In early February, 2001 Larry Schaefer was asked by The Reform Party of Missouri State Chairperson, Marvalene Pankey, to chair a "legitimacy-credentials committee" to determine who could properly sit as the RPMO State Central Committee. Shortly thereafter
instead of finding members to serve with him on the committee, he chose to insist the party would be turned into a PAC and terminated as a party. Later he chose to help Raejean Overholtzer, Jane Madewell, and George Baker form Missourians United for Government Reform, Inc. and steal the RPMO treasury.

The Reform Party of Missouri 2000 nominees for Mo. Governor and Lt. Governor were then each asked to help with the problem of who could properly sit as the state central committee as lawyers were insisting must be done. (Marvalene Pankey was the RPMO 2000 nominee for Mo. Secretary of State and the nominee for Mo. Treasurer, Terry Frank, had previously resigned from the party.) Various party members were also asked to help with a "legitimacy-credentials committee". Most did NOT want the responsibility nor risk being harassed for helping make some tough decisions. And some simply did not have the time nor health to get involved on such a committee.

Research showed that only three county committees had officers listed with the Mo. Secretary of State when the state central committee had met December 10, 2000 to organize pursuant to 115.623 and the RPMO By Laws. Because Jackson County had had problems and resignations of some officers, a meeting was held April 19, 2001 with Lafayette County Chair, Betty Chappell and Johnson County Chair, Liz Henderson. Lafayette County Vice Chair, Jim Chappell, also attended the meeting held at Country Kitchen in Warrensburg.

The group asked that a "legitimacy-credentials committee" be expanded to include some other people, especially, Bobbie Campbell, vice chair of Jackson County RPMO and Les and Bonnie Unruh, whom the group believed to be chair and vice chair of Cass County RPMO from properly held committee organizational meetings.

After unavoidable delays Liz Henderson, Bobbie Campbell and Marvalene Pankey met June 1, 2001 at Hardees in Independence, Mo. and informally discussed the next steps since others had not made it to the meeting. A followup discussion was held with Martin Lindstedt via MSN Instant Messenger. (He insisted Joseph Keller and associates and Debbie Dunmire of Barry County were already valid state committee members although the chain of election was not present and they merely had requests in to fill vacancies.)

Shortly thereafter Jackson County RPMO Committeeman and long term member of the Reform Party known for fairness and objectivity, Keith Kadlec, stepped forth offering to help. It should be noted that Marvalene Pankey and Keith Kadlec did not previously know each other. It should also be noted that Marvalene Pankey and the Chappells and Unruhs also previously bearly knew of each other.

Marvalene Pankey asked Keith Kadlec to chair the "legitimacy-credentials committee", which became known as the Authenticity Committee due to some expressing confusion as to whether this committee would be deciding credentials for a convention.

Specifically there had to be evidence those seated had been elected by a properly organized RPMO State Senatorial District Committee, which included someone had to have been elected chair and/or vice chair of a RPMO County Committee. Missouri law does not permit anyone to be added to the state central committee unless they pass through an organized county committee and organized state senatorial district committee.

The Authenticity Committee was NOT deciding how to fill vacancies on the state central committee nor giving consideration to anyone wishing to fill a vacancy created by a lack of persons running for positions at the county level in election 2000. The Authenticity Committee was considering only those who were eligible pursuant to someone having been elected during the August, 2000 election.

See Missouri Revised Statutes 115.603-115-623, a copy of which is made part of the criteria portion of the Authenticity Committee's report.

Furthermore in order to fully determine who the proper members of The Reform Party State Central Committee were a close look had to be taken of those who claimed to be seated December 10, 2000. The Authenticity Committee found that several persons were invalidly seated on December 10, 2000, several others had removed themselves from the party and from the state central committee by forming and/or joining other political parties, and others needed to be removed for cause.

After full consideration of facts, the Authenticity Committee had a list of those they felt eligible to sit as the proper state central committee for The Reform Party of Missouri. Due to some concerns regarding some of those deemed eligible, the committee determined that each also needed at least one vote of approval from a member of the Authenticity Committee in order to remain under consideration. One person had only one vote and since he was an elected committeeman and had later declared officers for his county organization the committee submitted his name as a valid member of the state central committee.

Les and Bonnie Unruh, Bobbie Campbell, Martin Lindstedt, Roxie Fausnaught, James and Betty Chappell were declared the proper members of the RPMO State Central Committee. After his election as treasurer, Keith Kadlec was added as a voting member of the committee. Marvalene Pankey was added as a voting member of the committee to function in her role as state chairperson to break ties and with all other parliamentary procedure authority.

The chain of authenticity and full validity remained pursuant to the requirements of Mo. law and the RPMO operational By Laws in that documentation was available all members of the state central committee had been elected somewhere through the proper channels. The position as RPMO state chair passed December 10, 2000 to Marvalene Pankey pursuant to 115.623 RsMo. and state chair 2000, Bill Lewin's announcement. The chain was never legally broken from the existing party organization.

Those who sought to destroy the existing party organization or absent all legal authority, control it for their own agendas, simply had failed.