Welcome to Lake Tansi Village
2026 Election News

Meet the Candidates for Board Positions at Lake Tansi Village and Resort

Meet the Candidates

Lake Tansi Village and Resort is excited to announce a special event for our community. On Thursday, September 3, 2026 at the Lake Tansi Thunderbird starting at 6:00pm, we invite all the members to meet the candidates that are running for board positions. This event is a fantastic opportunity to engage with the candidates, ask questions, and learn about their visions for our community.

This year marks a significant milestone for Lake Tansi, as it will be the first time we will implement online voting. Voting will officially begin on September 8, 2026 and will continue until October 15, 2026. To ensure successful participation, a quorum of 10% will be required, as outlined in our by-laws. Also with online voting, there will be no drop off ballot box at the POA Office.

We understand that online voting may be a new experience for many of our members. To assist those who may feel uncomfortable, the POA Office will have computers available for use throughout the voting period.

Join us for this exciting time in our community’s history, and make your voice heard!

For more information, please feel free to reach out or visit the POA Office. Let’s make Lake Tansi even better together.

Gary Clauson, Board VP

If you are unable to attend the meeting, You can join the meeting via Zoom. Please click the link below to join:

Time: Sep 3, 2026 18:00 Central Time

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82319055459

Meeting ID: 823 1905 5459

Date of Tansi Residency: 2020

Employed By: Self 1992-2025

Brief Description of Responsibilities:

Managed my own financial advisement group for 30 years, chief of EMS for Gaylord Properties 6 years, Occupational Medicine Clinic Manager 8 years

Education: Rhodes College, Ohio State University

Community Involvement:

1. Is there any reason that would prevent you from attending the POA board meetings as well as any other POA board activity requiring your participation? No
2. I am an active member in the following clubs/organizations.  CF Small Group Coach, Church Band
3. Prior civic involvement: (Boards, Commission, Council, etc.)   Member of the Lake Tansi POA Board, New Hope Pointe Subdivision Board – Vice President, Lions Club Member, Vice President of local AFL-CIO Union
4. What do you feel are the most important issues facing the Lake Tansi Board of Directors and residents of Lake Tansi?  Lake – Weeds/grass and fish management, Police Department staffing and training, road repairs, budget balancing, and allocations
5. If elected, what do you feel you can contribute to the long-range success of Lake Tansi Village as a Resort/Retirement Community?  Work for the greater good of the community, not personal interests; good understanding of budgeting and finance.  Possess good listening skills and patience.  Served on Board where we moved from which helps understand and have an awareness of the types of issues Boards face.
6. What do you see as the major issues facing Lake Tansi Village in 5-10 years?   Managing the growth of the village with new houses going up and lake management.  Many current association buildings will likely need renovation or replacement, overhaul our road system.  Many roads are currently in horrible shape, keep on road commission.  Staffing and equipping Police Department to meet the needs of the community.
7. Please list any pertinent information you would like to present.   I know the current Board has and is working hard on several issues.  Financial issues have been addressed, and we are now debt free.  Road conditions, law changes regarding our Police Department issues.  Safety of our residents must be a top priority. Listen to the community members, addressing needs, acting in the best interest of the community.

I am seeking re-election to the Lake Tansi Board of Directors.  For the past three years, I have had the privilege of volunteering on the Board and serving as President for two years.

Employed By: Owner of Neff-storation LLC, specializing in painting kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities, and furniture.  I manage client relationships, design decisions, scheduling and project completion.

In September 2023, when I ran for the Board, it was asked “What do you feel are the most important issues facing the Lake Tansi Board of Directors and Residents?”  My answer was communication.  As our community continues to grow and change, I believe it is essential to keep communication open between the Board and our Members.  There is always room for improvement, but I am proud of the progress we have made.  In fall 2025, I worked on creating our Member Survey.  The responses were compiled, and a summary of the community’s feedback was shared.  I keep this in mind when making decisions.  I have worked with our general manager to revamp our website.  This year, our POA Office and Police Department phone systems were updated with an automated system, to better route calls.  Members can now leave voicemails.

