Get to Know the Candidate

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I think it’s important for the voters of Daviess County to know the kind of person who will be making decisions which will affect what we all love and care for the most – our families and children. If you’re anything like me, you want someone who is capable of relating to who you are, where you come from, and how you live. You have to be able to trust that person is doing things the right way for the right reasons. I’m Thomas Vallandingham and I want to be your next Daviess Family Court Judge. 

I have a heart for our beloved community and the families that call this wonderful place home. I, like a lot of you, am right from Daviess County. I was born in the old hospital off Parrish Avenue. My parents, Rudy and Lee Vallandingham, still live in a little brick house on the east side of Owensboro that I and my brother, Gene, grew up in. My father roofed houses for a living and I had to join him most of the hot summers. He was also a rural mail carrier in Philpot for two decades. My mother, before managing convenience stores, owned and operated a small beauty supply shop and salon. They modeled for me the value of hard work and instilled in me conservative Christian values.  

I played Little League at Chautauqua Park, rec soccer at Thompson Berry Park, basketball at Cliff Hagan’s Boys and Girls Club, and Pop Warner football when it was still over at Shifley Park. I attended local Y camps and YMCA after school programs. In these activities, I learned about teamwork and how to put in the time and effort to achieve a common goal.  

I went to preschool at Owensboro Christian Church when it was still on the corner of Frederica and College Drive. I attended Newton Parrish Elementary School, the 5/6 Center, and Owensboro Middle School. I graduated from Owensboro High School. There I was on the academic team, baseball team, soccer team, National Honor Society, and many other clubs and organizations. I graduated from Eastern Kentucky University in 2009 with a degree in Criminal Justice, and I earned my Juris Doctorate from the University of Kentucky College of Law in 2012. In the Fall of 2012, I fulfilled my lifelong dream of being admitted to the Kentucky Bar Association. I’m a proud product of the fantastic public schools and institutions that we have in this community and this state. 

After three years of working as a staff attorney for a Family Court Judge, I, along with my law partner, Robert Sexton, created the law firm of Sexton and Vallandingham, PLLC right here in Daviess County. It’s my calling to assist families as they navigate the legal process, whether it be through an adoption, custody dispute, divorce, domestic violence situation, neglected or abused children, termination of parental rights, or whatever the case might be. Over the past decade I’ve learned that it’s not enough just to be well-educated and to do well, but we are called to serve others and do good.

I’m honored to get to teach the law as an adjunct professor at Brescia University. When I’m not in the courtroom or classroom, I’m usually on a high school baseball diamond umpiring or a soccer field refereeing. Moreover, I’m the KHSAA Third Region Soccer Assigning Secretary. I cherish the opportunity to pour into the next generation. Humbly, I serve on the Board of Directors at New Beginnings Sexual Assault Support Services, the H. L. Neblett Community Center, and MentorKids Kentucky – three wonderful organizations doing important work in our community. I’m thankful to be a small part of that important work.  

God blessed me with my wife, Adrienne (Allen). We met at Owensboro Christian Church where we both still attend and are very active. As believers in Christ, we both strive to be examples of servant leaders. Adrienne shares her passion for music by teaching violin and working at the Owensboro Symphony. She also has deep roots in this community. Her parents, John and Kristin Allen, run two wildlife rehabilitation centers right here in Daviess County – Nurture to Nature and Western Kentucky Raptor Center. 

I’m forever tethered to this community and the fine folks that live here. It’s the care for our fellow neighbors and the love that I have for this county that compelled me to run for Daviess Family Court Judge. I promise to bring the utmost integrity, honesty, and dedication to the bench. And you can trust me on that, because now you know me.