My Answers to the Township Candidate Questionnaire

Written By Jim Smith

Voters should not have to guess where a candidate stands. Each Springfield Township Trustee candidate received the same detailed questionnaire about the office, its duties, and the issues in front of us. Here are my answers in full, as I submitted them on October 14, 2026. I am sharing them so yo ucan judge for yourself.

Part 1: General Candidate Information

Political Party Affiliation

I am running as an Independent. Independent by circumstance, not by choice. I did not know the rules when the primary came around, because I never thought I would run. I lean right, and I think of myself as a Republican. Indiana does not register voters by party, so there is no membership date to give you. It is how I see things, not a card in my wallet. I am not an Independent because I am angry at a party or chasing a cause. Circumstance put me on this line of the ballot, and I am glad to explain it to anyone who asks.

In practice, I look at the person and the policy, not the party, and that is especially true in township government, which is about roads, cemeteries, and helping neighbors in a hard stretch, and none of that has a party label. Where I come from, neighbors work together first and sort out labels later, and that is the approach I will bring to the Trustee's office.

Basic Biography

I am a lifelong farmer and agricultural professional from Grabill, where my family operates J&K Smith Family Farms across Allen and DeKalb Counties. I graduated from Northrop High School in Fort Wayne, earned an undergraduate degree from Purdue, and hold a Ph.D. in Animal Sciences from Kansas State University. For more than 28 years I have worked as a swine nutritionist and consultant, including time with Hubbard Feeds and Kent Feeds, and today I serve agriculture through Patio Pondering Consulting, including as a consultant with the Swine Insights International team, and through my writing and the Patio Pondering Podcast.

My wife Kim and I moved to the Grabill area in 2007 and raised our three children here. Kim is a veterinarian who started her career as a mixed animal vet at the Grabill Vet Clinic and now helps small animal owners with urgent care needs.

Our daughter Shelby, a 2017 Leo High School graduate and 10-year Allen County 4-H member, earned her Animal Sciences degree at Kansas State. She is Marketing Manager for the Beef Genetics Division of Neogen in Lincoln, Nebraska, and she and her husband Chad farm row crops and cattle in Southeast Nebraska with their daughter.

Our son Toby, a 2019 Leo graduate, earned his Animal Sciences degree at Purdue and is Safety Coordinator and Assistant Herd Manager at Reproduction Specialty Group in Lebanon, Indiana. Like me, he was a 10-year 4-H member and an Eagle Scout, and he played for the Leo Rugby Club.

Our youngest is a junior at Leo High School, active in marching, jazz, and pep band, where he plays tuba and trombone. He is also active in Scouting, 4-H, and rugby.

My roots in Allen County run deep. I was a 10-year 4-H member in Allen County. I was baptized and confirmed at Crescent Avenue United Methodist Church, then attended Bethany United Methodist Church during high school, where I earned my Eagle Scout rank in Troop 27, which Bethany sponsored. Today I serve as a reserve adult leader at Troop 2 and have been a 4-H parent and volunteer for many years. This past summer I was the Lead Adult Advisor for Crew 719-K-02 on a trek at Philmont Scout Ranch. I am 55.

Fun Facts / Favorites

I breed Deutsch Kurzhaar (German Shorthaired Pointers) under the kennel name Erntemond, German for "Harvest Moon." A mentor who knew I was a farm kid suggested the name, and the kennel is registered in Germany with the Deutsch-Kurzhaar-Verband. I also judge. I am a Verbandsrichter for the JGHV, the German federation for versatile hunting dogs, which means I evaluate dogs in hunting tests, and a Formwertrichter for the DKV, which means I judge how well a Deutsch Kurzhaar is built. I would rather catch bluegill and crappie than bass or catfish, and I would rather hunt pheasant and duck than deer. I love watching or listening to Purdue basketball. The farthest I have traveled for work was China, in March 2026, and listening to Purdue's NCAA Tournament loss from my hotel room there was frustrating.

