Hancock on the Horizon

Hancock County was the second fastest growing county in Indiana in 2025. After looking at recent residential construction data, it's easy to see why--with permits filed for nearly 1,160 new single-family homes for the year, a 27% increase from 2024. This episode takes listeners on a deep dive into that growth with the help of three Hancock County homebuilding experts providing powerful insights from unique perspectives:Mike Leslie, Bridgenorth HomesSara Joyner, Joyner HomesPaul Carroll, Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis

Every three years, Hancock Health administers a Community Health Needs Assessment Survey to gather feedback that will help it continue to meet the community’s healthcare needs. Hancock Health Wellness Strategy Manager Amanda Hinkle and Community Outreach and Engagement Coordinator Teri House Gottschalk discuss why this survey is so important and delve into how initiatives like this contribute to Hancock County consistently ranking among the healthiest counties in Indiana.Do you live, work, or spend a considerable amount of time in Hancock County? Hancock Health wants to hear from you. Take the survey here.In other news:Hancock economic, community development plans earn statewide recognitionHancock is state’s 2nd fastest growing county for 2nd year in a rowHEDC gives $250,000 to Amplify Hancock Innovation CenterCaldwell's Inc. joins HEDCHancock County Council Member Clark Smith Joins Hancock Economic Development Council BoardIMPA joins HEDCMesser Construction Co. Joins HEDCRural Strategies Group joins HEDC

As a member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, Hancock Health benefits from the knowledge of world-leading specialists who advise skilled local providers on diagnosis and treatment, including for the most complex health conditions. Jason Wells, Executive Director of Collaboration and Integration and the Mayo Clinic Care Network Relationship for Hancock Health, delves deeper into what this partnership means for local caregivers and those living in and around Hancock County, Indiana.

Workforce, of course, is very front-of-mind for businesses. Before landing or expanding somewhere, they want to know if they’ll be able to hire not only enough employees, but the right kind of employees. So how might a community go about ensuring businesses can do that? We’ll tell you one thing–the forthcoming Hancock County Career Center ain’t a bad place to start. Join HC3 Director Stan Wilkison for the lowdown on this pipeline powerhouse.Represent a business interested in partnering with HC3? Reach out to Stan Wilkison at [email protected] more about the Amplify Hancock Innovation Center here.

New Palestine High School in the town of New Palestine in southwestern Hancock County fosters work-based learning partnerships with local employers to prepare students for the local workforce while bolstering a strong local workforce pipeline for employers. Jeremy Large, Work-Based Learning Coordinator for New Palestine High School, discusses how students have paid opportunities at dozens of businesses representing a diverse cross section of the area’s economy. Do you represent a business interested in partnering with New Palestine High School? Contact Jeremy at [email protected].

Tom Miller started as Executive Director of the Hancock Economic Development Council in 1989, not long after the organization was incorporated in September 1985. As the HEDC prepares to celebrate its 40th anniversary, Tom takes us back to the early days of the Council–a time of growth and promise for Hancock County.Check out a web article and video celebrating the HEDC's 40th here.

At the Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation in northwestern Hancock County, Indiana, students start learning about the opportunities awaiting them in the local workforce as young as kindergarten. At the high school, popular career and technical education classes like welding and certified nursing assistant allow students to earn industry certifications and college credits during the school day that will give them a head start on their futures. The school corporation also works extensively with the three others in the county on vocational education offerings–a collaboration slated to reach a whole new level next year upon the opening of a new career center. Dr. Jack Parker, superintendent of the Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation, tells us all about it. Do you represent a company interested in partnering with the Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation on work-based learning opportunities? Reach out to Mt. Vernon High School at 317-485-3131 or [email protected].

This month’s episode continues our five-part series on how Hancock County schools are preparing young people for the future workforce. After an excellent interview with Dr. George Philhower of Eastern Hancock Schools in June we’re making Part II all about Greenfield-Central Schools with Superintendent Dr. Harold Olin, Assistant Superintendent Jason Cary, and Greenfield-Central High School Principal Dan Walbaum. In our conversation, we talk about how GC goes about career and technical education and work-based learning, as well as what the exciting future holds for a new career center under development in the county.If you’re interested in partnering with Greenfield-Central Schools on work-based learning opportunities, please reach out to Superintendent Dr. Harold Olin at [email protected], Assistant Superintendent Jason Cary at [email protected], and/or High School Principal Dan Walbaum at [email protected].

