Supervisor-Elect Matt Plummer Launches “Team GRIT”

5.1.24 12:57 pm: We have updated the article to include the location of Plummer’s next meeting.

About forty-five people gathered in downtown Redding on Thursday April 11, to learn more about what county board supervisor-elect Matt Plummer is calling Team GRIT. Plummer says with the community’s help, he wants Shasta County to become “the best and most free place in California.”

On March 5, Plummer beat out Supervisor Patrick Jones for the Shasta County District 4 seat by winning over 60% of the vote. He won’t take his seat on the board until January 2025. But, Plummer says, the next nine months are a great opportunity for him to prepare for office by learning alongside his community.

The acronym GRIT has two meanings. One is focused on how to organize as a community: gathering, researching, informing and transitioning to county leadership. Alternately, Plummer explained, GRIT also stands for how he views the basics of his approach to leadership, which can be encapsulated in the words generosity, results, integrity and tenacity.

A variety of community members, only some of whom voted for Plummer, attended his first Team GRIT event. During an open sharing time at the beginning of the gathering, people’s stated reasons for coming ranged from advocating for the homeless community, to helping bring respect back to Shasta County, to supporting data-driven problem solving.

Plummer, who attends the controversial Redding megachurch Bethel, at times appeared to draw broadly from the church’s culture, asking the group to engage in a mutual encouragement exercise and emphasizing one of the Church’s stated primary values, generosity.

But while some attendees briefly mentioned God or their faith during sharing exercises, Plummer did not, focusing instead on principles, including transparency and accountability and generosity.

“The ultimate expression of generosity is self-sacrifice,” Plummer told the small group. “And the most powerful community is one of mutual self-sacrifice.”

As a consultant for nonprofits, Plummer’s approach to problem solving might seem predictable: he wants to see data-driven and evidence-based solutions. But failing to use data to drive decision-making has been one of the most frequently cited community concerns regarding Shasta County’s current board majority, including Supervisors Kevin Crye, Patrick Jones and Chris Kelstrom. 

Plummer’s focus as he moves towards leadership includes obtaining quantitative data on, for example, how much money the county is receiving for mental health programs and how it’s being spent. He’s also interested in qualitative information, particularly related to how people are experiencing their local government, and the community’s perceptions about what’s actually needed to improve Shasta County.

But even more important than finding data-driven solutions to any individual problem, Plummer emphasized during his first Team GRIT event, is the task of rebuilding community with a shared culture of facing problems together.

“I kind of see culture as the invisible force that is pushing us in certain directions without our even knowing it,” Plummer said. “If we can create a community of people who have a healthy and impact-focused culture, then we will be able to tackle challenges as they arise.”

Team GRIT, he says, is a start.

Plummer’s team GRIT meetings will occur monthly and are open to anyone in the community. Plummer says the next meeting will be held on Thursday May 9th at a Evergreen Cafe.

Disclosure: Annelise Pierce is former member of Bethel Church. Do you have a correction to this story? You can submit it here. Do you have information to share? Email us: editor@shastascout.org