As a business, things are constantly changing. Each week, the Executive Board meets with our General Manager, helping me stay current with what is happening throughout our community.  I also make myself available to members and strive to respond to calls and messages in a timely manner.  If re-elected, I will continue that commitment.

In September 2023, I was asked “What do you see the major issues facing Lake Tansi in 5-10 years?”  I identified keeping pace with building and grounds maintenance as our community grows and changes, along with keeping our By-laws current.

I remain committed to those priorities and on preparing Lake Tansi for the future.  This year, we announced that we paid off our cabin debt.  Freedom from debt represents a new beginning for Lake Tansi.  A reserve study is being conducted so there is a plan to protect our assets for years to come.

I have taken an active role in reviewing our By-laws.  The board has approved several changes and is working with legal counsel to be sure we are in accordance with our covenants and the law.  Our goal is to have updated By-laws available to members by the end of 2026.

I have greatly enjoyed researching and writing the History of Lake Tansi articles and learning more about the people, places and events that shaped our community.  From the construction of our lakes, the original golf course, to the Tuckahoe Restaurant.  This gave me a deeper appreciation for our community.

Change is not always easy, but I believe my positive attitude toward change, commitment to communication, and willingness to listen to our members are important qualities to bring to the Board.  I would be honored to continue serving Lake Tansi for another three-year term.

My Name is Laura Zelm, I am 73 yrs of age and I moved to Crossville, Tn in 2020.  In the past year, I got married and moved to Lake Tansi.  I truly love it here and want to get involved with our community.

I am retired Flight attendant since 2020, before that I was a tax accountant, and I have insurance, accounting, real estate, and office experience for the past 30 years.  I served on the HOA Board at my townhome in IL.  I do belong to our FCE here in Lake Tansi and do volunteer work at my church and local senior center.

I want to be involved in helping our community grow and getting things done so that Tansi can be a great place to live.

I look forward to meeting all of you!

Employed By: Retired – State of Tennessee, Special Agent – Criminal Investigator

Brief Description of Responsibilities:

Conducting and supervising criminal investigations

Education: Bachelor of Science, University of Tennessee

1. Is there any reason that would prevent you from attending the POA Board Meetings as well as any other POA Board Activity requiring your participation?  None, I have attended every Board Meeting for the past three years, as well as other Board activities requiring my participation and will do so if elected to a second term.
2. I am an active member in the following clubs/organizations.  Member, NRA
3. Prior civic involvement: (Boards, Commission, Council, etc.)  Past member of the Advisory Policy Board to the FBI’s CJIS/NCIC Program, Past Tennessee Representative to the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications Systems, Past Volunteer, Nashville Rape and Sexual Abuse Center, Member of the POA Board of Directors from 2024 to present
4. What do you feel are the most important issues facing the Lake Tansi Board of Directors and residents of Lake Tansi?  The most important is continuing the current Board’s efforts to improve our Association, while keeping it financially healthy.  That should be concurrent with the improvement of our community’s unique infrastructure and amenities, while balancing the anticipated growth with sound fiscal policy.  Change in Lake Tansi is inevitable and managing it effectively is obviously crucial.  I believe the current Board has made significant progress in that direction and would appreciate the opportunity to keep working toward those goals.
5. If elected, what do you feel you can contribute to the long-range success of Lake Tansi Village as a Resort/Retirement Community?  With both management experience and information systems and educational background, I believe I have contributed to the current Board in a number of areas, including the planning for improvements in modernizing how we continue to approach operating as an Association in the future.  With a criminal justice background, I also look forward to all opportunities to benefit the Lake Tansi Police Department in any way.
6. What do you see as the major issues facing Lake Tansi Village in 5-10 years?  The improvement of our community assets, including real property.  I believe the establishment and growth of reserve funds should continue to be actively pursued by the Board to assist the POA in proactive planning for predictable and reasonable expenditures.  Those efforts will also serve to keep all Association members aware of the funding required to pay for repairs, maintenance and eventual replacement of those assets.
7. Please list any pertinent information you would like to present.   After retirement, my wife and I were very fortunate to move to this area.  We try to be active socially in our community and regularly participate in Tansi golf leagues, giving us the opportunity to communicate with a number of people.  Many of them have been in Tansi for a number of years and have been involved in the Association in a variety of ways and they all have a lot of ideas and opinions regarding the continuation of the Resort’s improvement.  I have appreciated the chance to serve on the POA Board of Directors for the past three years.  If given the opportunity to serve a second term, it will always be my goal to listen to the opinions and ideas of others and pursue those whenever possible to improve the overall quality of our community.

