 |

Dennis Barnum, President
Has had careers as:
- High school social studies teacher
- College professor of economics
- Missouri-National Education Association Legislative
Director and full-time Lobbyist
- College administrator
- Real estate broker
Since retirement 12 years ago has served:
- On a number of boards and commissions as a
"post-retirement volunteer" for Webster County and the
City of Gowrie
- On the ICLU, now ACLU of Iowa, Board of Directors
for the past 10 years, including 2 terms as President
- Iowa Affiliate Representative on the national board
of the ACLU
Currently serving as:
- President, Iowans Against the Death Penalty
- Chair, Western Iowa Synod ELCA Mission Endowment
Patti Brown, Secretary
Patti has worked for more than 25 years as a medical, mental
health and hospice social worker. She has an MSW from the
University of Iowa and is both an ACSW and a LISW. She has also
been a newspaper reporter and columnist and is currently pursing
a Masters of Science in journalism and mass communication at
Iowa State University.
As a Catholic, she embraces a consistent ethic of life, often
called “the seamless garment,” which was a guiding teaching of
Chicago’s late Cardinal Joseph L. Bernardin and of Pope John
Paul II in his encyclical The Gospel of Life. Patti has been a
long-time IADP volunteer and activist. She and her husband,
Bill, have five children and live in Des Moines.
Dennis Steele, Treasurer
Dennis lives in Des Moines and works in Johnston. He has over
twenty years of experience working with children with multiple
disabilities. Dennis has been an activist within Amnesty
International USA filling various volunteer roles on the local,
statewide, regional and national levels. He also has been
involved as a volunteer in prison ministry for nearly
twenty-five years.
Dennis’ commitment to opposing the death penalty comes from his
sense of Catholic social justice teaching and personal
relationships with both murder victims and death row inmates.
Lori Baux, Communication and Public Education
Lori Baux is principal of a grassroots public affairs and public
relations consulting firm based in Ames. A native of Marion
County and graduate of Iowa State University, Lori began her
professional career working as a political organizer in Iowa.
She moved to Washington, D.C., serving in the Carter
Administration’s office of Presidential Personnel. Lori
continued to be active on the political front, while working in
the private sector as a grassroots, strategic communications
specialist on a broad range of non-partisan issues.
After years in Washington, Lori returned home to Iowa,
continuing her work as a strategic communications and grassroots
consultant. A long-time supporter of abolishing the death
penalty, Lori began working with the National Coalition to
Abolish the Death Penalty in 2005 and currently serves as a
senior consultant to the organization.
Rev. Jim Davis, Membership
Rev. Jim Davis is the Administrative Pastor of Countryside
Ministry, a rural, ecumenical, cooperative ministry comprised of
six congregations representing the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America (ELCA), Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA) and the
United Church of Christ (UCC). He has served as a pastor in the
ELCA since 1989 and is also on the clergy rosters of the PCUSA
and UCC.
Jim is committed to seeking justice for marginalized people in
our communities and globally. He has served on a number of
boards that provide advocacy and service to at risk youth,
mentally ill and developmentally challenged adults, the sick and
dying. His passion is to find ways to sustain and improve the
quality of life for rural Iowans.
Jim lives in Gowrie with his wife, Tami, and their five
children.
Ivan Webber, Membership
Lawyer with Ahlers & Cooney, P.C., 100 Court Avenue, Suite 600,
Des
Moines, Iowa 50309, (515) 243-7611 1989-present
(representing local governments in legal problems arising under
all
aspects of municipal law)
- Member, Iowa Municipal Attorneys Association
- Member, International Municipal Lawyers Association
- Fellow, Iowa State Bar Foundation
- President, Iowa Legal Aid 2005-2007
- President Hispanic Educational Resources 2000-2001
- Member Proteus Board 1997-2007
- Member and Case Worker Amnesty International
|