Leslie Meyer was sworn in as Eastern District commissioner earlier this fall after being appointed by Gov. Mike Parson, and after about four weeks on the job, she’s feeling at home.

“Aside from meeting all of the wonderful courthouse employees and elected officials as well as area city officials, I’ve hit the ground running,” Meyer said.

She was one of the applicants who were vying for the empty commissioner post, which became available after the departure of Steve Hobbs. Hobbs was an Audrain County commissioner for over 10 years before accepting a new role as executive director for the Missouri Association of Counties this fall. With his departure, former Eastern District Commissioner Alan Winders succeeds as presiding commissioner, opening the door for Meyer.

County commissioner is just the latest for the ever-busy Meyer. She and her husband Scott reside on the family farm in Benton City with their three children, Paige, 17; Kat, 14; and Wyatt, 11. She serves as the farm’s bookkeeper, a role she’s happy to fill, and one she jokes that she earned after failed attempts elsewhere on the farm.

“Scott quit trying to teach me how to pull equipment,” she says with a laugh. 

That came, in part, after a jackknifing incident in the field one day.

Meyer became a bit of a social media sensation in the wake of Michael Bloomberg’s errant quip that ‘farmers were idiots’. She challenged the presidential hopeful and earned some street - make that, farm - cred with her articulation. It also led some of her friends and acquaintances to suggest she should consider going into politics. Becoming a commissioner fulfills that, and joining the commission is a way of giving back to the community, as she sees it.

“Audrain County has given me so much in terms of opportunities and friendships,” she said. “I wanted to give back to it, just like it’s done for my life.”

Since joining the commission, she’s been learning the ropes from fellow commissioners and she’s attended a Missouri Association of Counties Conference. There, she got the chance to meet some folks who played a role in her appointment.

“I was able to meet Missouri Lt. Governor Mike Kehoe, Missouri Senator Roy Blunt and to personally thank Governor Parson for believing in me and appointing me to this position,” she said.

“I took great joy in answering the question from my fellow elected officials, ‘How long has it been- two months?’  and my answer was, ‘One week! I’m so new, I still have my tags’.”

Beyond her on-the-job training, Meyer wants to get out and about and visit with constituents.

“I’m going to reach out to all of the city officials in my district,” she said. “I’m going to start asking ‘what do you need?’, ‘what are you having trouble with?’.”

Living on a working farm and originally hailing from a farm family in Pike County, agriculture is a priority. Meyer points out how far removed the federal government is from food production and where food comes from. Policies often reflect that, making it challenging for producers who are tasked with feeding the nation - and the world.

“They don’t know the processes,” she said. 

The Meyer family farm produces beans, corn, grass for hay and cattle, so they know the challenges facing today’s farmers.

Meyer graduated from Central Missouri State University earning a journalism degree and would have a stint with The Mexico Ledger, working as a reporter. She would follow that tour with seven-plus years working in sales and marketing for KWWR radio. Today, she’s owner and president of her marketing company, Social Solutions LLC, and is owner of Leslie A Meyer Photography. She can be seen all over Audrain County taking photos of events and is a contributor to The Ledger, providing sports photos of the Community R-VI Trojans.

“We’re a big basketball family,” she said.

And her community involvement is quickly gearing up, as county municipalities have received American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) money from the government. ARPA funds are designed to help communities affected by COVID-19 and Meyer will be the point person for Audrain communities.  

“I will soon meet with local officials and help them complete their ARPA applications so their visions for their communities can come to fruition,” she said.

She will also serve on the National Association of Counties agricultural steering committee. 

“This allows Audrain County as well as our county producers to be heard on a national level when it comes to issues affecting ag,” Meyer said. “I am so excited to get started”.