Benjamin R.

Cass
2002 Oak St.
Omaha, NE 68108

Douglas County Clerk Daniel A. Esch,

Douglas County Attorney Donald W. Kleine, and
Douglas County Treasurer John W. Ewing, Jr.
October 3rd, 2021
Dear Appointment Committee,

Please consider this as my letter of application for the position of Douglas County Commissioner for
District 1.

I am applying not only because I believe my skills, my background, and my record of service qualifies me
for the position, but because I wish to dedicate myself to serving the public good and the people of
Douglas County.

After running for Omaha City Council this spring, I’ve had many friends ask me what my plans are for my
next campaign. In those conversations, I’ve made it no secret that I was intending to run for Douglas
County Commissioner in 2024 after Mike Boyle had retired. It is one of my regrets that I did not run for
office before Anne Boyle’s passing after she had agreed to mentor me back in 2018. Now, with
Commissioner Boyle’s passing, I again find myself at a loss.

I grew up in Omaha. I consider myself to be from here. After moving across many different parts of the
city, I’ve chosen to spend the last nine years as a resident of District 1. We have an incredible amount of
diversity and culture in this district as well as some of our largest employers and tourist destinations.
Between my involvement with our neighborhood associations and my campaign for Omaha City Council,
I’ve learned how each part of the city brings their own important contributions to our community and
has their own unique concerns. It is my intent to listen to those concerns and serve every resident of the
district.

My history with service goes back to my childhood. I learned compassion and patience growing up with
a brother with autism. I dedicated myself to others through scouting and spent my last five years as a
scout leading my troop. I studied computer programming early, starting at the age of twelve, hoping to
make a difference in the world. I chose to stay and build a life in Omaha because of the amazing
communities we have here. Most recently, I decided to take up politics because I feel responsible for the
community and believe it is essential for good people to show up.

Personally, I have developed a great interest in law and history. That interest is rooted in my desire to
understand how things work and how they came to be the way that they are. In my professional career,
my community involvement, and my volunteer work with the Democratic Party, I have earned a
reputation as an intelligent reformer, a fair and impartial leader, a hard worker, and a good-natured
teammate. In all of these venues, I am grateful for the number of opportunities I’ve been given to gain
experience and demonstrate my leadership. I hope to bring this experience with leadership, rule-
making, and policy-making to the Douglas County Board of Commissioners.

We live in interesting times. I believe we must tackle the challenges of the 21st century head-on. The
work we do will not be simple, but it is essential that we do it right in order to pave the way for future
generations.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Benjamin R. Cass
 Benjamin R. Cass
402-909-1447 SOFTWARE ENGINEER benrcass@gmail.com

Software engineer with fifteen years of experience building software for the web.
Experienced in architecture, design, dev-ops, automation, and testing using a variety of
technologies, including JavaScript, Vue.js, Node.js, Spring Boot, Groovy, Java, SQL,
and related frameworks and technologies. Excels at system building, data analysis,
and seeing problems from multiple different perspectives. Well regarded by peers as an
expert on a broad range of topics.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Mutual of Omaha, Omaha, NE 07/2016 – Present
Engineer II, Software
I currently serve as a technical leader on the team responsible for financial transaction
processing at Mutual of Omaha. My responsibilities include application design and
architecture, mentoring other developers, reviewing new hires for technical ability,
creating best practices, and supporting and optimizing production systems.

Diversified Solutions, Omaha, NE 02/2016 – 07/2016

Contract Worker

Markel Corporation, Omaha, NE 04/2007 – 02/2016

Application Developer

FirstComp Insurance, Omaha, NE 05/2006 – 04/2007

IT Intern

CURRENT POSITIONS
Nebraska Democratic Party
➢ Congressional District Chair (2018 – Present)
➢ Rules Committee (2016 – 2018, 2020 – Present)

Douglas County Democratic Party

➢ Resolutions Committee Chair (2020 – Present)
➢ Rules and Organization Committee (2016 – Present)
➢ Legislative District Representative (2016 – Present)

Deer Park Neighborhood Association

➢ Secretary (2019 – Present)
➢ Member (2017 – Present)

Omaha Jitterbugs
➢ Director / Board Secretary (2021 – Present)
➢ Volunteer (2006 – Present)

The Moving Company at UNO

➢ Company Member (2015 – Present)
 PAST POSITIONS
2021 Omaha Municipal Election
➢ Candidate for Omaha City Council – District 4

2021 Young Democrats of America National Convention

➢ National Delegate
➢ Rules Committee
➢ Platform Committee

2020 Douglas County Democratic Convention

➢ Convention Chair

2020 Democratic National Convention

➢ National Delegate

Emerging Leaders Network – Mutual of Omaha

➢ Data and Finance Chair (2017 – 2021)

Front End Developers Community of Practice – Mutual of Omaha

➢ Co-Facilitator (2017 – 2019)

AWARDS & HONORS

◊ Eagle Scout
◊ Vigil Honor
◊ Phi Theta Kappa
◊ New Leaders Council Alumni
◊ Mutual of Omaha I/S Leadership Academy

EDUCATION/CERTIFICATIONS
Bellevue University, Bellevue, NE
Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Systems GPA 3.94

Masters Business Administration (partial)

Metropolitan Community College, Omaha, NE

Associates of Science Micro-Computer Programming GPA 4.0

Certification in Web Development GPA 4.0

10/4/21, 10:09 AM Enterprise Mail - Application for Douglas County Commissioner for District 1

Daniel A. Esch (DC Clerk) <daniel.esch@douglascounty-ne.gov>

Application for Douglas County Commissioner for District 1

Benjamin Cass <benrcass@gmail.com> Sun, Oct 3, 2021 at 10:23 PM

To: daniel.esch@douglascounty-ne.gov

Hi Dan,

I'd like to formally apply for the position of Douglas County Commissioner for District 1. Please see my attached résumé
and letter of application.

My residence is located at 2002 Oak St, Omaha, NE 68108.

Thank you,
Ben Cass

2 attachments
Benjamin Cass - Resume - Douglas County Commissioner Dist 1.docx

11K
Benjamin Cass - Letter of Application - Douglas County Commissioner Dist 1.docx

8K

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