Commission President Melanie Flax Wilt said the awards are meant to highlight “people who are just out in the community doing the thing and not looking for recognition.”
“Just giving of themselves in a way that feels right to them and funneling their passion to help other people in Clark County,” Flax Wilt said.
Outgoing Commissioner Lowell McGlothin selected John and Jim Bobo, New Carlisle residents who are members of the New Carlisle American Legion. They plant flags during the holidays around Legion Hall and the nearby cemetery, and also serve on the committees for the city’s Heritage of Flight parade and New Year’s Eve Ball Drop. Jim handles the 7.5-foot, 200-pound aluminum ball that drops 90 feet from a crane to ring in the New Year.
“The whole family has been heavily involved in the community,” McGlothin said. “They’re a mainstay of New Carlisle. The Bobo name is one that has been around for years.”
Commissioner Sasha Rittenhouse selected Fent, president of the Punishers Law Enforcement Motorcycle Club Mad River Chapter, which hosts the annual Deputy Matt Yates Memorial Scholarship Run fundraiser, as well as a monthly Soup Kitchen Bike Night, during which members volunteer at the Springfield Soup Kitchen.
“I appreciate everything that he does and all of the things that (the motorcycle club members) do, and they do it from the heart; they don’t do it because they are looking for any recognition or any awards,” Rittenhouse said. “They’re doing it because it’s the right thing to do and they enjoy doing it.”
Fent also works at the Clark County Juvenile Court, and Judge Katrine Lancaster celebrated his contributions at Friday’s meeting. She said that Fent “is truly the very definition of a luminary,” being a person who inspires and influences others. Fent’s juvenile court caseload is “truly one of the most complex caseloads” and he has taken additional classes to better help.
Credit: Michael Cooper
Credit: Michael Cooper
Lancaster said that because of all of Fent’s hard work, he currently has a 0% recidivism rate.
“That’s unheard of in our line of work and that has everything to do with his dedication and caring and support for those families,” Lancaster said. “He gives his kids and those families tools that he has researched on how to best move forward, how to make a change, because those kids have to make a change in order to move forward.”
Flax Wilt selected Brown, a regional president for Park National Bank, but she said she chose him for what he does outside of his job. Brown serves on multiple community boards and Flax Wilt said that he got involved in the community as soon as he moved to Springfield almost nine years ago.
“From that moment on he has been involved in his community. He knows how to say, ‘You know, it’s not their problem; it’s us that are here to change things and make a difference,’” Flax Wilt said. “I appreciate that so much about you, John and want to honor you as a luminary.”
Credit: Michael Cooper
Credit: Michael Cooper
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