HDAC Appoints Lynn Roman and Christine Sutter to Geauga Public Health Board
Geauga County Health District Advisory Council (HDAC) - March 12, 2025
The HDAC conducted its statutorily mandated Annual Meeting on March 12, 2025 at 7:00 pm at the County Office Building, 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Room 303B, Chardon, OH 44024. The meeting was streamed by Geauga ADP and a recording is available. At publication, the recording had been viewed 80 times. This Observer attended virtually.
Call to Order: The meeting was called to order by President Jason Sutter at 7:00 pm and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Seated at the front, facing attendees were President Jason Sutter, Secretary Mike Brown and Geauga Public Health Administrator Adam Litke.
Roll Call: Not taken, but 17 of 21 representatives were in attendance as confirmed later by Mr. Sutter via email.
Present
Auburn Twp - Eugene McCune
Bainbridge Twp - Michael Bates
Burton Twp - Ken Burnett
Burton Village - Ruth Spanos
Chardon City - Chris Grau
Chardon Twp - Mike Brown
Chester Twp - Ken Radtke
Claridon Twp - Jonathan Tiber
Commissioner - Jim Dvorak
Hambden Twp - Catherine Wolcott
Huntsburg Twp - Jason Sutter
Montville Twp - Patricia Combs
Munson Twp - Jim McCaskey
Newbury Twp - Bill Skomrock
Parkman Twp - Henry Duchscherer
Thompson Twp - Justin Falcone
Troy Twp - Sharon Simms
Absent
Middlefield Twp
Middlefield Village
Russell Twp
South Russell Village
Others in Attendance: Former HDAC President Chris Alusheff and former Claridon Twp Trustee Mary Briggs. Other members of the public may have been present, but were unobservable on the video.
Annual Report by Geauga Public Health District (GPHD) Administration: Adam Litke
Mr. Litke read prepared remarks highlighting accomplishments and later in the meeting reviewed the 2026 Budget. Key points included:
In 2026, projected sources of revenue are:
They continue to prioritize delivering services to the Amish community through education and relationship building efforts.
House Bill 110 program is now in compliance and repayments are complete.
They are working to educate the public about the state mandated Operations & Maintenance (O&M) program and are proud to have some of the lowest fees in the state.
A review of For Sale of Property (FSOP) program data indicates that Geauga’s septic systems had a 40% failure rate, which is consistent with state data.
Some of the inspections performed under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program found cases where the system had been physically turned off so that untreated sewage was being released to streams, ditches or other surface water.
Mr. Litke stated he believes in small, efficient and effective government. He also acknowledged the need for inspection programs during his presentation about septic systems.
Minutes - March 13, 2024 annual meeting minutes and June 26, 2024 quarterly meeting minutes were approved without edits or comment.
Selection of Geauga Public Health (GPH) Board Members
Background: Under ORC 3709.03, HDAC selects a GPH Board member during its annual March meeting. GPH board members serve five-year, staggered terms with one term expiring each year. Two seats were open, one for a five year term ending 2030 and the other for a two year term ending 2027 resulting from former GPH board member Carolyn Brakey’s election to the Geauga Board of County Commissioners. The openings were advertised through the Geauga Maple Leaf, and six applicants were interviewed by HDAC Selection Committee members Ruth Spanos, Chris Grau, Jason Sutter, Jim Dvorak, Patricia Combs, and Ken Radtke.
Earlier in the meeting, Mr. Litke explained that five of the six candidates were present and that each would have six minutes to present to the council. HDAC members would then be able to ask up to three questions of each candidate. Following the presentations, members of the public would have up to two minutes each to offer comment. A countdown timer was prominently displayed.
Matt Brakey - (seeking 2 year appointment)
President of Brakey Energy with two decades of state regulatory experience; given the current focus on the state mandated Operations & Management program, believes an appointee from outside the healthcare industry would be beneficial; spoke of the importance of clean drinking water while also criticizing state regulations, which he described as hurting responsible homeowners while doing little to catch problem systems.
Lynn Roman (seeking 2 year appointment)
Former GPH board member who has spent her career in healthcare, including numerous healthcare administrator roles at University Hospitals, Metro Health and the Cleveland Clinic as well as non-patient roles developing medical devices and Anthem’s tele-health program; emphasized importance of providing vaccines and care for underserved populations and the Amish community; expressed concerns about the impact of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy’s administration on public health, the impact of funding cuts by the current administration and the insufficiency of the 20 year old GPH levy.