In Hancock County, Indiana, there’s a lot of thought and energy invested into preparing the local workforce, starting with the young people enrolled in its excellent schools. In this episode, Dr. George Philhower, Superintendent of Eastern Hancock Schools, tells us all about how the school district gives students opportunities to explore careers, engage with the real world, and have authentic experiences. He talks about how the school corporation tracks data on students’ career interests and uses that information to secure work-based learning opportunities in the community. Dr. Philhower also recalls his travels to Switzerland, where he learned about that country’s effective apprenticeship model and became part of efforts to build something similar in Indiana.Reach out to Dr. Philhower about work-based learning opportunities at [email protected] episode kicks off a five-part series exploring how Hancock County's public school districts prepare students for the local workforce.

May Bonus Episode! If you’re a fan of this podcast then you know that Hancock County, Indiana is growing. And with that growth comes a growing demand for medical services. Hancock Health has been providing top-tier medical care to the county and region for decades. Right now, it has the means to have equipment transported to the hospital once a week for PET/CT scans, which are instrumental in fighting cancer and other conditions. However, as demand for medical services grows, the healthcare provider knows full well the need to have such capabilities of its own in house far more than one day a week. But they need your help, which is why they’re kicking off a three-year, $3 million fundraising campaign. Nancy Davis and Allyson Smith of the Hancock Health Foundation as well as Dr. Julia Compton, a physician with Hancock Health, tell us all about it.Donate to the campaign here.Sign up for the Health Foundation’s Golf Outing here.Questions about this campaign? Reach out to episode guests at [email protected] and [email protected].

It’s a valid question, and one that’s admittedly difficult to answer. Which is why we’re kicking off Economic Development Week 2025 with a conversation with Randy Sorrell, Executive Director of the Hancock Economic Development Council. In this interview, he tells us all about what economic development is, what it is not, how it works, and the nuances of how it works in Hancock County, Indiana.

As one of Indiana’s fastest growing counties, there’s a lot of building going on in Hancock County. A new career center. A new 1,400-seat auditorium. A new elementary school. These are just some of the projects RATIO Architects has been instrumental in in recent years. Mark Beebe, an architect and interior designer with the firm, swings by the Hancock on the Horizon podcast to take listeners behind the scenes of these projects and expand on all the ways they’ll be assets for the community–making Hancock County an even better place to live and do business. Go here to check out a gallery of images illustrating the projects Mark discusses.

The days are getting longer, the temperatures are getting warmer, and it’s looking a lot greener in Greenfield, Indiana. That’s right–it’s almost spring–which means it’s time to get outside! And what better place to do that than Greenfield’s excellent parks. Julie Patterson, Assistant Director of Parks & Recreation for the City swings by the podcast to tell us all about several of these great outdoor venues, as well as all the great new things to expect from them this year, including outdoor concert series and a half marathon. Keep up with Greenfield Parks & Recreation on their website, Facebook, and Instagram.

What happens when you combine the freedom and independence of living in a house with the hassle-free lifestyle of a managed and maintained rental community? You get a neighborhood like Meridian Homes at Sycamore Drive. In this episode, we hear from Alysia Prosser, who tells us all about the new luxury rental home community that recently opened in McCordsville. Learn more about the community's upcoming open house here.

Community Foundation of Hancock County President & CEO Mary Gibble dives into the robust slate of educational programs teaching civic concepts and skills to community members, and promotes an event coming up on January 23, 2025 where a recently completed county-wide quality-of-place-plan will be presented.

Hancock Health doesn’t want to be a sickcare provider, it wants to be a healthcare provider by partnering with people to get them on a journey to improve their health. That’s one of the many sentiments shared by the organization’s President and CEO, Steve Long, in this episode. During the interview, he also discusses Hancock County’s rise to the third healthiest county in Indiana, the development Hancock Health is driving on the county’s west side, and how a strategic partnership will determine the future of an important site at an interstate interchange in Greenfield.

