T-R PHOTO BY SARA JORDAN-HEINTZ Governor Kim Reynolds made an appearance Monday evening at a GOP-sponsored ice cream social fundraiser, held at Riverview Park. The event took place on behalf of the campaigns of House District 72 state Rep. Dean Fisher, R-Montour, who is running for reelection, and James Perez, running for Iowa House of Representatives District 71. Here Reynolds chats with some of her constituents.

Governor Kim Reynolds spent part of Monday evening among her constituents, eating ice cream and sharing fellowship at Riverview Park as part of an ice cream social, to benefit the campaigns of Dean Fisher and James Perez.

Reynolds began her remarks by addressing the topic on top of many people’s minds: the continued support Marshalltown will receive in the aftermath of the recent tornado. She told those assembled she had a meeting with her cabinet earlier in the day about Marshalltown and its needs.

“I know the SBA (Small Business Administration) has approved our request for low interest disaster loans for both residential and businesses, and we’ll have FEMA on the ground tomorrow (Tuesday) to help with some of the assessments; really helping us determine if we qualify for a federal disaster proclamation. There’s two kinds: the public infrastructure and then the individual assistance, so we’re going to keep working, not only with individuals but businesses,” she said.

The governor praised Marshalltownians in their response to the storm and the spirit of togetherness in helping one another.

She said local, elected officials were in touch with her seconds after the tornado passed to start the beginning conversation about disaster relief.

House District 72 state Rep. Dean Fisher, R-Montour, who is running for reelection, said he will continue to enjoy working with the governor if she is elected.

“This is a governor I know I can get ahold of, and get things done,” Fisher said. “We’re number one (as a state) and will stay number one because of our leadership.”

Reynolds echoed those thoughts.

“There are so many positive things happening in this state of Iowa, and sometimes we need to just step back and be thankful for the great recognition we’re getting,” she said. “We’re the number one state for middle-class families. We have the number one high school graduation rate in the country.”

James Perez, who identifies as a conservative, is running for Iowa House of Representatives District 71, challenging incumbent state House Minority Leader Rep. Mark Smith, D-Marshalltown. Perez said, if elected, he will not waiver in his values. He said the key issues he is most focused on are gun rights, small government and being anti-abortion.

“When we elect representatives that really care about family values – Christian values – and want that family together, and know how important a father figure is, then we bring that grass built up from the local level, just like we did with gun control and pro life and everything that’s happened here. All politics is local. Dean and Jeff (Edler, state senator), and the governor have done a great job, but we have to make that commitment at the local level to bring it up,” Perez said.

Shawnda Groth, who attended the ice cream social, said she wanted her daughter to have the opportunity to hear her elected officials speak.

“My daughter is a senior this year, and she’s going to be studying government and economics, and so I thought this would be a great place to bring her so she can hear our governor speak about some of those topics,” Groth said. “And I also was curious to see what comments she (the governor) had about tornado recovery in Marshalltown.”

The event was moderated by Jarret P. Heil, Marshall County Treasurer. The event was open to the public, with the ice cream and assorted sweet treats given out through a free-will donation to benefit the local congregational campaigns.

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Contact Sara Jordan-Heintz at 641-753-6611 or sjordan@timesrepublican.com