By David Slone
Times-Union
WARSAW — Former Kosciusko County Democratic Party Chairman Steven Haines will be remembered by his friends for his kindness, hard work and leadership.
Haines, 79, died Wednesday.
Brian Smith, chairman of Indiana’s 2nd Congressional District Democrats, said he met Haines in 2012 when Smith first moved back to Kosciusko County.
“I was volunteering for Joe Donnelly’s first Senate campaign and Steve and I would hang out at the headquarters and make phone calls on behalf of Senator Donnelly, and that’s when I really got to know Steve. He was such an encouragement to me, to other young people who wanted to get involved in our local party. He was just so welcoming to everyone,” Smith said.
At that time, Haines had stepped down from all of his political party roles and was just a volunteer who wanted to see the party succeed, he said.
Haines served as the Democratic Party chair for Kosciusko County for 13 years and was inducted into the Kosciusko County Democratic Hall of Fame. He was a recipient of the Edward Roush Award and was the 3rd District chairman that included Fort Wayne, according to Haines’ obituary.
Smith said Haines would always make sure Smith knew Haines wanted him in the party. At any event, Haines would make an effort to say hello to Smith and anyone else. “Just an outgoing guy,” Smith said.
Haines’ influence in the Democratic Party went beyond Kosciusko County. Smith said, “Within our Indiana Democratic Party, he was very well respected. In addition to being a county chair, he was also the chair of the 3rd Congressional District, which at that time was Northeast Indiana and almost all of Kosciusko County. So he served on our state central committee. Not just in Kosciusko County, but Steve was very well loved by Democrats all across Indiana.”
Haines was a person who could work across party lines, Smith stated. “Steve wanted good government, and he always instilled in me that is our goal at the end of the day, that we want good government.”
As for Haines’ legacy, Smith said it was one of kindness and hard work.
“When I first considered becoming county chair, Steve told me, ‘Brian, you’ve got to talk to everybody. You can’t do this job behind a desk. You have to go out and you have to be constantly talking to people.’ Steve would talk to anybody, not just those he knew were Democrats. Steve wanted to make sure that everyone felt welcomed,” Smith said.
Warsaw Parks and Recreation Superintendent Larry Plummer said he knew Haines probably 25 years and Haines served on the Parks Board a little over 20 years, having retired at the end of 2025.
“Just a great individual and somebody that led our board for many years, I think 10 years as president, and he just had a vision. He had a way to look at things. He had a way to calm situations, but he also was very supportive of our staff, and our employees are second to none in his eyes. We always appreciated that support from the Park Board president,” Plummer said.
Haines would often do stuff for the parks employees like pay for doughnuts.
“The first thing every time we had a park board meeting, him and Larry Ladd also, they would give (Maintenance Director) Shaun (Gardener) money for doughnuts every Park Board meeting. We would get doughnuts the next Tuesday because the doughnut shop wasn’t open on Monday for our meetings at the shop,” Plummer said. “But, yeah, they did that for many years and that was kind of his way of giving back to us.”
Haines was also instrumental in the Parks and Recreation Department’s employee recognition luncheon. All the Park Board members would go to the department’s shop to meet and mingle with all of the employees.
“That was a big step, that relationship between the Park Board and our staff as well,” Plummer stated.
Ryan Burgher has since filled Haines’ seat on the Park Board and will be really great, Plummer said. “But when you try to replace 20 years of experience on a board, for somebody that’s done so much for our board, it’s big shoes to fill, but Ryan will be a great member.”
Ladd said he met and got to know Haines through serving on the Park Board with him.
“Right from the beginning, we just hit it off. Just a decent guy, very dedicated to the Park Board and park system, making it a better place in working with Larry Plummer and Shaun and all the people there,” Ladd said.
“He taught me just a lot of things about the park system that I didn’t know when I first came on. Just turned out we hit it off and a good friendship. I learned a lot from him on just being able to run meetings and working with people closely. He just gave me a real experience.”
Ladd said Haines was just a good, genuine guy, but certainly not afraid to speak his mind.
“Very, very dedicated. You couldn’t find a more dedicated individual to actually the city and especially the park system here,” he said. “I’m a much-better individual because of him, and he helped me learn a lot about more than just the park system.”
Ladd said Haines will be sorely missed.
He said he and Haines just started providing money for doughnuts for the parks employees and it just kept going.
“They enjoyed that and we enjoyed doing it for them. A lot of times the park employees – as well as a lot of the city employees – just don’t get enough recognition sometimes. It was just kind of a small gesture in how much we appreciated them. I think it was Steve who initiated, in the fall, having a nice lunch for them, and that was all the Park Board members chipped in,” Ladd said.
That gave the Park Board members an opportunity to meet and get to know the parks department’s employees.
“The luncheons we generally have in the fall are relaxed and give us a time to sit down and talk with them and get to know them better. It was something that Steve started and I certainly hope we’ll continue that on,” Ladd said.
Steve and his wife, Pat, were married for 55 years. Per his wishes, no formal services will be held. McHatton-Sadler Funeral Chapels is handling arrangements.
Memorial contributions may be made to the City of Warsaw Parks and Recreation Department, 123 E. Fort Wayne St., Warsaw, IN 46580; or the Kosciusko County Democratic Party, P.O. Box 366, Leesburg, IN 46538.
