John Poston (3 May 1958 – December 5, 2023) was an American politician and member of the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. There are 134 members, twice as many as the Minnesota Senate. Floor sessions are held in the north wing of the State Capitol in Saint ...

. A member of the

Republican Party of Minnesota The Republican Party of Minnesota is the oldest active political party in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The Minnesota Republican Party’s platform is relatively moderate. The party’s main issues are economic growth, education, healthcare, civi ...

, he represented District 9A in north-central

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

Early life, education, and career

Poston was born in May 1958 in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, where he was initially raised. He was later raised in

Aitkin, Minnesota Aitkin ( ) is a city in Aitkin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,168 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Aitkin County. History Before the establishment of City of Aitkin, a transient community of Lexington was lo ...

. He later moved to

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

when his father was transferred there and graduated from high school in

Earlham, Iowa Earlham is a city in Madison County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,410 at the time of the 2020 census. It is part of the Des Moines–West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Earlham was laid out in 1869 when the ...

. He attended

Des Moines Area Community College Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) is a public community college in central Iowa. The college served 35,488 credit students and 29,021 noncredit students in 200 programs in 2019. History Des Moines Area Community College was created on M ...

. Poston worked for

Payless Cashways Payless Cashways was a building materials retailer based in Kansas City, United States. The company primarily operated during the 1980s and 1990s, and is considered among the first national chains to implement the DIY strategy. The company exper ...

while attending college, becoming an assistant manager and later manager. He later worked for

Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement r ...

. Finally, he worked for

Sally Beauty Holdings Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc. is an American international specialty retailer and distributor of professional beauty supplies with revenues of more than $ 3.9 billion annually. Through the Sally Beauty Supply and Beauty Systems Group businesses ...

for 20 years, becoming a retail executive. In 2011, Poston bought Sherwood Forest, a restaurant in Lake Shore, Minnesota. Poston founded a

Kids Against Hunger Kids Against Hunger is a nonprofit organization owned by Richard Proudfit, up until his death on November 14, 2018. It was established with the mission to significantly reduce the number of hungry children in the United States and to feed starvin ...

in the Brainerd Lakes area in 2012. He was a volunteer for

Teen Challenge Global Teen Challenge is a network of Christian faith-based corporations intended to provide rehabilitation services to people struggling with addiction. It was founded by David Wilkerson in 1961. The global headquarters is in Columbus, Georgia, ...

and

Essentia Health 'Essentia Health'' is an integrated healthcare system with facilities in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota. Poston was a member of the Nisswa Chamber of Commerce board, the Region Five Economic Development Commission, the National Joint Powers Alliance, Happy Dancing Turtle, Central Lakes Rotary, the Nisswa Lions Club.

City Government

Poston was a member of the Lake Shore park committee, later becoming its chair. He was appointed a member of the Lake Shore City Council in 2011 and later elected mayor in 2014. He was later re-appointed to the position of mayor, after his successor in the position, Krista Knudsen, was elected to his Minnesota House seat. He served until his resignation due to poor health a few months later.

Minnesota House of Representatives

Poston was

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

to the

in 2016, going on to serve three terms as the Representative from District 9A. Poston won his first election in 2016 with 68% of the vote. He was re-elected in 2018 with 69.34%, and in 2020 with 74.0%. Poston's 2017-2018 Committee Assignments included: Agriculture Finance Agriculture Policy Capital Investment Education Finance State Government Finance: Veterans Affairs Division Poston's 2019-2020 Committee Assignments included: Agriculture and Food Finance and Policy Division, Corrections Division, Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Finance and Policy Division Poston's 2021-2022 Committee Assignments included: Education Policy Labor, Industry, Veterans and Military Affairs Finance and Policy Public Safety and Criminal Justice Reform Finance and Policy

Personal life

Poston married his wife Pamela (Wachholz) in 2018, and was a stepfather to her daughter Bailey. He resided in Lake Shore, Minnesota a was a member of the Lutheran Church of the Cross in

Nisswa, Minnesota Nisswa ( ) is a city in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,971 at the 2010 census. Nisswa is part of the Brainerd Micropolitan Statistical Area, near Gull Lake. History Smiley Township was founded in 1900, bu ...

Death

Poston passed due to ALS away December 5, 2023, at the age of 65, nearly a month after his resignation as mayor.

References

External links

Official House of Representatives website

Official campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poston, John 1958 births 2023 deaths Neurological disease deaths in Minnesota Deaths from motor neuron disease in the United States Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives 21st-century American legislators People from Cass County, Minnesota People from Aitkin, Minnesota People from Nisswa, Minnesota 21st-century Minnesota politicians