By Deb Patterson
InkFreeNews

NORTH WEBSTER — The Kosciusko County Republican Party Lincoln Day Dinner Thursday evening held a surprise for one of the county’s residents. Al Disbro was called to the front, where Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch awarded him with the Sagamore of the Wabash on behalf of Gov. Eric Holcomb.

State Leaders are shown with Al Disbro following the presentation, From left are Sen. Blake Doriot, Rep. Curt Nisly, Disbro, Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and Sen. Ryan Mishler.

She stated “Al Disbro is the kind of person who is special. So special Sen. Ryan Mishler honored him with the Distinguished Hoosier Award, the summer before this. But he is so special, Gov. Holcomb is awarding him the Sagamore of the Wabash.”

Not only was he shocked to receive the award, but to see his family appear to join in the celebration. “Wow, my whole family is here,” he stated before greeting each one. “Thank you all, I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”

The award was preceded by Crouch giving the keynote address before the largest crowd remembered at a Lincoln Day Dinner. “We are gathered to celebrate our party’s first President, Abraham Lincoln. Let’s not just remember the man, but let’s remember what Lincoln accomplished.” She stated Lincoln faced overwhelming challenges in a very difficult period in American history. He had to navigate a convention to become a candidate, faced a divided country and inspite of challenges, was able to munster the strength and the will to end slavery and unite the republic.

Her address focused on the question “Why are we Republicans?” She noted she expects everyone shares the same values and principles: belief in God, hard working, believe in equality and opportunity and the strong sense of responsibility. “We are responsible to help others who are less fortunate. We all share the philosophy that Abraham Lincoln did. Lincoln said ‘Government should do for people only what they cannot do better for themselves and no more.’ … We must deliver services efficiently to those who need them. As Republicans, we must measure our progress not by the amount of assistance we give people but in the number of people we take off assistance and back on their own two feet.”

Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch was the keynote speaker at the Kosciusko County Republican Lincoln Day Dinner Thursday evening.

She was inspired to get involved by the 40^th President, an era that became known as the Reagan Revolution. He talked about individual responsibility, built strong military, fought for American values abroad without causing enemies. She noted he always reminded people that freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction … it would be lost if it wasn’t fought for and protected and handed on for them to do the same.

“Why are we Republicans? We are Republicans because we believe our God, our creator, endowed us with inalienable rights. We believe the constitution is not a guide, our constitution is a guarantee of our rights as Americans. and we believe we should have the freedom to choose our own path without interference of an all-powerful government. She pointed out Hoosiers elected more Republican mayors than before in our state’s history, 88 percent, hold all six statewide offices, has the super majority in house and senate and have both U.S. Senators and Representatives. “Because of our values, because of our principles and because we’re Republicans and we know there is no better place in the United States that shows the power of people over government than here in Indiana.”

She stated because of the values and principles electing Republican leadership in the state, Indiana is No. 1 in the Midwest and fifth in the nation for its business environment. Indiana is second for the most affordable state. “We had the third best business structure in the county … have a triple AAA bond rating, not only because of Republicans, but because hardworking men and women who are taking the risk, making the sacrifices that have put our state on a path of prosperity. We see an entirely different picture at the national level.”

She concluded that it is the individual, not the state that makes America Great. “Government is not the answer to every problem. Rather we are.”

Ambassador Kip Tom speaks on world issues.

Also speaking for the evening was Ambassador Kip Tom. He shared recent discussions with the World Food Program and the consequences of the United States not getting involved in stopping the war between Russia and Ukraine. “It’s really sad when a nation has the capacity to get involved to do something to stop a war and yet they don’t do it. We didn’t have the will,” Tom stated.

He noted he has heard from many political leaders across the Middle East and Europe about this error. “They have often said to me, ‘We don’t know if the United States any longer has our best interest in mind to protect us free nations. I’ve never heard that before. It’s a sad day when we lower ourselves on a global scale of being a country that’s leading the nations in the world, to not stand up for freedom, democracy.”

Tom noted that Ukraine provides 25-30% of the world’s wheat, which can no longer leave the country. That wheat went to Africa, Lebanon and Jordan. He said the World Food Organization leaders are at the point of deciding who will get a loaf of bread and who wont. “It’s all because we did not take action to stop the war.”

He stated the country has not seen the end of food price inflation and the need to bring the supply chain back to the United States and to its friends and allies.

The event, held at the Owls Nest, North Webster, was attended not only by a large number of county Republicans, candidates for the upcoming primary and elected officials, but also Republican officials from other counties, districts and state.