‘I like to jump in with both feet’: Christina Yunker sworn in as St. Joseph County Commissioner

In life, you’re either learning or you’re not, Christina Yunker said Tuesday in Centreville. You’re either improving or you’re not.

St. Joseph County’s newest county commissioner says people should be on a continuing quest to learn and serve. The 47-year-old Sturgis Township woman was sworn onto the commission Tuesday.

“There’s a lot to learn,” said Yunker, a newcomer to local government. “That’s probably the most challenging part, how much there is, and observing it and figuring it all out. I like to jump in with both feet and get involved with whatever I do.”

Yunker says she’s a quick learner and looks forward to making sure she makes the right decisions for the people she serves. She’s serving the final two months of former District 5 Commissioner Dennis Allen’s term before starting the term she was elected to in January.

“I’m a pretty fiscally conservative person. I’ll be asking lots of questions about spending and if the taxpayers’ money is being spent responsibly, or if there could be cuts,” Yunker said.

Asked about if there were recent county projects she would have reconsidered, Yunker said she doesn’t want to be critical of what’s been done.

“I wasn’t in on all the conversations with the decisions being made. I think it would be irresponsible to make those assumptions, not having all of the details about why those decisions were being made,” she said.

Yunker encourages more members of the public to attend county meetings. The board of commissioners hold scheduled 4 p.m. executive committee meetings on the second Tuesday of the month, and 5 p.m. regular session meetings on the third Tuesday of the month. Both are held in the St. Joseph County Courthouse in Centreville.

“I think it’s important for people to attend these meetings and educate themselves,” Yunker said.

District 5 includes parts of the City of Sturgis and Sturgis Township, along with Nottawa and Sherman Townships. A mother of two, Yunker said she’s always been interested in serving her community.

“My children are older, graduated, and so I have more time to commit to something like this,” she said.

While Yunker is a new county commissioner, she has experience working for St. Joseph County. She’s been the manager of the county Grange Fair since May 2023.

“I just told someone, I think people think we just sprinkle fairy dust over the fair and it magically happens,” Yunker said. “There’s a lot of behind the scenes work that happens. We’re already planning for next year’s fair. It was a lot to learn in a short amount of time (in 2023), but it came out good.”

Looking ahead to future responsibilities, Yunker said she has some understanding of the county road commission. Her husband David was a road commissioner for 10 years. At this moment, though, she’s taking a wait and see approach.

All seven of St. Joseph County’s commissioners identify as Republicans, but Yunker doesn’t expect that’s going to mean unanimous agreement all the time.

“I believe boards make the best decisions when they don’t all agree,” she said. “Everyone has something to contribute. I think good discussion makes for good, sound decisions. I don’t know a lot of the men on the board, but I like to think that even if we don’t agree, we can walk away and still be on good terms. I don’t think we necessarily have to agree, because it makes for good decisions and good dialogue.”

Frank Stanko is a staff writer for Watershed Voice.