Biography - Tracy Welch to Announce Candidacy for Mayor of Lincoln

 

[September 16, 2019] 

Tracy was born in Lincoln in 1972 and spent his childhood in both Lincoln and Logan County. He and his brothers, Jerry, Scott and Ashley were raised by their parents Jack and Donna Welch. His high school career was spent at Lincoln Community High School, were he was involved in wrestling, pep band and marching band. Upon graduating from LCHS he joined the United States Army in l 99 I. He married his wife Annette, daughter of Charlene Young, in l 992 and the couple was stationed in Ft. Belvoir, VA It was during this time that Tracy and Annette started their family with their first daughter, Kayla.

After an honorable discharge from the United States Army in 1995, Tracy and his family returned to the area. Shortly after the move to Lincoln, their second daughter Haley was born. In 2001, Tracy and his family moved to the home he and Annette still reside in today.

Their daughter Kayla Welch, a graduate of Concordia University at Austin, currently resides in Scottsdale, AZ and daughter Haley Welch, a graduate of Northern Illinois University, currently resides in Bloomington, IL.

Tracy has always been a passionate follower of Lincoln city politics and decided once his children were older to get more involved in local government. In 2013 Tracy began his career within a city organization when he joined the Main Street Lincoln board and in 2014, was named President of that board. During his time with Main Street Lincoln he was very involved in planning events such as the Main Street SK, the annual Christmas Parade and Art of Wine & Brew, amongst other events and projects.

In November of 20 l 5 Tracy accepted an appointment to Alderman of Ward l in Lincoln under Mayor Marty Neitzel. He was elected to Ward 1 Alderman in 2017 and re-elected again in 2019.

During his tenure on the City Council, he has been a mindful and dutiful servant to the community of Lincoln.
While representing Ward l under both former mayor Neitzel, and under current mayor Seth Goodman, he has always put his constituents first. Tracy has taken part in several projects including union negotiations, 5th street road project and residential & municipal electric aggregation. Also serving on several committees such as 3rd Fridays, the Veterans Commission and the Tourism Board.

While serving Ward l, Tracy has always done his best to side with the people and truly feels that this is what an elected official should do. He has been proactive in answering concerns from both the citizens in his ward and the citizens of Lincoln. He advocates for transparency and was instrumental in the implementation of the live video feature to provide citizens who were unable to attend City Council meetings an opportunity to participate in their local government.

Tracy is currently employed as a Scrum Master at State Farm, where he has worked since 2005. He just celebrated his 27th wedding anniversary with his wife Annette, who is an Area Manager for Bard Optical. She also represents District 5 as a member of the Logan County Board. Tracy enjoys supporting local businesses, spending time with his family and volunteering his time to his community. He hopes he has the opportunity to serve this community as your next mayor.

Tracy and Annette look forward to speaking with you in the coming months during the campaign and ask for your support in the 2021 Mayoral Election.

[Text received Tracy Welch]