This past Sunday, I was given the opportunity to have a sit-down interview with State Senate candidate Dave Sires in his Cedar Falls home. Having never spoken to Sires on the phone, despite a few brief text messages, and being informed by my editor that he may be difficult to get ahold of, I had no idea what to expect going into it.
When I had initially reached out, I proposed the idea of having a scheduled phone call, figuring a time to meet in person would be difficult with his current campaign efforts. Instead, Sires offered for me to come by his house and do the interview in person this past Sunday.
When I knocked on the door, I was greeted by a tall, Buddy Gerrity-esque man with a mustache that seemed to rival Burt Reynolds. He welcomed me in, and his rescue mix and big German shepherd were quick to do the same. We set up shop on his kitchen counter where his wife Lisa had prepared chocolate chip cookies for me as the pleasantries seemed to never end.
Initial conversation filled me in on Dave’s life story up until that point. Sires was born and raised in Cedar Falls, he met his wife Lisa at a young age, and he grew up attending the Cedar Falls school system. After high school, he started an excavating business which began the first of many ventures he pursued in his career, the most notable being when he bought out his parents’ mobile home business, which he expanded and added self storage after years in the industry.
I also quickly picked up that Sires loved talking about his kids. The three of them, all now grown adults with families of their own, have also been successful in their careers, with his oldest son, Dain, being an engineer, his middle daughter, Rae, a veterinarian, and his youngest daughter, Leigh, being a dietician.
As the conversation progressed and we got into the interview itself, Sires quickly mentioned his career as a city councilman and how he helped the students of UNI. The most notable example was his addition of a UNI student liaison which is now a permanent role in every city council meeting. The liaison acts as an advocate for UNI student interests in meetings and ensures the quality of life of the student body is represented in some aspects of local government. Furthermore, Sires was an advocate for having a permanent crisis psychologist available for students on campus, but was voted down by his fellow council members. Having past and current family members attend the school, he emphasized his care for the mental health of the student body.
“I’m aware students (at UNI) aren’t all going to be around here for four years,” Sires said, “but I want them to be taken care of as they’re away from home so they really enjoy their time here.”
As a city council member, Dave Sires’s entire paycheck went to local food banks, humane societies and other non-profit organizations as he wanted to give it all back to the community that elected him.
The conversation then moved over to the topic of Eric Giddens, Sires’s opponent in the election. With concern to UNI, Giddens voted against allowing individuals, particularly women, to carry stun guns on campus, which would have allowed students to better protect themselves in case of emergency. In the realm of public education, Giddens also voted against a bill that would set the base salary of teachers at $50,000, as well as changing the AEA program that is currently ranked 41st in the nation.
“We (Iowa) spend $5,300 more per AEA student than the national average yet we are still testing poorly,” said Sires, “We need to be in the top five.”
As our interview wrapped up, I got to see more of the Sires’s household. I ended up staying longer than I expected as he showed me the Craps table set up he had in his basement, which we naturally played for half an hour (I tripled my chips). Sires even offered to take me out to dinner with his wife as a showing of appreciation for my interview.
My main takeaway from the afternoon was that Sires is incredibly passionate about where he grew up. Unlike Eric Giddens, who is from Georgia, Sires was born and raised in Cedar Falls and has sought to see his home flourish over the years, which is why he took public office in the first place. I truly believe that he wants what’s best for the Cedar Valley and has shown in his career that he votes for just that.
As a follow-up question as I headed out the door that evening, I asked Sires if he had any aspirations past the State Senate, wondering if this was just a stepping stone goal for a larger political career.
Sires’s response?
“No, I serve the people.”
