Comet staff report

Leadership Carroll County Class of 2006 Pictured (l-r) are: Seated – Lee Hoard, Tony Burns, Vicky Snipes, Jay Kistler, Andy Cougill. Standing – Tammy Dyer, Becky Enoch, Sandy Simpson, Darice Sheiss, Donita Kennedy, Rusty Ashby, Paul Redmon, Dan McCain, John Chapman, Alan Flora, Tom Brodar, Abigail Germond, Dick Bradshaw, Jaime Hernandez, Kyle Germond, Lisa Rush and Shawna Dreadfulwater. Not pictured are Carol Blacketer, Jo Dyer, Julie Eurit, Jean Howell and Troy Helderman. Comet photo “Any time a group of bright, articulate, caring people come together to discuss issues and look for solutions, it is an inspiration,” said Jo Dyer of near Yeoman, a member of the inaugural class of Leadership Carroll County. “’Ordinary people can do extraordinary things together.”

Leadership Carroll County (LCC) held its first graduation last week. Twenty-seven members of the 2006 class completed the six-week, in-depth course that emphasized a collaborative community leadership model as well as information about the county and current issues.

The graduation ceremony was held at the conclusion of the Feb. 22 session at the Wabash & Erie Canal Center in Delphi. Speaking at that session, Dr. Janet Ayres, a member of the LCC task force, said that “leadership requires courage, standing up for what you think needs to be done. Is it worth the risk?” Bringing about change can sometimes be a very lonely road, she said.

The class chose fellow class members Darice Sheiss and Alan Flora to speak at graduation.

Sheiss said that change need not be feared. For her, replacing the word change with the word improvement, helped her to see possibilities. She urged the class to do the same.

Flora addressed the prerequisite that graduates become involved with a community organization. He challenged the class “to hold each other accountable” and to “use whatever we’ve learned to get our friends involved.”

Leadership Carroll County was developed after community spirit and leadership were identified at Carroll County at the Crossroads strategic planning effort as one of several critical issues facing the future of the county.

After over a year of planning and with generous donations from businesses and organizations from throughout the county, Leadership Carroll County got off the ground on Jan. 18. The six sessions rotated to different communities in the county and task force members helped facilitate and lead the sessions. Several community members were brought in to discuss their positions and/or roles in various governmental entities, businesses and organizations.

“As we met each week, I was amazed at the knowledge that each person brought with them,” said class member Sandy Simpson of Flora. “I learned so much from each person and I learned a lot about Carroll County. This was a very valuable experience that each of us can take out into our communities and strive to make our county better.”

“As a relative newcomer to the county, the leadership program introduced me to a lot of great community-minded people,” said Andy Cougill of Delphi, another class member.

“Carroll County is a wonderful place to live and the leadership program has encouraged me to work to make sure our community continues to be a great place to live. We all have a lot more to offer our community than we think. The leadership program has taught me how to develop and apply skills that will benefit both myself and the community.”

Delphi mayor Lee Hoard said he attended LCC because he considered it important. “It’s my opinion that one should never stop learning and will never know all there is to know about leadership. Another reason was to be able to network with others who are willing to step up and have resources to pull from.” The program will not be offered again until next year. In the meantime, continuing leadership development opportunities will be offered to the LCC graduates.

Members of the Leadership task force are Todd Ladd, chairman; Janet Ayres, Ann Brown, Dan Gottschalk, Alan Jackson, Susan Scholl, Larry Trapp, Anita Werling, and John Williams.