Most people around here don’t remember much about Marvin Dinger. Heck, most of you probably never heard of him. But way back in the early 1970s, Dinger represented Dent County and the rest of the 129th district in the Missouri legislature.
Dinger, from Ironton, served Dent, Iron and part of St. Francois County as a state representative. His final year of service was 1972. The district was shaped and re-shaped many times after that, but one thing remained the same. Someone from Dent County represented Dent County as a state representative. Beginning with Bill Seay all the way through the current state rep, Ron Copeland – a span of five decades – someone from Dent County had an office in Jefferson City’s capitol.
That will all change in January when Republican John Hewkin of Cuba represents Dent County in the state legislature. He beat Jen Tracy, a Democrat from Bourbon, with 80% of the vote in the Nov. 5 general election. So, either way, a half century of local representation of sorts was going to end for Dent County.
In December of that year, Harry Truman died. A month or so before that, Missouri won 30-26 at Notre Dame in one of the biggest football wins in school history. Farah Fawcett hairdos, bellbottoms, miniskirts, platform shoes and corduroy were popular. Folks played Billboard’s Top hit, Roberta Flack’s, “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” on their turntables. M*A*S*H* began its run on CBS, and country singer Loretta Lynn became the first female to win Country Music Association's Entertainer of the Year Award with "Coal Miner's Daughter.” The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 1,000 for the first time.
Point is, it was a long time ago. You probably get that. And during this past half of a century, Dent County no doubt benefited greatly by having a local spending a few months a year representing friends and neighbors.
Enter John Hewkin. A little over a month before the election and knowing full well he would likely be the first man to represent Dent County who didn’t live in Dent County for such a long, long time, Hewkin said all the right things about the folks who helped put him in office. Over the next few years, we can see if he does all the right things.
“I am honored by it,” he said of the prospect of being the first non-resident to represent Dent County since he was in junior high school. “Someone told me. . . Salem is used to having Salem people. I told them if I am elected as your representative, it’s like being a father with two kids. I don’t love one more than the other. I still have to go to work and do anything I can to support them.”
Hewkin will represent the 120th district, which is made up of Dent and his home, Crawford County. Ron Copeland has served that position since 2021 but decided not to run for the term which begins Jan. 8, 2025. He threw his support behind Hewkin, as did much of the Dent County Republican Party. Hewkin beat Dent County’s Lancer Blair in the primary 4,800 (72.9%) to 1,787 (27.1%). Hewkin had 1,668 votes to Blair’s 1,177 in Dent County.
“I realize I have to earn their respect,” Hewkin said of Dent Countians after the primary win. “I will be who I am and who I’ve always been. Respect isn’t something you get without earning it. I need to get to know more people down here. I need to let them know I am going to work for them.”
Hewkin says he will be accessible and informed when it comes to both counties, attending events, keeping up with the news that impacts his district and battling in Jeff City to represent us. All of us.
For the record, here are those from Dent County who represented Dent County in the half-century since the Democrat, Marvin Dinger (this bit of history compliments of Camm Seay and a few historical records):
• Elected for the 1973-76 terms for District 129 (Dent and parts of Crawford, Gasconade, Iron, Phelps, Reynolds and Washington counties was Democrat Bill Seay (Camm’s dad) from Salem. Born and raised in Salem, he was a fighter pilot and attorney.
• Then came Republican David Steelman, now an attorney in Rolla. He was elected in 1976 and served from 1977-82 in district 129, then 149. His dad Dorman served 1957-62, and was also a Republican.
• The remainder include Kenny Fiebelman, a Democrat who served districts 149 and 150 from 1984-94; Kelly Parker, Republican, 1997-2000; Frank Barnitz, Democrat, 2001-2004; Jason Smith, Republican, 2005-2012; Jeff Pogue, Republican, 2013-20; then Ron Copeland, Republican, 2021-2024.
Dent County enjoyed great representation and always had an ear in Jefferson City – well, almost always – during those years, impacting state spending and laws that affected the daily lives of its residents. Hewkin says that will not change during his years in the capitol. Let me also remind Dent County that its residents need to be engaged with Hewkin, and informative when needed, since he doesn’t live in the neighborhood.