In a moment of trial, our minds can become so flooded that they’ll often split our choices into two extremes. But far more natural and authentic options emerge between those extremes after some extra effort. That’s the guiding principle behind Conjunction Leadership, which is collaborating with the Hancock County Chamber of Commerce and Community Foundation of Hancock County to offer the Hancock County Small Business Leadership Series, now open for registration. Conjunction Leadership Founder Jim Bishop discusses his unique approach to decision making as well as how those in and around Hancock County can benefit from his upcoming course in this November bonus episode.

Did you know there’s a company in Hancock County, Indiana that’s helped coordinate volunteers for events like the Super Bowl, NCAA Final Four, and major political party national conventions? Learn all about TRS from its President, Flory May, in this episode.

Dr. William Fisher recently opened Fisher Pediatrics in New Palestine, Indiana. Twenty years ago, the health system he formerly worked for had a satellite office in the very building he practices in now. New Palestine’s population looked a lot different then. Now, it’s one of the drivers making Hancock County the fastest growing county in Indiana. Dr. Fisher wisely noticed that when determining where to continue his pediatric career, a profession born out of his love of medicine, interaction, and the Indianapolis area.

“It’s usually smooth sailing, as long as you don’t fall into a crevice,” Joel Hungate says casually of traversing glaciers in this interview. Joel overcame that, a car-sized boulder plowing straight for him, and a harrowing rescue as a member of a UK-based mountaineering team made up of the first people to summit a challenging mountain in western Mongolia. Along with some of the world’s most remote locations, his sense of adventure also took him to your Netflix screens last year. The Hancock County native and Executive Director of Hancock Well-Being & Employer Strategy for Hancock Health finds that adventure readiness benefits him in multiple aspects of life, including recreationally, professionally, and in service to his community.Check out a photo gallery of Joel's adventures here.Learn more about Joel and how adventure readiness impacts leadership, resilience, innovation, and well-being at joelhungate.com.Learn more about the Lisa Muegge Feat of Plenty here.

Tanya Khokhar graduated as valedictorian of her Hancock County high school in 2012, went on to the University of Notre Dame, and worked as a consultant in Los Angeles before bringing some SoCal back with her to Indianapolis and Greenfield to open Parched. In this episode, the business owner talks about making delicious smoothies and bowls, reflects on the entrepreneurial spirit she’s had since starting her own sticker business in elementary school, and offers excellent advice to those contemplating their own business ideas.

Special bonus episode this month! The Hancock Economic Development Council’s very own Community Development Manager Erica Adams swings by for a conversation about the important work she’s doing on Amplify Hancock, a facility providing workforce and career track education and training that’s coming to Hancock County in 2026. Erica is meeting with businesses and organizations to find out what kinds of positions and skills are lacking in Hancock County, and how Amplify Hancock can offer programming to close those gaps. She also discusses how she got into community development work and how vital it is to the success of a society. If you represent a business or organization that you feel could benefit from Amplify Hancock, Erica wants to hear from you, and encourages you to reach out to her at [email protected].

Hart Summeier discusses how pressure motivates him to succeed in his ventures Level Up Real Estate Group in Greenfield and Fortville Tire. He also talks about his teenage City Council run, service in the U.S. military and National Security Agency, and enlightening insights into real estate.

And who can blame them with a legacy like theirs?! Helen Roney of Tuttle Orchards reflects on nearly a century of operating in Hancock County and four generations of family management. A lot has happened since those first apple trees went into the ground–including expansions into retail and agritourism, national accolades, and a patent for an apple developed right at the orchard.

Hancock County, Indiana is home to the largest Hallmark store in the United States. And it’s no surprise why–with a bridge, lighthouse, and log cabin all inside the store. It’s all part of the experience the late founder, Cynthia Erwin, set out to create. Her daughter, Kelley Holden, carries on that legacy today after learning the business by the seat of her pants when Cynthia was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

“We got into dry cleaning essentially the year people quit wearing dry cleaning clothes,” says Chris Baggott in this interview. But did the Hancock County entrepreneur let that stain his ambition? No! Eventually he and his business partners create a marketing product that culminates in a multi-billion-dollar acquisition. Later, he starts a farm that uses regenerative practices, a meal-delivery service that has expanded to multiple cities across the United States, and a whole lot more.