Contact Information

Office Hours

Yes. The current Springfield Township Trustee posts township assistance office hours of Tuesdays and Thursdays, by appointment, at 260-657-3422. If elected, I will initially continue those same days and appointment option and evaluate changes based on need from the residents.

Greater Fort Wayne, Inc. Membership

I am not a current or past member of Greater Fort Wayne, Inc. That means I have no involvement, leadership role, or membership history to report, and no membership will influence my decisions.

On the pledge: yes. As Trustee I will stay fully transparent and will not sign a non-disclosure agreement connected to township business, whether it comes from Greater Fort Wayne, Inc., the Fort Wayne-Allen County Economic Alliance, or anyone else. Transparency is one of my three campaign pillars. My private client relationships stay private and have no bearing on township business.

Prior Public Service

I have not held any elected or appointed public office. The closest thing is my service on the Research and Education Committee of Indiana Pork, the state's pork producer checkoff organization, from 2014 to 2024. There I helped decide how farmer-paid checkoff dollars were spent on research and education, which taught me to weigh requests against a budget and answer to the people who funded it. Beyond that, my service has been as a volunteer: as a 4-H parent and volunteer with Allen County 4-H for many years, and as a Scout leader. I am a reserve adult leader at Troop 2, and this past summer I was Lead Adult Advisor for Crew 719-K-02 on a trek at Philmont Scout Ranch.

I would come to the office with fresh eyes. I will ask how things are done and why, and I will listen to the answers.

Business Ownership

Yes. I own and operate two businesses and co-own a third.

Patio Pondering LLC, which does business as Patio Pondering Consulting, is my swine nutrition consulting, writing, and podcast business. It is registered with the State of Indiana. Through it, I also work as an independent contractor consultant with Swine Insights International, an international swine management consulting firm that lists me on its team page. I am not an employee or owner of Swine Insights, so its registrations are not mine to report.

J&K Smith Family Farms is our family's farming operation in Grabill, in Allen and DeKalb Counties. It operates as a sole proprietorship, so it has no separate state registration.

JSEC Family Farms LLC is a secondary interest. I co-own it with my sister, Elizabeth Chmiel. The LLC owns farmland, including a Hoosier Heritage farm, along with one rental property, and is registered with the State of Indiana.

My wife, Kim, and I also own one rental property personally, and I am a landlord. None of my businesses has ever applied for Better Business Bureau accreditation.

If elected, my consulting and farm work would continue, and I would keep them fully separate from township business. I would step away from any township decision in which one of my businesses had an interest, including any request for help involving a tenant or a property that I or my family's LLC owns. Running a business has taught me to read a budget, live within it, and be accountable for where every dollar goes.

Motivation for Candidacy

I am running because this community is worth fighting for, and I believe the Trustee's office should stay in the hands of people who call this place home. My ancestors settled this area in 1855, and for 170 years my family has shown up in Allen and DeKalb Counties, as a precinct committeeman, as a citizen sheriff, and as neighbors. This is my home, and these are my people.

I also believe a township deserves a choice. The Trustee handles public money and helps neighbors in hard times, so residents should be able to count on the person in that seat to be honest, open about the books, and careful with every dollar. Integrity, transparency and stewardship are the standards I will use to make every decision, and I am asking voters to hold me to them.

Political Endorsements

As of October 14, 2026, seven Springfield Township residents, including a former Trustee and four outgoing or incoming board members, have publicly endorsed my candidacy by signing my campaign announcement letter, which ran in the East Allen County Courier on May 19, 2026:

  • Former Springfield Township Trustee: Bruce Amstutz, who served as Springfield Township Trustee from 1974 to 2014 and whom I met while looking into how the township's fire territory funds are used

  • Outgoing Springfield Township Board members: Mark Roemke, also a local farmer and a mentor to me; Brian Amstutz, also my second cousin

  • Incoming Springfield Township Board members (unopposed on the November ballot): Wendy McConnell, also a neighbor and Brian's wife; John Markey, whom I got to know while learning how the township's fire territory funding is used

  • Friends and neighbors: Greg Kneubuhler, local business owner, farmer, and longtime friend; Jody Amstutz, a neighbor and acquaintance

I am also supported by Republicans for Jim Smith, a supporter group run by Sharon Harris, which first appeared publicly at the Harlan Days Parade on August 1, 2026.

