Political Campaign | John Whetstone

I grew up with hardworking parents who did whatever it took to keep our family going. My dad worked long hours at a local factory—at least four 12-hour days a week—and also served as the maintenance worker for a trailer park and around 70 other rental properties owned by the same landlord. He often took me along so I could learn and help. When he was at his factory job, my mom and I worked on those properties instead.

My mom also worked various janitorial jobs through our church, St. Bernard’s in Crawfordsville. My parents ran a small business moving mobile homes, and they made a point to hire people with criminal records who had trouble finding work elsewhere. Despite all that work, our family lived in constant financial stress because of medical bills. My dad had serious health issues, and the cost of care was overwhelming. The only way my parents saw to get ahead was working multiple jobs, but that strain only made my dad’s health worse. It wasn’t until the Affordable Care Act changed protections for pre-existing conditions that my dad was finally able to access treatments and medications he couldn’t afford before.

We did everything we could to save money. We planted a large garden every year and canned what we couldn’t eat right away. We raised chickens—sometimes 50 to 70 at a time—and gave extra eggs to anyone who needed them. My dad, who had worked as a butcher, taught us how to process chickens ourselves for food. We also raised rabbits and supplemented our meals by fishing and hunting squirrels throughout the year.

My parents taught me the value of hard work, but they also taught me about the unfair treatment workers often face. My dad was part of a union when he worked at a meat-processing plant, and he talked often about how important that protection was. Even though we didn’t have much, my parents were always willing to help others. If they heard someone needed food, we’d fill laundry baskets with canned goods, eggs, and frozen meat and deliver them ourselves.

I was raised Catholic, but my parents encouraged my sibling and me to find our own paths. They took us to any religious events we wanted to explore. My mom was Catholic, my dad was Protestant, my sibling later converted to Judaism, and I’m an atheist. What mattered to my parents was respect and kindness, not belief.

My dad passed away when I was a teenager after years of health struggles, including congestive heart failure. After that, I took over helping my mom maintain the rental properties, and life became even harder without my dad’s income. Still, my parents remained kind to everyone around us. They helped throw birthday parties for neighborhood kids and hosted a Fourth of July cookout and a Christmas party every year.

After my dad passed, we began hosting foreign exchange students. My sibling and I also went on exchange trips in high school. That was only possible because my mom worked endlessly—going to her job at the school, then coming home to bake for hours so she could sell fudge, cakes, cookies, and more. She did all of that because she wanted us to have a broader view of the world and more opportunities than she had.

I was born and raised in Crawfordsville, Indiana, where I learned the values of hard work, resilience, and community at an early age. My life has been shaped by both challenges and opportunities, including losing my father while I was still a student at Southmont High School. That experience gave me a deep appreciation for family, perseverance, and the importance of strong support systems in our communities.

After graduating in 2015, I pursued a career in business management, where I gained firsthand experience in leadership, problem-solving, and understanding the pressures small businesses face every day. Along the way, I took a break to travel the country competing professionally in Magic: The Gathering. During that time, I built lasting relationships, worked with people from all walks of life, and sharpened my skills in strategy and teamwork.

When the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted lives and livelihoods across Indiana, I returned home to Crawfordsville and refocused on serving my community. I reentered business management and eventually opened my own small business right here in my hometown. That experience taught me both the promise and the difficulty of trying to build something lasting in today’s economy.

Now, I’m bringing that same determination and real-world experience to public service. I believe in creating opportunities for working families, supporting small businesses, addressing wealth inequality, and making sure every Hoosier—no matter their background—has a fair shot at the American Dream.

I worked at Little Caesars in high school for minimum wage—$7.25 an hour. That job mattered to me because it opened my eyes to how workers are treated. The owner was very wealthy and regularly called the store just to yell at us, telling us we were worthless, ungrateful, or overpaid. Managers only made $8 an hour. That’s where I learned that minimum wage isn’t just for high school kids—many adults depend on it to survive. I remember a coworker breaking down in tears because her husband got a new job that paid only a dollar more per hour, and that small increase felt life-changing.

After leaving Little Caesars, I took a job at a paintball field in Attica, Indiana, where I quickly worked my way up to manager. A few years later, I became a manager at Pizza Hut. That experience showed me how difficult and impersonal large chain businesses can be, and it pushed me to step away and pursue something different.

For several years, I played Magic: The Gathering professionally, traveling across the country, meeting people, and learning about communities far different from my own. That time meant a lot to me. I saw both the best and worst of different places and gained a deeper understanding of people and what they value. During that period, I also helped out once or twice a week at a comic shop in Lafayette.

When COVID began, I returned to a more traditional role as a manager at another gaming store in Lafayette. There, I sharpened my management skills and learned more about the business side of the gaming industry. After a couple of years, I took the next step and opened my own gaming store in Crawfordsville with my best friends.