We recently went on a visit to the Union County Courthouse. We were honored to meet with Mr. Lance Meisenheimer, Union County Clerk, one last time before he starts a new career path!

Mr. Meisenheimer greeted us and began our visit by introducing himself and telling us about the duties of the County Clerk. He then took us into the clerk’s office and showed us the different areas housed there. First up was the early voting area. Voting equipment is housed in the courthouse and the clerk’s office organizes and oversees the process.

We were extremely lucky to visit one week before the April 1 Consolidated Election! Especially exciting was the fact that early voting was available and we have one young professional, Shawnee student, Jackson Rendleman, who is 18 and already registered to vote. Election Judges, Ms. Tina Waller and Ms. Linda Knupp, walked us through the process and Jackson was able to vote while we were there. It was truly an added bonus to our visit to see democracy in action! Thank you, Ladies, for your guidance!

Next we saw the areas where all of the records are kept. The clerk is the official record keeper of real estate, marriages, divorces, births and deaths and all of these records, dating back to the 1800s, are located here. It is so interesting to see these pieces of history from over 200 years ago and our team took a special interest in the delicate, handwritten, time weathered documents.

We then went to the conference room where the County Commissioners meet. Mr. Max Miller, the Chairman of the Commissioners, talked to us and explained how the board oversees the county and the budget. Max has been a commissioner for 13 years and his passion for our county shines through when he shares his experiences!

We had such a great time and it was so interesting to see and discuss the inner workings of our county government. The students were very surprised by how the government works and the many different aspects of all of the processes. Thank you to Lance, for facilitating this visit and showing us around and thank you to all of the county officers and their staff who keep our county running smoothly! Union County is a special place and we appreciate the dedication of these people!