Political Donations

My campaign is almost entirely funded by me. As of October 9, 2026, I have paid for my campaign expenses out of my own pocket. I have received very little from others:

  1. Sharon Harris, who campaigns as Republicans for Jim Smith: $407.39 in cash, as reimbursement to the campaign for handouts used at the August 1 Harlan Days Parade, and yard signs given in kind, valued at $658.84, both received August 1, 2026, for a total of $1,066.23.

I have no other donors to report. The campaign has a checking account to ensure no commingling of donated funds with personal, non-campaign funds. My campaign finance reports are filed with the Allen County Election Board and are public records.

Top 3 Township Priorities

1. Make poor relief easy to find and easy to use (stewardship). Goal: any resident in need knows township help exists and how to ask for it. According to the township's Direct Poor Relief budget report for January 1 through September 30, 2026, the township had spent $15,127 of its $40,000 budget, which tells me more neighbors may qualify than know to ask. How: plain-language materials, a township Facebook and web page, and outreach to every neighbor in the township.

2. Keep the budget honest now that fire is out of it (stewardship). Goal: fire protection has moved to the Northeast Allen fire district, and the township no longer levies for fire. The station and the township's former apparatus have been or will be transferred to the district. What remains in the township budget should match the duties the township still has, and residents should be able to see that it does. How: work with the new township board through 2027 on a thorough review of the budget against what has actually been spent, so the budget I propose for 2028 matches the real need in our community.

3. Open books, open meetings (transparency and integrity). Goal: any resident can see the budget without asking, and can watch township meetings whether or not they can attend. How: create an official Springfield Township Facebook page and website, livestream and archive every meeting, and post the budget online.

Kindness Counts

I admire anyone willing to put their name on a ballot and serve their community. That takes courage, and I respect everyone on this ballot for stepping forward.

Perspectives on Other Local Issues

Springfield Township moved early on fire protection. Its fire levy has already moved to the Northeast Allen fire district, its station and apparatus have been or will be transferred, and I support the district and the firefighters who serve us.

The other issue I care about is farmland and growth. Allen County adopted its 20-year comprehensive plan, All In Allen, in 2023, and I believe new projects in the county, and especially in Springfield Township, should follow it. A plan only means something if it is followed when a project comes up for approval. A Township Trustee does not approve building projects, transmission lines, solar fields, or data centers. But the office can make sure neighbors know when a project is coming, where to read the plan, and how to speak at a hearing or file a comment, and I would attend and speak up when a proposal does not fit the plan.

I should say plainly that I am an affected landowner. Two of the family farms owned by an LLC I co-own, one bought in 1855 and one in 1902, sit on proposed routes for the Lulu-Sorenson transmission line. This is not only a family issue. Study Segment 74, one of the alternative routes the company is weighing before it picks one, runs through Springfield Township near Harlan and Georgetown, so our neighbors are directly in the picture. I also believe bare farm ground is not blank ground. It carries a family's past and its future options, and that should count when any large project is weighed. The people who lose the most are often the most self-sufficient among us, our farmers.

Candidate Survey Feedback

I appreciate the effort behind this questionnaire and the chance to explain my views in full. I have answered each through the lens of what a Trustee can actually do.

Part 2: Township Duties and Deep-Dive Issues

A note on how I answered. I am a candidate, not an office holder, so I do not have the township's internal records, agreements or day-to-day practice, and I would rather say so than guess. Where a question asks what the township does today, I say what I know from public records and what I would look at first. Where it asks what I will do, I give my approach and my commitments, and I will report back to residents in the open once I can see everything.

