Jeff Thorsen Fundraiser

Gervais + Kurtz

David Gervais and Donna Kurtz

Blame it on snow shoveling, the extreme cold or the lack of sun, but I have fallen behind on articles I should have written.

One was about Crystal Lake City Councilman Jeff Thorsen’s fundraiser on what must have been the coldest Thursday of the year.

It was so cold that he was wondering if anyone would show up at Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria.

But, they did and, although my camera’s battery died before I got one shot and I had to borrow a smart phone, I did get some photos.

Thorsen Campaign Chairman Dave Gervais introduced McHenry County Board member Donna Kurtz who introduced McHenry County Sheriff’s candidate Bill Prim who introduced Thorsen.

Kurtz talked of Thorsen’s “moral courage.”

Jeff Thorsen speaks to the crowd.

Jeff Thorsen speaks to the crowd.

She applied the word “honesty” to both Thorsen and Prim.

“They are two guys who will seize the opportunity to make things better,” she said.

Prim characterized Thorsen as “fiscally conservative…[and] soft-spoken and doesn’t want to talk about himself.”

Prim pointed out that Thorsen was President of the Crystal Lake Lions Club, Treasurer of the Salvation Army, on the Board of Horizons for the Blind and serves on several other boards, not to mention serving on the Crystal Lake City Council since 1999.

Prim also pointed out that Thorsen earned an MBA in Finance from NIU and has been in banking for 27 years.

“He’s uniquely qualified for the job,” Prim said.

“He’s my next Treasurer,” Prim said.

In his talk, Thorsen pointed out that he had voted against the [75%] increase in the Crystal Lake sales tax.

He got a round of applause for that.

Thorsen also proposed putting more financial information on property tax bills.

Jeff Thorsen

Jeff Thorsen

“We need to know the financial health of all units of government we pay our taxes to,” he said.

“You can see where your dollars go, those units of government that collect your tax dollars on your tax bill now.

“I propose you also see the financial weaknesses and strengths of those units of government on that same tax bill.

“It will be a long term project but my goal is to provide the taxpayers with the knowledge of which units are fat and which units are thin.

“That way the voters can arm themselves come levy time to protest the unwarranted levy increases come the wee hours of December when those levies are decided upon.

“This is not a new idea.

“Other counties already provide their taxpayers this information on the tax bills today.

“There is absolutely NO credible reason why McHenry cannot be among the counties that shed the light on government finance.”

Thorsen also promised to

  • make money work for you
  • make sure money is protected
  • make money available when needed

Comments

Jeff Thorsen Fundraiser — 3 Comments

  1. Three candidates most worthy of your votes: Jeff Thorsen, Donna Kurtz and Bill Prim.

    Those will be three votes for honest, thrifty and transparent government.

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