Leonhard leaving

After two decades of county business, Mike Leonhard is leaving office.

From the landfill expansion to wind farm development, he’s been there for it all.

The 73-year-old previously served two terms as a Jay County Commissioner from 1997 to 2004 and two-plus terms as a Jay County Council member from 2007 to 2016. Following a commissioners executive session Wednesday, his final four-year term is over.

Leonard graduated from Portland High School in 1966 and served for two years overseas in the Vietnam War. He worked on a dairy farm, for Elkhart Products Corporation in Geneva and at Portland Forge before starting as a contractor.

In his roles in county government, he liked to be present for ongoing work.

Leonhard enjoyed taking drives to different parts of the county to check progress on projects like road paving and see what’s new at places like Jay County Retirement Center.

“He gets involved and cares about people in Jay County,” said county council member Gary Theurer, who is also finishing up 24 years in local government. “He (doesn’t) know a stranger hardly.”

Leonhard started as a commissioner at the same time as Theurer, back when they met each Monday before the meetings were scaled back to twice a month. During his time as a commissioner and council member, Leonhard helped oversee county projects, including Bitter Ridge Wind Farm development, the Jay County Landfill expansion, courthouse renovations, having sewer lines extended to Jay County Retirement Center and Jay County highway garage, and various road conversions.

Fellow commissioner Chuck Huffman — he is also leaving office after a four-year term — has known Leonhard for about 35 years. They worked together as co-trustees for a Jay County Humane Society trust fund. Huffman admires him as someone who is attentive to public opinion.

“I think he got around a lot and talked to a lot of people,” Huffman said. “He just always had a good read on what the public was thinking.”

Recently, Huffman, Leonhard and fellow commissioner Chad Aker also approved up to $275,000 in funding for a new animal control facility.

Leonhard had hoped to serve his fourth term as commissioner starting in 2021, but he lost to Rex Journay in the Republican primary in June.

Now that Leonhard is leaving county government, he plans to take it easy. Or, at least, easier. Although he’s mostly retired from construction now, he still does some work on the side. He’s got a couple houses to build this spring.

“I want to be active — I don’t want to be just sitting in the house and watch the world go by,” he said.

In his free time, he’ll likely continue to volunteer at Portland’s food pantry and help with maintenance at Jay County Fairgrounds. When he’s not working or volunteering, he likes attending high school basketball games, gardening and visiting his daughters and son.

Aker said he’s enjoyed working alongside Leonhard the last two years. He knows if he has questions, Leonhard will be happy to answer them.

“Mike says it how it is and he doesn’t hold back,” Aker said. “You never know what he’s going to say — sometimes it’s surprising … but in a good way.”