System Efficiency, Oversight and On-Site Services & Supplies

Administrative overhead. I do not want to name a magic percentage, because the right number depends on what the township must do. My test is simpler: the share of the budget that reaches the people the township serves should be as high as it can be while the office still does its job well. As a candidate I have not seen the full 2026 and 2025 breakdown by category that you ask about. What I have seen is the Direct Poor Relief budget report for January 1 through September 30, 2026, which shows $15,127 spent of a $40,000 budget.

Audit. I have not seen the township's most recent audit, and I do not know the rules that govern when and by whom it is done. If elected, I would ask for the latest audit report, post it on the township's web page, and report on anything the auditors flagged and how it was fixed. I would also ask whether more frequent or independent review would serve residents.

Inventory. I do not know when the township last took an inventory of its equipment and supplies. If elected, I would ask for the most recent one and post it. If it is out of date, I would have a new one done and keep it current.

On-site services and supplies. The township office will remain in the fire station under a lease from the fire district. Once the station is transferred, the township will own no building that could host services like a food pantry or a warming station, so I will not promise a long list of on-site services. I would rather ask neighbors what they would use and add what the office can do well.

Township consolidation. I judge consolidation by one test: does it get better service to residents? The new countywide Fire & EMS District passes that test, in my view. It lets the county serve everyone without depending on mutual aid across township lines. Township assistance is different. It works because the office is close enough to know its neighbors and easy to reach, and I worry that merging townships would dilute those services and make aid harder to get, especially for residents without a car, a phone or an internet connection. For Springfield Township, I oppose consolidation unless it clearly improves service for residents. I would earn that position by proving the office is efficient on its own: publishing the budget, the audit and the inventory, so taxpayers can see for themselves.

Poverty Relief & Emergency Township Assistance

Standardizing guidelines. I do not want to name numbers before I have seen the township's current standards and its case history, because a number set without them is a guess. What I will do is review the current income and asset standards and make sure they are applied the same way to every applicant. My aim is to reach a family while a single missed paycheck or car repair is still a short-term problem, before it becomes a deep one.

Income and job hurdles. Many people in this township work and still come up short in a month, and they often fall between programs. I see township help as a bridge for them: a one-time rent or utility gap, a bill that arrives at the wrong time. I would make it easy to apply, consider evening or Saturday appointments only if residents show a real demand and need for them, and refer to other help when it is a better fit.

Transportation hurdles. Springfield Township is still a rural township with no public transportation. Utilizing digital-based applications is a way we can overcome transportation issues for residents needing assistance. Having a public website and Facebook page with easy-to-use contact portals will help residents.

Red tape. I have not seen the township's application or its procedure, so I cannot say whether there is any red tape or where it is. If elected, I would review the application and the process first, and keep them as simple and clear as the law allows.

Public visibility. Having both a township trustee website and Facebook page will provide public visibility, along with announcements in the local East Allen County Courier.

On the size of the budget. The Direct Poor Relief budget I have seen is the 2026 budget, which is $40,000. The 2027 budget will not be approved until October 21, so I cannot speak to its size yet. I commit to a thorough review of the current budget against expenditures to ensure my proposed budget for 2028 will match the real need in our community.

Homeless Assistance & Housing Stability

Collaboration with nonprofits. As a candidate I do not know the township's current partners or whether any agreement is in writing. If elected, I would ask for the list, build working relationships with the county's legal, rental assistance and shelter providers, and put each partnership in writing so it does not depend on one person.