Melissa Brenner (seeking 2 year appointment) unable to attend due to illness.
Rich Dietke (seeking either 2 or 5 year appointment)
Retired Cleveland Regional Transit Authority mechanic having some experience with environmental and safety regulations; seeks to use his problem solving and analytical skills to monitor effectiveness of GPH programs and would like to see improved relationships between septic service providers and the county.
Erika Kura (seeking either 2 or 5 year appointment) Digital marketer with master’s degrees in both public health and social work and lifetime resident of Geauga County; believes public health should not be about party affiliation; serves on the Ravenwood Health board and has experience supporting individuals in mental health and addiction crisis; collaborator working to address human trafficking in Geauga; teaching experience with business professionals and undergraduate students.
Christine Sutter (seeking 5 year appointment) Nurse Leader at University Hospital with 22 years experience supervising 45 staff members and overseeing multiple units. Community educator who has worked in primary and secondary school settings; has experience with Amish community through vaccine clinics and birthing center; has experience with WIC program, local lactation clinic and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library.
Public Comment
Mary Briggs referred to the March 15, 2023 Special Meeting of the GPH Board where GPH entered into a Cooperative Agreement between Geauga Public Health District and the Lake County General Health District. Ms. Briggs said she felt there was a lack of transparency in that process and noted that two candidates associated with that decision, Mr. Brakey and Ms. Roman, are being considered for the current appointments. She thanked the HDAC members for their service. Observer Note: As documented in the above referenced Observer Report, Lynn Roman and Caroyn Brakey were key GPH negotiators for the Cooperative Agreement, which ultimately was supported unanimously by the GPH Board. Mr. Brakey is Caroyn Brakey’s spouse.
Chris Alusheff referred to the Cooperative Agreement as a positive example of a public agency identifying and addressing a challenging problem. He stated HDAC had many qualified candidates to consider and expressed confidence HDAC members would make a choice that was good for Geauga residents.
Screening Committee Recommendations
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For the two year appointment, Mr. Sutter reported the Screening Committee recommended Lynn Roman.
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For the five year appointment, Mr. Dvorak reported the Screening Committee recommended Christine Sutter.
HDAC Deliberations: None
Roll Call Vote for Two Year Appointment - Mr. Brown called the roll and recorded responses. Lynn Roman was elected to the two year appointed position by a 12-5 vote. Council members supported candidates as follows:
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Matt Brakey - Claridon Twp, County Commissioners, Hambden Twp, Montville Twp, Newbury Twp.
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Lynn Roman - Auburn Twp, Bainbridge Twp, Burton Twp, Burton Village, City of Chardon, Chardon Twp, Chester Twp, Huntsburg Twp, Munson Twp, Parkman Twp, Thompson Twp and Troy Twp.
Roll Call Vote for Five Year Appointment - Mr. Brown called the roll and recorded responses. Christine Sutter was elected to the five year appointed position by a 12-4 vote with Huntsburg Twp abstaining. Observer Note: Huntsburg Twp’s representative is Christine Sutter’s spouse.
Council members supported candidates as follows:
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Rich Dietke - Auburn Twp, Claridon Twp, Hambden Twp, Newbury Twp.
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Christine Sutter - Bainbridge Twp, Burton Twp, Burton Village, City of Chardon, Chardon Twp, Chester Twp, County Commissioners, Montville Twp, Munson Twp, Parkman Twp, Thompson Twp and Troy Twp.
President’s Comments - Mr. Sutter thanked the candidates for participating in the process and the HDAC members for attending and voting. He then thanked Dr. Mark Rood and Carolyn Brakey for their service on the GPH Board.
Election of 2025/2026 HDAC Officers - The council voted unanimously to re-elect Mr. Sutter as President and Mr. Brown as Secretary.
Presentation of GPH Budget - Mr. Litke presented a summary of the 2026 budget, stating that both revenues and expenses are conservatively estimated. On the revenue side, he is concerned about the uncertainty surrounding grant programs and the insufficiency of the 20 year old levy. On the expense side he noted that expenses are rising, especially for costs associated with the O&M Program.
Adjournment - The meeting was adjourned; time was not noted.
Next Quarterly HDAC Meeting: June, 2025 with date and time TBD.
Observer: Shelly Lewis
Editor: Sarah McGlone
Reviewer: Carol Benton
Date Submitted: March 14, 2025
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