A native of Lincoln County, Tenn., David Vess has lived in Madison County for most of his adult life. As long as he’s been here, he has been involved in serving the community, from volunteering in the schools of District 4 to serving on the Madison County School Board. David and his wife, Christy, are raising their children in Madison County’s District 4, and he is committed to making it the best place it can be to live and work.
Born in October 1975, David graduated from Lincoln County High School in 1994. He married Christy in 1996, and they have an eight-year-old son, Caleb, and a seven-year-old daughter, Darby. His children attend Harvest Elementary School.
David has worked in management positions for various companies since completing high school. For the past six years, he has served as the farm manager of Harvest Farm, a 325-acre hay and horse farm in northwestern Madison County. Since 2003, David has worked two jobs — not out of necessity, but in the interest of serving his community. First, he served as a part-time youth minister at Meridianville Church of Christ, where he remains an active member. In 2010, he was elected to the Madison County School Board, where he has proven his leadership capabilities with several successes.
School Board Success
During his first year as a school board member, David oversaw the school finance committee, a position that allowed him to gain detailed knowledge about school budgets. This year, he was elected by his peers to serve as vice president of the school board. David has been a very active voice for the new high school in the works for Madison County, which has been approved and is set to open in 2013. As a school board member, David also played an active role in helping to secure funding for several important improvements, such as equipping Harvest Elementary classrooms with the technological improvements available at Madison Crossroads and Sparkman Middle. David has also secured funding for and overseen athletic improvement projects at Sparkman High School, such as installing artificial turf on the practice fields and pouring new concrete at the baseball complex.
As a school board member, David has been actively involved at each of his district schools and he has become a familiar face. In fact, the best way to learn about his record as a school board member is to ask a teacher at one of his district schools about him and what he’s done for the school since he’s been on the board. Chances are that any teacher will know David and will be able to share his efforts that have made a difference for them and their students.
In addition to making an impact on the local schools, David has made a positive impression on his school board peers across the state. While school board members are required to receive eight credit hours of continuing education each year, David put in extra time to attend educational conferences and earned 26 credit hours last year and will earn 25 this year. Out of more than 500 school board members across the state, David was asked by the Alabama Association of School Boards to serve on the organization’s bylaws committee, so he is now serving in a statewide position to represent school boards throughout Alabama.
County Commission
Goals
David Vess is running for Madison County Commissioner because he believes he can make a difference for the people of his district, and he is committed to investing the time and energy needed to build a stronger, better Madison County.
As a County Commissioner, David will focus on public safety, with a special interest in roads, ditches, and emergency first responders. For instance, David plans to evaluate the drainage issues in District 4 and work to solve the drainage ditch problems. He will work to make the roads safe, especially busy, problematic areas like Nance Road, Capshaw Road, and the intersection of Railroad Bed Road and Wall-Triana Highway at Harvest. He plans to ensure that current road projects, such as the widening of Highway 53, will be completed in a timely manner. Like other parents, David is concerned about traffic at Highway 53 and McKee Road, where the new high school will soon be built. As a school board member, David has been involved in that project from the beginning, and as a County Commissioner, he will see the traffic study through to the end and ensure that the right steps are taken to make sure District 4 students are safe.
As a former volunteer firefighter, David is committed to supporting the volunteer fire departments in Madison County. As a County Commissioner, he would like to relieve firefighters in Toney and Bobo from their current duties of maintaining fire hydrants. David would like fire hydrants to be painted, maintained and kept in working order as a county service so that volunteer firefighters can focus on fighting fires and keeping residents safe.
During his tenure on the school board and as a longtime business manager, David has gained extensive experience in creating and maintaining budgets, and as a County Commissioner, he will be committed to fiscal responsibility. Not only will he strive to use the people’s money responsibly and ethically, he will work to stretch the available funds to do more with less.
David is also committed to economic development and is a strong advocate for keeping jobs in Madison County. That’s why every dollar of his campaign money has been spent in his district — rather than going outside the district or outside the county to purchase the services he needs, David has sought out local vendors to support local business and keep his money in his district. As a County Commissioner, David will continue to support the people of his district. Rather than bringing in new staff from outside the district office, he will hire from within and continue working with the talented, caring people who are already serving the people of District 4.
