Alisha Davenport seeks to educate public on need for township government

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The Indiana Legislature has made township government a target for reduction, consolidation, or elimination for several years. The fight to end this lifeline to hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers continues, but if Alisha Davenport has anything to say about it, the Center Township Trustee’s Office will be in the trenches, doing everything it can to ensure people are housed and safe.

Davenport was appointed to the position of trustee this summer as Drew Durham resigned as the Center Township Trustee to pursue another opportunity. She intends to maintain Durham’s positive work for the community, regardless of opposition from state politicians and even her own board of directors.

“I want to continue serving the residents of Center Township with compassion, and I want to I want to be out in the community,” said Davenport. “I want to be easily accessible and continue teaching Kokomo what Center Township does.”

By state statute, township trustees are responsible for providing poor relief for the entire township. They also provide fire and ambulance service to the unincorporated areas of their jurisdiction. For those who die when indigent, the trustee oversees proper burial and maintains cemeteries that no longer have administrators.

They also are charged with providing and maintaining parks and community center, weed and rank vegetation removal, and providing insulin to the poor. Beyond that, a township trustee has the ability to provide funding to organizations that benefit the community, though it is not a specific statutory duty.

All of these services are greatly needed, Davenport believes, and she said now is the time to bolster township government since it most directly works with citizens; more than any other branch of government in Indiana.

“There are so many residents right now working or not working who need township assistance,” said Davenport. “The cost of living right now is high. Wages are not high enough to keep up. If township government is not here, there would be a lot of homeless people, people without electricity, people not able to pay their rent. Township government needs to exist.”

Davenport has been with the Center Township Trustee’s Office for nearly 13 years. She was hired as a casework and advanced to senior caseworker. During that time, she has helped countless residents secure basic needs. She also became a mentor and teacher for other caseworkers in the office, helping them better serve the community. In her free time, she is an assistant coach for the Western High School wrestling team.

These connections and deep understanding of how a township actually functions are what make Davenport confident that she is the best candidate for the position. And she is committed to preserving the trustee level of government.

“I feel that Center Township does not need to consolidate with other townships,” said Davenport. “We have more than 47,000 people in our township. Some of the smaller townships may need to consider consolidation in order to best serve their residents, but we aren’t in that position.

“I would like the functions of township government to be known more in the community. I think a lot of people just don’t understand what we do. Teaching our community what our township does, and all the things that we can do, is something that I want to focus on.”

That won’t be the easiest task for Davenport. Just like the two trustees who came before her – Durham and the late Rev. Robert A. Lee – she potentially faces a board of directors bent on minimizing the township’s role in the community. The current board has all but eliminated any services and grants that aren’t specified in state law over the past two years.

“I hope that we can all work together in order to best serve the residents of Center Township,” said Davenport. “It is an election year, so whoever those board members might be, I hope that we can all be a team and work best to serve the residents of Center Township.”

Davenport is particularly proud of the employees in the township office. She glowed about their dedication to the community, their willingness to reach beyond the bare minimum to provide services, and their hard work to ease the burden placed upon people by an economy that fails to meet needs.

“My team is phenomenal,” said Davenport. “We have employees at our office who love to serve the community. We work hard every day to see as many clients as we can. Our township assistance is up because people just can’t make it right now. So, we have long days at the office, but they work hard and diligently to serve as many people as they can on a daily basis.”

That admiration is a two-way street. Chief Deputy Darla Pugh has known Davenport since her arrival at Center Township, and she has been impressed by the trustee’s growth and her devotion to the community.

“Our current township trustee is very dedicated,” said Pugh. “She has compassion. She is there for community. She likes what she does, and wanted to expand on that. She will go above and beyond to get the job completed. She is a go-getter. She will do the citizens of Howard County and Center Township proud.”