Eviction prevention. I am a landlord, so I understand the eviction process from both sides: a tenant who risks losing a home and an owner who still has bills to pay. Because my family owns rental property, I would step aside from any request that involved our tenants or property. I want to be realistic. The shelter line in the township's poor relief budget is about $15,000, which will not stop many evictions on its own, and I will not tell voters it will. That is why my first step would be a thorough review of the budget against how it has actually been used over the years, to see whether rent assistance and the rest of poor relief are sized to the real need. I do not see the township as only a one-time fund, but the money is best used early and for small gaps, a month's shortfall that keeps a family housed, paid directly to the landlord. For anything bigger, the township's most useful role is to get neighbors to the right help in time. That means the Allen County Eviction Assistance Clinic, run by the Volunteer Lawyer Program of Northeast Indiana and Indiana Legal Services at 347 W. Berry St. in Fort Wayne, and the county's rental assistance programs, and I would make sure neighbors facing eviction know about them.

Cold weather and seasonal sheltering. Once the fire station is transferred to the fire district, the township will own no building it could open as a daytime winter warming station, and I will not promise one. What I would do is ask whether a church or community building in the township could serve that purpose, and see how the township could help with the cost.

Indigent Burial & Funeral Assistance

Dignity vs. budget. Burying a neighbor who has no means is something we have decided as a society is necessary, and it should be done with respect. I would not look for the cheapest answer. I would look for the best use of township funds, a dignified arrangement at a fair price, with the cost and the reasoning open to the public.

Vendor partnerships. I would choose funeral homes and cemeteries on fair price, quality of care, closeness to the family and the township, and willingness to treat every family with the same respect, and I would review those partners in the open so no one can say a contract went to a friend. As a candidate I do not know who the current partners are.

Cemetery Preservation

Which cemeteries and what budget priority. Cemetery care is another thing we have decided as a society is necessary. These are where our families and our history rest. I want to continue quality maintenance and manage it with an eye toward stewardship, not the cheapest option but the best use of township funds. I know of two cemeteries the township maintains, Old Maysville and Salem. As a candidate I do not have details of the maintenance contracts or what the cemeteries need. Cemetery maintenance is paid from a separate account from burial assistance, which is part of poor relief. If elected, I would review the maintenance contracts and needs of both cemeteries and share what I find with residents.

Local Fire Protection & Emergency Services

Fire protection for Springfield Township now belongs to the Northeast Allen fire district. The township no longer levies for fire, and the station and the former apparatus have been or will be transferred to the district. That means a Trustee has no equipment to fund, no volunteers to recruit, and no fire contracts to negotiate for this township. I support the district and the firefighters who serve us, and my role is to make sure the township's budget reflects the duties it still has.

Deep Dive #1: The Allen County Fire & EMS District

For Springfield Township, this is largely a settled issue. The township moved early. Its fire levy has already transferred to the Northeast Allen fire district, ahead of the countywide transition, and the station and apparatus have been or will be transferred, so the structural shift this question describes is largely done here. My answers are short for that reason.

Budgeting and tax adjustments. The township's budget no longer carries fire. My job is to make sure what remains matches the duties the township still has, and to show residents the numbers, not to promise a cut I cannot verify. I would also help neighbors read their tax bill, because the fire cost does not vanish. It moves to the district's line.

Asset and property disposal. The station and the township's former apparatus have been or will be transferred. I would ask to see the written record and make sure it is public.

Expansion of remaining mandates. I would not expand the township's duties, but I would do the remaining ones better: poor relief that residents know about and can reach, cemeteries cared for as good stewards, and an office that is open about its books.

Local response time accountability. Response is now the district's job. I would ask for response data for our part of the township, publish it, and carry neighbors' concerns to the district if rural gaps show up.

Interlocal communication. I met Chief Jeremy Bush of the district, at a district outreach meeting at Cedarville Park in September. If elected, I would keep a regular line open with him, so the risks specific to our township are not lost in a larger system.

Deep Dive #2: Homelessness and the Township's Role

Statutory duty and how I would use the poor relief budget. The township's tool is prevention and connection. Its budget is small, and I would use it early and for small gaps, such as a month's rent paid directly to a landlord, so a family stays housed. For a neighbor already without housing, I would connect them to the shelters and services that exist in the county, and use township funds where the law allows to bridge the gap.