Through the concerted efforts of the current Board, the Association’s financial status has been greatly improved, and the POA is currently debt-free for the first time.  The Board has focused every possible effort towards delinquent debt collections, and I will continue to support those initiatives.  Maintaining our Association and community is the responsibility of all property owners, not just those who choose to regularly pay their dues.  The Board has also made significant progress toward more efficient and economic methods to hold our necessary elections, all while working to update and improve the By-laws.  The Association is improving and I would appreciate the opportunity to continue assisting in those efforts.

As part of our commitment to modernize the voting process, we are excited to announce that online voting will begin on September 8, 2026 and ends at midnight on October 15, 2026 facilitated by Election Buddy. We have made it even easier for all members to vote with the Election Buddy system.

History of voting at Lake Tansi:

In the past, ballots were printed, envelopes and bios were printed and postage added at an expense to the POA and then volunteers spent several hours stuffing the envelopes. This was a long and costly

process for the POA. Last year’s election was approximately $12,500 cost to the POA, there was virtually no labor cost as we relied on volunteers to do all the work. This year with Election Buddy the cost will be $4827.69.

Two Ways to Vote:

1. Email Voting: Eligible members who have an email address on file at the POA office will receive an email notification with a link to access their ballot. Once voters have cast their votes, they will receive a confirmation email to ensure that their choices have been recorded correctly. Be sure to check your

spam or junk mail if you have not received an email from Election Buddy by the end of the first week of voting.

2. Postcard Voting: Eligible members who do not have an email on file with the POA will receive a postcard containing a QR code on the front of the card or a link on the back of the card. This postcard will allow them to easily cast their votes by scanning the code or entering the link on your computer, providing easy access to the ballot.

Voting Participation:

To participate in the election, individuals must be members in good standing as of August 8, 2026, which was the cutoff date for Election Buddy to get all information turned in to them. It is essential for voters to confirm their membership status prior to the election date in order to ensure their eligibility.

Multiple Lots Consideration:

For members who own multiple lots, your voting will be weighted as in the past. Each owner will receive one vote per lot, which means that the weight of their voting power will correspond to the number of lots they own.

Voting Reminders:

To enhance participation, voters will receive text reminders every Tuesday leading up to the election. If a member has not yet cast their vote, these reminders will prompt them to take action and ensure their

voices are heard. Once you have cast your vote, you will no longer receive text reminders.

Candidates:

Once you access the ballot, the biographies for all four candidates will be available for you to read and

review. You will be able to vote for three candidates.

Important Information:

1. If you are not comfortable with the online voting process, the POA office will have a computer set up and will be available to offer assistance with the process.

2. If you know a neighbor, friend, or family member who does not have a smart phone or computer, please help them out to save them a trip to the POA office.

3. We changed our bylaws to move to electronic voting. There will be NO drop box to receive paper ballots at the POA office.

4. The email addresses being used for online voting are the addresses on file at the POA office. We do not use the email addresses that are used for the email blasts and the facebook blasts. We cannot legally

use the email addresses that are on the email blasts as they are managed by Constant Contact. So, in the future it is important to have your email address on file at the POA office. The more email addresses we have for voting will reduce the costs on future elections.

With the implementation of online voting, we are enhancing accessibility and engagement in our electoral process. Mark your calendars for September 8, 2026. This will make it easier for you to cast your votes during the voting period.

Please direct any questions or concerns regarding the ballot or voting to Election Buddy support at: www.laketansi@electionbuddy.com

Gary Clauson

Board Vice President