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TOP STORY OF THE DAY, brought to you free by WICU: Sinders recognized as Golden Hoosier
A Clay County senior was recognized for his volunteer service to the community.
Clay County Commissioner Paul Sinders admits he didn’t know the 2021 Golden Hoosier Award existed.
“Someway, somehow Vicky Mace knew this special award existed, and she nominated me,” said Sinders at a virtual watch party celebrating the winners Wednesday at the Clay County Courthouse. “I had no idea that she was working on that or nominating me. It was a major surprise to me.”
The Golden Hoosier Award was established in 2008 to recognize outstanding older Hoosiers for service to their communities. The Office of Indiana Lieutenant Governor, in collaboration with the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration’s Division of Aging, sponsors the award. It acknowledges unsung heroes who have represented a lifetime of dedication, ingenuity, perseverance, and compassion to positively impact the lives of others while building up their communities.
The ideal recipient is considered an unsung hero who has not received previous recognition for their impact on the lives of others and their community. The award recognizes outstanding seniors for their lifetime of service to their communities.
Indiana’s Golden Hoosier Award is the highest honor bestowed on a senior. Nominees must currently be Indiana residents aged 65 or older and have volunteered in their community for the past three years.
The award presentation ceremony has been a virtual presentation in recent years, starting before the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Paul and his wife Shari thought it would be nice to meet the other winners in person, but the couple enjoyed the online youtube presentation (https://youtu.be/0JH9R70u26I). Each winner was featured by showing pictures of their community efforts. Sinders admits he had difficulty helping to provide photos when asked.
“When you go out and do things for different groups and organizations, you don’t have somebody following you taking a picture,” Paul said, laughing. “That’s not part of the reason why you volunteer. You go out and work for people and do what you can to help the citizens of Clay County. So finding pictures was kind of difficult.”
Sinders could possibly be the first Clay County resident to win the award. But he doesn’t feel he will be the only one for long.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that there are many people in Clay County who would be very deserving of this award. And hopefully, they will be recognized in the future,” Sinders said. “I’m very honored, thrilled, excited, and very appreciative that someone in the community did this.”
Sinders said when people retire, “everybody thinks you have one thing available, and that is time.”
“I’ve been a great believer for many, many years that when you retire, you should do something. I think it’s very, very important, very invaluable to stay busy, to stay active in your community, whether it’s community organizations, church activities, or whatever,” he said. “I think it’s essential that this community has been very good for most of us. Volunteering and working with groups and organizations that give back to the community that benefited us so much is a way to give back to the future.”