Where the Trustee fits, and who is responsible. I do not think homelessness belongs to the city, the county or the township alone, and I will not take sides in the dispute between them. Each has a part. The township's part is to be the local front door for its own residents: easy to reach, quick to respond, and able to get a neighbor to the right help. I would rather spend my effort on that than on arguing over whose problem it is.

Resource allocation. I will not name a percentage I cannot back. I do not yet have the full budget history, which is why my first step would be a review of how the money has actually been used. I can promise the principle: direct aid to residents comes first, and every dollar and its purpose would be published.

Direct municipal contact and proactive engagement. As a candidate, no one from the city has contacted me about this. If elected, yes, I would reach out to the city administration, the county commissioners and the neighboring townships to work on a shared approach, so we are not each working alone.

Transient coordination. Springfield Township is rural, and I do not know of unhoused neighbors being moved across our lines. I would coordinate with city and county offices so that no one is shuttled from one jurisdiction to another, and so that each person is directed to the office responsible for helping them.

Shelter operations, hurdles and voucher systems. Once the station is transferred, the township will own no building that could serve as a warming center or shelter, and as things stand I do not see the budget or the staffing to run one, so I will not promise one. The barriers are the ones the question lists: no building, no staff, liability, and money. What I would do is find out who already provides warming and sheltering for our area, ask whether a church or community building in the township would host one, and see what the township could contribute, if the law allows and the need is shown. Hotel vouchers do not work well here, since few motels accept them and we have none within our borders. I would not commit to funding de-centralized shelters before I know the need and the cost, but I would look at it honestly and report what I find.

Deep Dive #3: An Allen County Casino

My position. Our county learned a hard lesson when International Harvester closed in the early 1980s and so much of our employment depended on one industry. We should keep diversifying the businesses that provide jobs here, and I am for responsible growth. A good project balances what it brings against what it disrupts for residents and neighbors. But a community cannot be all things to all people, and I worry that pushing a casino mainly as a way to raise tax revenue and real estate assessments is an attempt to do exactly that, to welcome everything in the name of revenue. A casino is different, because it can bring social costs that other businesses do not. I oppose a casino in Northeast Indiana. What concerns me is a habit I see in these discussions: "it raises tax revenue, so it must be good." Revenue has to be weighed against the costs to the people who live here. The Township Trustee has no part in the decision to place a casino, so I will not pretend to a power the office does not have. What I can do is share my opinion. Public Question #3 on the November ballot asks, "Shall inland casino gambling be permitted in Allen County?" The same question is on the ballot in DeKalb and Steuben Counties, and each county votes on its own. Springfield Township residents vote on Allen County's, and I believe they should vote no.

Pressure on township property tax revenue. I cannot predict how the municipalities would use casino money, so I would not count on any of it in the township's budget. If cities and towns use it for property tax relief and township revenue flattens as a result, I would show the board and residents what that does to our budget, in the open, before decisions are made.

The humanitarian fund going to non-profits. If help for addiction, mental health and homelessness is delivered through non-profits, I would work with them. The township's budget is small, and sharing resources with more capable organizations is an obvious way I can help those in need in our community.

More demand for poor relief, working-poor applicants and displacement. I cannot say whether these effects would come, but I would prepare the way I would for any rise in need: track the applications, publish the numbers, and show the board the evidence if demand climbs. The township is a bridge for a temporary shortfall, and a neighbor whose need is bigger than the township can meet should be connected to the county's other resources, such as the legal clinic and rental assistance programs.

Lobbying for revenue, intake, and gambling-related claims. If the county decides a casino is right for our community, I would lobby for casino funds to help Springfield Township, and if need rises I would make that case to county and state officials with real numbers. I would not promise that it would work or build the township budget on it. I would handle a rise in requests by making intake easy and early, not by raising the levy. I would not add conditions that the law does not set, and any change to the eligibility rules would have to apply to every applicant equally and be reviewed with the township's attorney.

Jim Smith
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