Dan Combs, the longtime Perry Township Trustee in Monroe County, has died.
Numerous Monroe County officials spread word of his death through social media Tuesday afternoon.
As trustee, Combs was a staunch advocate for people in poverty. He wore many hats during his life, working in county government, chairing the Monroe County Democratic Party, teaching in the Wabash Correctional Facility, and then becoming a political science teacher at Bloomington High School South. For a time, he wrote a regular column for The Herald-Times under his nickname, Carp Combs.
He was a frequent source on issues involving poverty for local news outlets, and just two months ago was a panelist on WFIU’s Noon Edition for a show on the loss of SNAP benefits during the government shutdown.
Combs was first elected as trustee in 1986. He was not planning to run for re-election this year after 40 years in the position.