Past Hometown Heroes Blog

What started in Kindergarten as a desire to win a class pizza party has turned into a true passion for high school freshman Luke Jenkins. In nine years Luke collected over $3,800, 75% in pennies, for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as a part of their Pennies for Patients program. ? "Our next door neighbors, the Riveras, lost their teenage daughter, Dariana, to cancer when Luke was in the 3rd grade," shared Luke's mother Michelle Jenkins. 

?Jonathan Boye grew up struggling with dyslexia and ADHD and with the "faith of a mustard seed" he found himself helping thousands of people with similar struggles. Jon has been a visionary for providing mental health services first to our children in Williamson county but now to all ages in all of middle Tennessee," shared Margaret Owens, Chief Operations Officer at Mercy, in her nomination of Boye. "He came to work at Mercy in June of 2006."

 

A huge part of what keeps St. Jude Children's Hospital going is the efforts of people like Jess Wright. Several years ago Jess committed to walking a local 5K in her hometown of Frederick, Maryland which benefited St. Jude. At the time she wanted to encourage people who never thought they could do an endurance race to join her and walk rather than run and most importantly she wanted to raise funds for St. Jude. What better way to do this than to start her own team.

 

Roger McDaniel is a wonderful example of what it looks like to serve your community well. When not spending time at the office or with his family Roger McDaniel fills up his time mentoring and helping veterans in need get back on their feet, managing and tending a local giving garden and preserving local historical landmarks. ? Tim Gregath, Executive Director of the Building Lives Foundation, a local non-profit committed to assisting veterans in the process of rebuilding their lives, sung Roger's praises in his DWAG Hometown Hero Nomination.

 

?Joe Bradford, or Papa Joe as he's known to many, grew up in poverty and after facing time in prison for computer hacking and fighting kidney disease he and his wife Denise were forced to move into one of Nashville's project communities. After seeing needs of the children within this community they were inspired to create Elijah's Heart, a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to show love to underprivileged children and assist them with practical needs. One of the many ways they show love is through their Walks of Love.

 

?In March of 2012 Ty and Nancy Osman faced the unthinkable when they lost their son Ty. Ty Osman II had a heart for helping others and was a light to everyone around him. Even in his passing he was a gift to many as an organ donor. "After he passed we heard so many stories about how just his regular kindness effected people," shared Ty Jr.'s mother Nancy. "How his smiling and everyday manor made people feel special, and feel loved and seen.

?Since DWAG's Hometown Heroes started, Earl Hensel has been a part of awarding five different heroes. Earl's heroes have included local veteran Mike Reeder, special needs teacher Jan Lincoln, MADD advocate and survivor Millie Webb, Lu Sipos creator of the Chemo Duck and Paul Fleenor, a local veteran who led the charge to bring the Honor Flight Program to Middle Tennessee. Because of Earl's initiative to nominate these locals, each of his heroes has been celebrated for their accomplishment.

 

It's a known fact around town that Franklin's Downtown area hasn't always been so picturesque. The historic area had fallen into much disrepair and businesses were not thriving, that is until the early 1980's when locals like Ed Silva saw the potential and started to change all of that. "Ed Silva provided extraordinary leadership in our journey to establish Franklin's Main Street as the heart of our community", said Mary Pearce, the Heritage Foundation's Executive Director.

 

n 1992, Sister Sandra founded Project Reflect, a nonprofit organization in Nashville whose mission is "transforming urban America through education and policy reform." As Executive Director, in 2002 she strongly influenced passage of the first charter school legislation for the State of Tennessee. Under the new law, in August 2003 Project Reflect opened Middle Tennessee's first free, public charter school, Smithson Craighead Academy (SCA) elementary school, which serves 240 children from low-income families who reside in the Davidson County area.

