Making a positive change: Healthy Community Awards honor those impacting Hancock County’s wellness

By Maribeth Vaughn -January 4, 2023

GREENFIELD – Dave Carver and Nameless Creek Youth Camp have been named recipients of the Hancock Health Foundation’s 2022 Healthy Community Awards.

 

The organization and individual were honored at a holiday party in December. Both awards are given annually to honor those who are making a positive change or impact on the health of the community.

 

Dave Carver has lived in Greenfield 15 years and has served more than 5,000 hours as a volunteer for several organizations including Meals on Wheels, Kenneth Butler Memorial Soup Kitchen, FUSE, Hancock County Special Olympics, Rotary Club of Greenfield, Hancock County Red Cross, Healthy 365, Hope House and a Better Life-Brianna’s Hope of Greenfield.

 

He received the Bert Curry Healthy Community Award.

 

“Dave’s mission is to lead others to service by example,” wrote Bryan Rutledge, who nominated Carver for the award. “He has a quiet and humble passion for helping others in every organization that he has volunteered for.”

 

Carver volunteers four to six hours each week and has helped the community in countless ways with his strategic thinking and creative problem solving, according to a press release from the foundation. He served as the Ready Fox mascot to provide 911 education to children; appeared as Santa to raise money for charity during the holidays; and even created his own “Dave the Minion” and “Dave the Greenfield Eagle” mascots, in which he appeared at many community events to raise awareness for various causes.

 

More recently, Carver has dedicated his time to helping others beat addiction through his work with Brianna’s Hope and by working one-on-one with individuals who are struggling.

 

“Dave is always involved in the needs of someone other than himself,” Rutledge wrote.

 

Carver received a $1,000 donation with his award to go to a charity of his choice, and he chose to support Brianna’s Hope.

 

Nameless Creek Youth Camp received the 2022 Bobby Keen Healthy Community Award.

 

Nameless Creek has been located in Hancock County since 1951. Over the last 15 years, board members and volunteers have donated about 2,000 hours of service by making improvements to the property and to care for its operation, upkeep and maintenance.

 

The camp’s mission is “to enhance the appreciation of nature and the enjoyment of the outdoors by creating year-round recreational, educational and camping opportunities for youth, families and communities of Hancock and surrounding counties.”

 

An event center on the property offers an affordable and attractive meeting place for families, schools, clubs and businesses. Often, facilities are provided to non-profit organizations at significantly reduced rental fees, or in some cases at no charge at all.

 

The facility has recently been used by homeschool groups, scout groups and The ARC of Hancock County for families with disabilities.

 

A week-long day camp is also hosted at the camp each summer. Plug Into Nature Camp offers outdoor experiences, crafts, hiking, games, lunch and demonstrations by local groups; 60 children participated in the PIN Camp in 2022.

 

“Nameless Creek provides a place where hundreds of guests, as well as volunteers, have opportunities to participate in physical, mental and/or spiritual events, creating positive changes in the health and wellness of the community,” wrote Susan Geesa, who nominated the camp for the award.

 

Recent enhancements to the property have included a paved parking lot, new sound system, and security cameras. Nameless Creek received a donation of $1,000 in recognition for the award.

 

Other nominees for the awards included Healthy365, Linda Ostewig, Susan Neeley and Heather Pryor.

 

“All of this year’s nominees are wonderful examples of people working together to make a positive change in the health of our community,” the press release states.