studies from University of Colorado Denver in 2007.

Vader’s professional career included 13 years teaching Art in the Mancos, Rocky Ford and Yuma School Districts and, at Lamar Community College. Following her education in administrative leadership and policy studies, she was a high school and middle school principal for 7 years in the Huerfano and Cripple Creek School Districts.  Her career in education culminated as Superintendent of the Hayden School District.

Through her school administration experience, she has worked with many state, county and city governing entities, including county commissioners.  Being in leadership roles in mostly socio-economically depressed rural areas during the latest major recession, she believes she is especially equipped with the necessary experience to oversee operational budgets in an efficient and effective manner.  In addition to her work experience, she served on the Board for Southern Teller County Health Service District as secretary.

Vader is running because “having all of our county elected leaders being like-minded creates lopsided governance and little reason to critically examine issues,” she says. “This type of decision-making has been firmly seeded in our county for too long and it’s become a glaring problem, sometimes thrusting Gunnison County into national headlines in a negative light.”

She is looking for support from across the political spectrum and from those that believe we need a leader in Gunnison County with common sense and who is an independent creative thinker.  Vader says, “I’m a leader who has the ability to consider the effects of decision making from the big picture and the long view.  I will be a leader willing to listen and work in a collaborative manner for the good of Gunnison County.”

To contact Vader with your questions, ideas and comments please email her at VoteTrudyVader@gmail.com or call her at 970) 975-1611. 

As Gunnison County Republicans, we share ONE COMMON GOAL.

Let our voices be heard!

Ballots have arrived! If you haven’t already done so, please complete your ballot today and drop it off at the post office or a drop box located in the parking lot at the Blackstock Government Building in Gunnison or the one located in Crank Plaza at the Crested Butte Town Hall.

For District 1 County Commissioner, please “write-in” our candidate, Dave Taylor and as important, you MUST FILL IN the little circle to the left of the write-in line

If you would like to reach out to Dave, use this link to his email. He wants to hear your thoughts and suggestions!

LET’S BLOW THE DOORS OFF THIS PRIMARY IN SUPPORT OF DAVE TAYLOR!

Let’s WIN RED!!

Dave attended Colorado State University and Graduated in 1980 with distinction (top 10%) with a B.S. in Business Administration-Concentration in Accounting. He passed the CPA exam in 1982. While his CPA certification has expired his deep knowledge of accounting and finance have served him well in his life and business endeavors.

Dave started his career with Touche Ross & Co, a big 8 public accounting firm in 1980. He went to work for a client in the cattle business in 1983 as controller and then Financial V.P. Dave worked at Red River Feed Yard in Stanfield, AZ formerly owned by John Wayne. The 1986 stock market crash forced the owner of this company into bankruptcy and Dave moved on. From 1987 to 1995, Dave was a commodity broker, golf course business manager and restaurant owner.

Dave’s big break in business came in 1995 when he went to work for a visionary entrepreneur in the temporary labor business.  Dave returned to Denver in 1997 and became the majority stockholder in the Denver subsidiary of the temporary labor business. This operation grew from 4 offices to 9 offices from 1997 to 2009. During their heyday this business did 8-10 million dollars in revenue and employed as many as 500 workers a day. Most years the temporary labor business issued 2000-2500 W-2’s annually. The financial crisis of 2008 forced the labor company to downsize, but the company was profitable every year of Dave’s ownership.

Many temporary employees at the labor company were people getting back on their feet or still struggling with substance abuse, drug addiction, or trouble with legal issues. Dave’s company was often the employer of last resort for many. Dave developed a strong advocacy for the underdog through this experience. All workers were treated fairly and with respect and dignity.

Dave and Susie purchased the Gunnison KOA campground in 2004. Somewhat, serendipitously, Dave’s parents had been work campers at the campground from 1997-2001 and Dave and Susie visited often with their young family. Dave’s critically ill Mom, and his Dad would live at their beloved campground with support from the family. Mom went to heaven on July 4, 2004 during the first year of ownership.   

In 2012, Dave sold his interest in the temporary labor company back to the visionary who had provided the opportunity and became a full-time resident of Gunnison. As the campground is open from May 1, to October 1, the off season provided great opportunity for Dave to do things he wanted to do. He worked at Alta convenience store where he met more community members in a short time that he had in his previous 8 years in Gunnison. His ego over powered his common sense when he purchased the former Trough restaurant and operated as “Double Dave’s” and then “The Steakhouse” for about a year. While this operation may have been successful with more time, the all-consuming nature of the restaurant business and financial commitment were too much and the restaurant was closed. Humbled but not broken, valuable lessons were learned!

Volunteering at the Gunnison food pantry and the senior center followed. After a several teen suicides in the community and the dire need for School Bus drivers, Dave decided to drive a school bus in the off season to connect with our youth. Committed to show a positive attitude and happiness to all who rode his bus, maybe one day he could be the friendly voice that could avert a disaster.

