After nearly two decades, the Hancock County Character Council decided to disband. The board, comprised of me, as director; Steve Long of Hancock Health; former Sheriff Mike Shepherd; businessman Grant Ford; and Sheriff Brad Burkhart came to this decision in October.
What is character? It has been defined as the mental and moral qualities of an individual. It has also been defined as strength and originality in a person’s nature. I submit that the Hancock County Character Council embodied all these traits.
The council was “birthed” approximately 20 years ago by Hancock Memorial Hospital and its then-CEO, Bobby Keen. The original mission was to instill certain character qualities into schools and businesses and the social and political life of Hancock County. Mark Twain provided a great quote that perfectly fits the council: “Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” This was on the minds of the men and women who “birthed” the character council in 2001.
My involvement with the character council came about in 2009. At that time, Steve Vail was the director of the council, and he asked me to be on the board. This came about after my graduation from Leadership Hancock County, whose goal is to get graduates more involved in civic affairs. During this period, Vail provided the council with excellent leadership, but after a while, our membership started to dwindle, despite the best efforts of everyone involved. Ironically, what caused the organization to shrink is something the original members could not have foreseen. For, you see, many of the goals had been met.
The council did instill Character First traits in many of the schools and businesses in Hancock County.
The other thing that the original members could not foresee was the growth in technology. Most of the information that we used to share is now widely available on the internet.
So, in the summer of 2012, the board at that time decided to disband. Then, on Sept. 6, 2012, the Daily Reporter ran a front-page story about the character council’s “resurrection.” Former Sheriff Mike Shepherd; his chief deputy, Brad Burkhart; City Councilman John Patton; Greenfield Banking Co. executive Judy Swift; and I met in the coffee shop at Hancock Regional Hospital. The decision was made to go forward with the character council.
Interestingly enough, we did not have a meeting place. We had no director and not a whole lot of guidance. John Patton and I became co-directors. Judy Swift continued as secretary/treasurer. It is important to note that since the inception, the character council never charged dues. The council existed by the generosity of folks in Hancock County. Looking over some old financial records, those donations could range from $5 to larger endowments. So moving forward, it was decided to meet in the basement of the county jail. I might add that this was an interesting time in the life of the council. One of our speakers was Indiana State Treasurer Kelly Mitchell. Kelly said “it was a first for her to speak before a ‘civic’ organization in the basement of a jail. Jack Frisby continued to be our principal monthly speaker and our ad hoc adviser. Other interesting and enlightening speakers ranged from from columnist Abdul-Hakim-Shabazz to Greenfield Mayor Chuck Fewell.
Many thanks go to former Sheriff Shepherd, and former Chief Deputy Burkhart, who is now sheriff. I will forgo the many jokes about a “captive audience.”
In January 2015, the took on another corporate partner. NineStar Connect invited us to begin meeting there.
The last chapter of the character council was written when we moved back to the hospital. I would like to thank CEO Steve Long for his support and lasting friendship. Another integral person came on board during this move. Thank you, Sharon Kramer, for all the work that you accomplished for the character council.
In closing, I might add that only a few in the audience were aware that Nov. 13, 2019, was to be our last meeting.
Thanks to one and all who made the Hancock County Character Council achieve its goals for the past two decades.
C.O. Montgomery of New Palestine is a former teacher, Sugar Creek Township trustee and co-director of the Hancock County Character Council. Send comments to dr-editorial@ greenfieldreporter.com.
