About Representative Gearhart
I live in Strawberry Point with my wife Kayela, who is a 4th grade teacher at Starmont, and my children Jayden and Kendyl, who are 8th and 9th grade students at Starmont.
Like many of you, I am a product of the public education system. One of the biggest concerns I have for small rural districts is that they will be forced to consolidate into larger rural districts as student populations decline, teacher shortages continue, and schools are required to pay teachers more (which is great) but not given more state funding. Just like the one room schools of my grandparents' generation and the individual town schools that my parents' generation attended, maybe the small rural school districts I enjoyed and my kids enjoy today will one day just be an old abandoned building that my kids will tell their kids and grandkids that used to be their school.
Agriculture is very important in our state and has had a major impact on my life. I was born and raised right here in northeast Iowa and have lived here my whole life, with the exception of the 5 years I left home to serve our country in the Army. I grew up on a farm in northeast Iowa that my great-grandparents and grandparents farmed, and my dad continues to farm. In high school, I was active in our local FFA chapter, serving as chapter secretary and chapter president. I was on the livestock judging team and enjoyed showing livestock at the county and state fair. I was also awarded the state and American FFA degree. While I didn't always appreciate my conservative farm upbringing at the time, I learned the meaning of hard work, responsibility, and giving someone your word and a firm handshake.
I have dedicated much of my adult life to some form of service. I served in the United States Army for 5 years as a military police officer and investigator stationed at Camp Page and Camp Casey South Korea and Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
I have served as a board member on the Strawberry Point Chamber of Commerce for 5 years. I have grown giant pumpkins and donated them to the community to be smashed at the Chamber's Annual Pumpkin Walk. I served as the event coordinator for our town's annual namesake festival, Strawberry Days in 2022 and 2023.
I served on the Jr. Stars Athletics board for 4 years, and I have coached youth basketball for the last 5 years. I will be entering my third season (this fall) as the Starmont Middle School girls' basketball coach.
I was elected to the Strawberry Point City Council and have been serving in that capacity for the past 4 years. I was also elected to serve on the Starmont School Board. I know first hand what it is like to work with people with strong and differing opinions.
Being on the Strawberry Point City Council, I am well aware of how important it is to be fiscally responsible. With tight budgets, sometimes hard decisions need to be made in order to keep the budget under control. As a servant leader, all of the decisions I make as an elected official are for the betterment of the many and not the few. Many times I have been the lone voice of reason when questioning frivolous spending or bad policy. I was the lone vote of opposition to Strawberry Point's speed cameras. I question things that I don't understand or disagree with to ensure our constituents' tax dollars are spent wisely.
I was 19 years old when I raised my right hand and swore an oath to support and defend the United States Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic. Here we are, 22 years later, and I am still proud to honor that oath.
My reasons for running for the Iowa House are pretty simple. I want someone representing our district that is from rural Iowa, that will take our conservative values like being ethical, having common sense, and unwavering integrity to Des Moines.