Dave became aware that School Board positions were sometimes hard to fill, so he applied and was appointed to the School Board in December of 2019. With a strong background in accounting and finance he hopes to help navigate the financial stress of COVID budget issues and bring a business perspective to school business.

While politics were not a consideration before COVID, Dave was motivated to bring a fresh voice to county politics. As a businessman, Dave wants to bring more balance to the BOCC. Support of local business and positive communication are high priorities. Dave’s financial aptitude will allow him to go deep into county finance and clearly explain financial issues to our taxpayers. Dave is very approachable and is committed to giving honest, straight forward answers, to all questions. 

Dave Taylor (61) grew up in Naperville, Il and graduated from Naperville Central H.S. in 1976. Mom, Matilda (deceased 2004) Dad, Jim (88) instilled strong values in their Sons Tom (63) Dave (61) and Bill (59).

Married to his High School sweet heart, Susie in 1980, they will celebrate their 40^th anniversary in June. Daughter, Katie (37) operates a successful legal recruiting business with her Partners. Son, Michael (33) is a paramedic with Gunnison Valley Hospital.

Join the Election Day Operations (EDO) Team, AKA the Army To Re-elect President Trump. If you’d like to learn more or sign up to be a volunteer, use this link!  https://www.armyfortrump.com/forms/election-day-team.

Please take a few minutes to read this order issued by Gunnison County Public Health & Safety. Violations are under penalty of law. Thank you!

https://www.gunnisoncounty.org/DocumentCenter/View/10194/Standing-Public-Health-Order-Related-to-Events-PDF?bidId=

Due to a Standing Public Health Order Relating to Events, we have had to postpone our County Republican Assembly.

Check back on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning for an update on how we will proceed with achieving the objectives of our Gunnison County Assembly.

Sincerely,

Jane

Jane Chaney, Chair, Gunnison County Republican Central Committee

Gunnison County Republican Caucus
March 7^th 10:00am

Check-in Begins: 9:30am

Fred R. Field Western Center Rodeo Grounds
275 Spruce Street
Gunnison, CO 81230

We encourage pre-registration for caucus. Please use this link: http://caucus.cologop.org/

Caucus is the fist step in selecting who will represent us as Republicans in the Primary Election, the General, and in office. All registered Republicans are welcome to attend and there is no charge to do so.

As directed by state statue, Gunnison County Republicans will hold our county caucus on Saturday, March 7, at the rodeo grounds, Fred R. Field Western Heritage Center Multi-Purpose Building. Currently, all precincts, 1 – 13 will caucus together. If circumstances for precincts 1 & 2, Somerset and Marble, changes, we will notify those registered Republican voters.

All Gunnison County registered Republicans are encouraged to attend caucus. We’ll get started promptly at 10:00 AM and caucus goers should arrive no later than 9:30 AM to ensure a smooth check-in process. We’ll have the coffee ready at 9:15 AM!

Registered Republicans are encouraged to “pre-register” for the caucus by visiting http://caucus.cologop.org. It will make check-in much smoother. And, if you need to register to vote or change your affiliation to Republican in order to caucus with us, it must be completed prior to February 14. It is very easy to do either of these functions at www.GoVoteColorado.com.

The principal function of our caucus is to nominate Republican candidates to the ballot. And, we’ll identify our Precinct Committeepersons, recruit individuals for election judges and discuss issues and consider resolutions. We’ll also hear from various candidates, and elect delegates and alternates to higher assemblies. These individuals will be ratified at the County Assembly which will take place at 10:00 AM on Saturday, March 14th at the rodeo grounds, Fred R. Field Western Heritage Center Multi-Purpose Building.

Our rights as American citizens do not come without responsibility. Reflect on the commitment made by our founders to surrender their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor. They knew that to secure our future, the torch of freedom had to be passed on to future generations. Let’s participate in this experience and carry out our civic duty.

If you believe the United States Constitution is the true torch of our freedom and liberty, and it’s worth defending, join fellow Republicans to carry out our responsibility to future generations and in honor of our courageous founders! We’ll see you all on March 7!

Questions: Call 970-349-7744 or visit GunnisonCountyRepublicans.org.

Updates will also be available on Facebook.com/GunnisonCountyRepublicans. We invite you to “like and join” our page!

Sincerely,

Jane Chaney

Chair, Gunnison County Republican Central Committee

RSVP to 970-349-7744 if you’d like to join fellow Republicans at a Watch Party on Thursday, February 20 beginning 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM.

Address: 247 Kubler Street, CB South at the Chaney home

VOTE YOUR PRIMARY BALLOT AND MAIL IT IN TODAY, PLEASE!
Let’s do what New Hampshire did and have RECORD voter turnout for our incumbent President, Donald J. Trump! Come on Gunnison County, let our voices be heard loud and clear!!