 

?Each year the Salvation Army's Angel Tree program gives individuals and partnering corporations an opportunity to adopt less fortunate children and seniors who would otherwise receive very little or nothing during the holiday season and provides them with personalized gifts and necessities. Behind the scenes of the Angel Tree program is an army of volunteers, and alongside them is Amanda Grieves, who coordinates the program each year.

 

?Snowball Express brings together children of the Fallen right before Christmas to have fun, be together, and just heal. The organization provides an opportunity for children to be with others "like them ", to be "normal " because they often are the only ones in their schools and communities who have lost a parent at war, they just feel different. A feeling Samantha Ponder understands all too well, being the daughter of one of our nation's Fallen.

 

?After years of teaching special education and serving as a JOBS coordinator, which involved a "school to work " transition classroom for young adults with special needs, Brenda Hauk felt led to open a Christian-based job training center for adults who live with developmental disabilities. She visited several facilities, established relationships with mentors, and in 1999, BrightStone opened with 4 students, a volunteer staff of two, and donated space in a local church.

 

?There are few in Williamson County who haven't been impacted by Jimmy Gentry in one way or another. Whether it's been through a simple visit to his family farm to pick pumpkins, in the classroom, on the football field, or by listening to him speak about his experience serving our country in World War II, Gentry's story is an extraordinary one.

 

One week before his first birthday, on Christmas Day 2002, Lu Sipos' son Gabe was diagnosed with Rhabdomyosarcoma. He learned how to walk and talk while enduring 30 days of 9 months of Chemotherapy treatments and numerous surgeries. Like many parents, Lu found herself feeling lost during this time, unsure of what her role on her son's medical team looked like. That is until she created the first Chemo Duck.

 

Peggy Smith or Ms. Peggy, as she is affectionately called by Club members, is also known as the PBJ lady. Ms. Peggy has been known to not only drop everything to make a child in need a hot meal, she spends up to 5 days a week at the Club preparing and serving snack. She has made it her mission to educate the general public about the challenges faced by the many children that may go hungry during the summer, on the weekends, or simply after the school day has ended.

 

In 2010, Mary Mader and Carole Horlacher became volunteers for Williamson County Animal Services in Franklin. Seeing a need to help the shelter staff, they set up a desk at the front door and implemented a meet and greet strategy for all potential adopters. Mary and Carole know the right questions to ask and daily they help "match " adopters and pets. This process helps insure a good, lasting adoption. They also help with off-site events, coming early and staying late, setting up, keeping up with adoption contracts and other paperwork.

 

Jerry and Sharon Clement founded Take the Reins, a local equine assisted therapeutic riding ministry for children and youth with physical, emotional, intellectual, and medical challenges in 2011. Born from their passion for horses and interest in working with children, what started as a program with only 3 riders and has grown into a 501(c)3 Corporation serving over 25 riders, 40+ volunteers, and PATH (Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship) Certified Instructors.

 

For GraceWorks, Williamson County's largest food bank, the needs of local individuals and families is never ending. Over the years, local grocery store manager Joe Zarcone has been an indispensable tool in helping GraceWorks fulfill these needs for thousands of locals. Working behind the scenes to respond to needs within the community from GraceWorks and numerous other non-profits, Joe has not only utilized his position as store manager to meet those needs whenever possible, he has often worked hands on to help fulfill these needs personally.

 

Now in her 90's, it is easy to see why when asked about Franklin local, Inge Smith, locals use terms like mentor, treasure and inspiring. Born in Germany, Inge Meyring Smith moved to the States with her parents at the age of 15 to escape the Nazi regime. After marrying Paul Smith, a GI and native of West Tennessee, she moved from New York City to Franklin, Tennessee, where she raised a family, completed multiple degrees at Vanderbilt University and opened numerous schools, including Smith Preschool which has been in business for over 65 years..

