GREENFIELD — As tennis balls flew around the room — tossed from one person to the next as part of an icebreaker exercise — the members of this year’s Leadership Hancock County class broke out into smiles and laughter.
The group gathered at the Thrive Center in Greenfield on Thursday, Sept. 14 for the annual kickoff retreat, which included an overview of some Hancock Count history as well as fun activities designed to get everyone acquainted.
As class members tossed tennis balls from person to person, they were instructed to try and remember who threw the ball to whom. They were then told to line up in a row based on the order.
While the order may not have been exact, what was guaranteed was a day full of connections amongst the county’s newest leadership class.
First launched in 1994, Leadership Hancock County is designed to connect and encourage local leaders who will ideally branch out to serve the county in a number of ways.
“Many of this year’s class members have mentioned wanting to get involved with local nonprofits, and this class is a great springboard for that,” said Melissa Ewald, who is starting her second year as executive director for Leadership Hancock County.
As always, the class includes many members from some of the county’s biggest employers, including Hancock Health and NineStar Connect, “but there are a lot of small businesses represented as well,” Ewald said.
Jake Kersey, a corporate branch manager with MJW Mortgage in Indianapolis, was looking forward to meeting new people and learning how to become a more effective leader.
“I see this class as an opportunity for growth because we should always be working towards bettering ourselves,” said Kersey, who oversees 35 loan officers and is involved with a number of local organizations, including the Rotary Club of Greenfield and the Hancock Hope House board of directors.
Cody Baker, a fitness supervisor at the Hancock Wellness Center in McCordsville, is hoping the leadership class will help him learn more about all areas of the county he calls home.
“I work in McCordsville and also live in the same area, so I want to learn about the entire county, not just my little corner of it,” he said.
Laura Parker, communications manager for the Community Foundation of Hancock County, was looking forward to seeing first-hand what the popular leadership class was all about.
“I’m really excited about the opportunity to learn more about Hancock County and to meet and work with other like-minded people around the county,” she said.
Leadership Hancock County was first formed in 1994 and has brought together a class of roughly 25 local leaders for nine monthly sessions each year.
On Thursday, this year’s class got to know one another through the all-day retreat held at the Community Foundation of Hancock County’s meeting space, known as the Thrive Center. They then took part in the annual scavenger hunt, which took them on a race to follow clues around the county while learning local history. The teams met up afterwards for dinner and drinks at The Depot in Greenfield.
The class will focus on a different aspect of leadership each month, ending with the presentation of group projects at graduation May 1.
“Our mission is to empower leaders through education and connections, cultivating growth in our community,” said Ewald.
To learn more about Leadership Hancock County, visit LeadHC.org.
