When he received an emailed invitation to the White House two weeks ago, Presiding Callaway County Commissioner Gary Jungermann thought it was spam.
But a week later, he got a phone call from the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and realized he should start making flight arrangements. On Monday, he flew to Washington, D.C., to meet a number of government officials, along with other local government representatives from Missouri.
"The new administration in D.C. is trying to reach out and communicate with local elected officials," he said. "I decided if they're making that much effort to reach out, it's only respectful to respond."
Jungermann said he was told there were plans to hold similar meetings with local leaders from each state. Missouri was fifth on the list.
"That takes a lot of work and a lot of money," he said. "I never felt at any time that it was a waste."
He didn't meet with the president, but he did meet with members of the National Association of Counties. He also toured the White House on Tuesday morning, swung by Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt's office and then got down to work in the Eisenhower Building. He and other local elected officials spent about six hours meeting with higher-ups in the Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce and others.
"It was very educational, and the potential of those contacts will be good to have," he said, adding he brought home a list of names and contact information.
While the event functioned partially as a meet-and-greet, some issues came up, Jungermann said. Several department representatives mentioned the opioid crisis, and transportation infrastructure funding was also mentioned.
Jungermann said he brought up Federal Emergency Management Agency funding, and how difficult it can be for communities to bounce back after disasters.
"Take the Joplin tornado, for example," he said. "Afterwards, the city had no revenue stream, because parts of it had no sales tax generation."
In the future, Jungermann said, he'd like to bring a contingent from Callaway County to meet with FEMA officials and work on planning for the worst.
Aside from those topics, Jungermann said the meeting was all about communication.
"I think there needs to be more communication between federal and local governments," he said.
Jungermann thinks local officials are closest to residents and have the clearest picture of majority desires. He wants to be able to speak more directly to state and federal officials, so they can "all pull the same direction." .
Overall, he saw the meeting as a gesture of goodwill from the federal government, and a good sign about the future relationship between the current administration and local leaders.
"I was honored to be able to go," he said.