 

Autumn Bennett was the light of her parents lives. At the age of one she was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis. "She was given a life expectancy of 15 years", said Autumn's Father, Gary. "We were determined to make every year we had with her as great as possible. She loved God, dancing, Disney World, her family and Rusty Wallace. We find comfort in knowing that she breathes and dances with Angels in Heaven." Out of the tragedy of losing their daughter, Gary Bennett and his wife Sharon have remained committed to finding a cure for and…

As many who have worked with or for a non-profit know , sometimes exactly what you need is the breath of fresh air a new volunteer brings. Such is the case with Walden's Puddle, a professionally staffed wildlife rehabilitation and education facility in Middle Tennessee. "Lane Brody took Walden 's Puddle from a financially and emotionally barren organization to what it is at the moment which is spectacular", said Emily Magid, fellow animal lover and Walden's Puddle volunteer.

 

In October 1997, thanks to the work of Creely Wilson and many others, Christian Women's Job Corps opened its doors at Lockland Baptist Church in East Nashville. The ten women who made up the first class received invaluable help in achieving their GED diplomas and learning computer skills. They grew spiritually through Bible studies and faithful mentoring by volunteers. In the following fifteen years, CWJC moved to a larger location, expanded to three locations, and opened a program for men.

 

Girls on the Run Nashville is an innovative after-school program that uses the power of running to inspire and prepare Middle Tennessee girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy active living. It's goals are to improve the social, physical, emotional and mental well-being of adolescent girls, empowering them with a strong sense of identity and achievement. It's easy to see why the recently retired Board Chair of GOTR, Diane Crosier, is passionate about this mission.

 

Best Buddies has made it their mission to create opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Behind the scenes is an army of volunteers hosting events, creating friendships with Buddies, providing job coaching, and finding socialization and leadership opportunities for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities with the hope of them becoming more independent and included in the community. One of those volunteers is Becky Haynes Shafer.

 

Anderson responded to seeing Katrina hurricane evacuees displaced from their homes, living in Franklin, and left without insurance from jobs they no longer had. He started Grace Medical Clinic by taking time off from his regular practice on Fridays to serve the uninsured population. As the clinic has grown, Anderson now serves both Wednesdays and Fridays, as a Family Doctor for the uninsured. For over 38 years he provided treatment for thousands of insured patients and his persistence has led to him serving a greater population.

 

As the former Fire Chief of Brentwood, Kenny Lane served a vital role in the development of Brentwood's Fire Department. He served the Fire Department from the beginning of its inception in 1986 and for 18 years he led the department as the Fire Chief, retiring from the department on June 30th 2011.

 

The couple who have three children- Olivia Drae, Bane Alton Drake and Bayo Shalom - found themselves struggling with the everyday tasks of life after loosing their son Bane. Out of this tremendous loss, they started Banebow, an organization which provides mental, physical, and spiritual assistance to families who have sustained the sudden loss of a child.

 

Often the most deserving heroes are also the most humble. So is the case with Tracy Halloran. Tracy, who grew up in the inner city of Chicago, has called Franklin, Tennessee home for the past seventeen years. For the past 14 years she has been a part of the local Meals on Wheels effort, first volunteering as a driver and in 2007 she took over as the Franklin coordinator for Monday, Wednesday and Friday MOW, originally founded by Janielle Westbrook.

 

GiGi's Playhouse, a national achievement center for individuals with Down syndrome, their families, and the community has just opened a Nashville location. Offering more than 25 therapeutic and educational programs focused on advancing literacy, math skills, motor skills and more all free of charge. Local mother, Melissa Wenger, whose child has Down syndrome, along with her child's teacher, decided there were not enough resources in Nashville for people with Down Syndrome and lead the vision of bringing GiGi's Playhouse to Nashville.

 

As Director of Williamson County Animal Services, Laura Chavarria has improved the adoption experience with a remodel of the front office area, lobby TV monitors, skylights and an improvement in general shelter cleanliness. A firm believer in the power of marketing, Chavarria has implemented several successful monthly adoption campaigns like Summer of Love, the 31 Days of October, and Home for the Holidays hoping to capture the attention of the local community.