Dale was born in Monrovia, Alabama and has family roots stretching back several generations. A graduate of Sparkman High School, Dale holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Athens State University and received his EMT license from the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
Dale grew up working in his father’s country store. Serving the local farmers meant waking up before dawn to work in the store before heading to school. Horace Strong, Dale’s father, also drove the school bus and later bought a bus to take school and church groups on charter trips. Dale and his Dad grew that tour bus business to 8 busses taking groups from north Alabama all across our country. Driving those busses put Dale, his brother, and his sister through college.
After graduating from Athens State Dale worked for First Alabama Bank and then as a Pharmaceutical Sales Representative. A lifelong volunteer fireman Dale continued to work as a first responder and as a 911 Dispatcher as well as with Huntsville Emergency Medical Services (HEMSI) and Huntsville Med-Flight. Dale continues to serve as an active member of the Monrovia Volunteer Fire Department as a firefighter and EMT answering hundreds of emergency calls a year.
Dale’s commitment to saving lives was recognized when he was awarded the Medal of Valor for his service during the devastating tornado on Airport Road in Huntsville in November of 1989.
In 1999 Dale married Laura Toney and they have been married for 21 years. Laura is a nurse and began dating Dale when she worked in the Huntsville Hospital Emergency Room. Dale and Laura have two children, Whitney who attends Auburn University, and Harrison who is a student at Westminister Christian Academy. Dale’s children are being raised in the Mt. Zion Baptist Church – the same church family he shared growing up.
In 1996 Dale was the youngest Republican elected official in the State of Alabama serving as a Commissioner for District 4 on the Madison County Commission. Running on a pledge to fix deadly intersections Dale did that and much more. He installed new tornado sirens across his community as well as new community centers, ball fields, and those wider and safer intersections. Dale’s leadership was tested and shone through during the massive April 27, 2011, Super Tornado Outbreak that struck all across Alabama including Harvest, Alabama, and across western Madison County. It is now known as the worst natural disaster in our state’s history. More than 350 homes were destroyed throughout his community and nine people lost their lives.
Dale who is not shy to walk into a fire nor storm led the remarkable clean-up and rebuilding efforts where more than 500,000 cubic yards of debris was removed in record time. While other politicians held press conferences, Dale led a volunteer effort at the Monrovia Community Center that fed thousands who lost all power for a week. Dale didn’t wait for the government to act. He organized church groups to help clear debris, cook meals, and provide generators to seniors that needed them to keep medical devices working until power could be restored.
In 2012 Dale was the first Republican elected as Chairman of the Madison County Commission. Pledging to “Do more with Less” Dale put those words into action reducing the county workforce by making departments more efficient and bringing sound financial management. He reinvested those funds to build new roads and schools across Madison County without raising taxes. Dale also brought his Christian values to the Commission and began featuring a prayer before each meeting. And working with Governor Ivey, Dale brought leaders together from across North Alabama to help recruit projects like Toyota Mazda, Polaris, Facebook, Blue Origin, and GE Aviation. He has worked alongside Senator Richard Shelby and Congressman Mo Brooks to support Redstone Arsenal and Research Park which helped bring the FBI and Space Command to Alabama.
Conservative Alabama Values
I am a pro-life Christian who will stand up for the unborn and fight for our Christian values. These values are under attack today by those who want to control what we read on social media and what our children are taught in school. As a father of two, there is nothing that has made me prouder than watching Whitney and Harrison grow in Christ and accept Him as their Lord and Savior.
Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.
Psalm 127:3 Weekends are for family and there is nothing better than a cold morning hunt with Harrison. I am a proud lifetime member of the NRA and will fight for all of our 2nd Amendment rights. I will fight the liberal Democrats who work every day to chip away at those rights as they work toward their goal to take away our guns and trample the Constitution.
Trump Conservative
I was a proud and public supporter of Donald Trump for President on day one and I am even more proud of him today. In my house, we know that Donald Trump has been the greatest President of our lifetime. When the Trump campaign called in 2016, I was happy to go to work and help organize his rally at the Madison City Stadium and when over 20,000 showed up I knew that he was truly leading a movement. I am running for Congress because that movement must continue – and JOB ONE in making that happen is taking Conservative control of the House of Representatives.
Trump Economy & Spending
Raising taxes is not an option. The American people are taxed enough and deserve leaders that will be good stewards of their money. Cutting wasteful spending and downsizing government must be a top priority. In just a few weeks on the job, Biden and his team have added trillions of dollars to our national debt. This must stop.
As Chairman of the Madison County Commission, I am proud to show that government really can do better. Doing more with less, balancing our budget, and demanding accountability is exactly what I will do in Washington. We cannot leave our children and grandchildren choked with debt run up by liberal democrats and out of control bureaucrats.
Support Law Enforcement
Anyone saying “defund the police” insults those men and women that put their lives on the line to protect us every single day. I have been there to help bury fallen officers who have died in the line of duty and I will always have the backs of our law enforcement officers.
When I became Commission Chairman the starting pay for our Sherriff’s deputies was the lowest in our area. It wasn’t enough to support a family. I worked to change that and now the salaries for our Sherriff’s department match those at other departments. My family and I will continue to stand with law enforcement and make sure they have the support and equipment to protect our families.
Illegal Immigration
Protecting our borders is a core responsibility of our government. We must do this and send a strong message to those that are now flooding across those borders with no leadership from Joe Biden. Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats in Congress have already voted to give amnesty to over two million more illegal immigrants just this year. That is why you see hundreds of thousands trying to cross our borders today with more on the way. This must stop.
I fully support building the wall, sending illegals back to their country of origin, and fully enforcing the law on those that are in our country illegally. Illegal immigrants swamp our schools, overcrowd our prisons, take advantage of our healthcare, and stretch our law enforcement thin. Enough is enough. I will carry on President Trump’s agenda and his legacy to fight against illegal immigration and fulfill our Constitutional duty to protect our borders.
Prevent the Next Pandemic
The response to Covid showed us that there is no good answer once it spreads. Economists estimate Covid cost the Unites States $16 trillion dollar with $6 trillion of that being spent by Congress. And this pandemic is still affecting our families and economy with continued disruptions in the global supply chain causing shortages of many goods and materials.
The only way to address the next pandemic is before it begins. We must invest more in basic research and the vaccine development to prepare for the next outbreak. Covid caught us unprepared but the next one cannot. That is why I supported investing $3M of the Covid funding sent to Madison County to support work being done at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology in Research Park. HudsonAlpha and similar labs across the country can develop these vaccines and prepare our nation if we provide the proper funding. National Security is my number one priority in Washington and being ready for the next pandemic is a key part of that security.