Share This Article
Local resident Michele Linehan has announced her intent to run for Mountain Home City Council.
Linehan, who retired in December after a 25-year career in mortgage lending and banking, plans to file when the period opens on July 31. Ward 4 is currently overseen by City Councilman Jim Bodenhamer.
“When I entered college, I originally majored in Political Science. I was a bit naive about politics then. I eventually graduated with a degree in Economics and a minor in Philosophy. But my interest in what was going on in the political realm never left me,” Linehan said.
A Mountain Home resident since 2005, Linehan’s interest in local politics intensified after being approached about the proposed Mountain Home School millage. This prompted her to start attending City Council and Quorum Court meetings regularly.
Linehan, who describes herself as a fiscal conservative, sees a need for more transparency in city spending.
“I see too much money being funneled into projects that could be done in a more fiscally conservative manner. I also see some spending that I frankly don’t think the majority of Mountain Home citizens approve of,” she stated.
“I keep hearing that the citizens approve, but when I dig further the response becomes, they don’t voice their opinions. I think that needs to change. I’d like to be the City Councilperson they feel they can talk to, air their opinions to, without feeling like they go unheard or looked down on. Every voice counts.”
Linehan’s community involvement includes past membership in the Mortgage Banker Association, the Chamber of Commerce, and an advisory board position at Good Samaritan Society. She currently serves on an advisory board at ASUMH, focusing on financial literacy, and will be resuming her role as executive officer with the Twin Lakes Home Builders.
Linehan’s professional background also includes retail management, owning her own business, and eight years as Executive Director with the Boy Scouts. In her role with the Scouts, she managed over 500 volunteers and secured the Chief Scout Executive’s Winners Circle Award annually.
“I’ve been lucky to have had several different career paths including retail management, owing my own business and 8 years as Executive Director with the Boy Scouts,” Linehan said. “I had over 500 volunteers in my last district and worked with 150 of them on a consistent basis. I secured the Chief Scout Executive’s Winners Circle Award every year.”
Linehan said she is committed to being a catalyst for the change she thinks we need in our community.
“Mountain Home is a wonderful place to live. I think it could be even better. The stakeholders in our community — that’s all of us — have an opinion on what they would like to see our great city become. I’d appreciate the opportunity to be their voice,” Linehan said.
