Dr. Bird

By Dr. Jeff Bird— MUNCIE, IN—I had the pleasure of interviewing two outstanding leaders from the Greater Muncie  Chamber of Commerce. Ashley Williams is the vice president of talent development and Gina Caravaglia serves the Chamber as the coordinator of the Delaware County Redevelopment Alliance of Muncie-Delaware County.  Williams has been at the Chamber since 2024 in her role after spending several years as part of the senior management team at the Youth Opportunity Center.  She also has worked at Eastern Indiana Works.  After graduating high school in Francisco, IN she matriculated to Ball State University to study then pursued…

By Dr. Jeff Bird— MUNCIE, IN—Jeff Helm serves youth as the chief executive officer of the Youth Opportunity Center.  He assumed the leadership of the YOC in 2023 culminating a 23 year journey at the facility.  I was fortunate to sit with Jeff and discuss his life’s journey and his passion for helping troubled, hurting children.  Jeff is a lifelong resident of Delaware County, growing up in the Selma area and attended Wapahani High School. He is married to his wife Tammy and has 2 adult children.  Jeff graduated from Ball State University with a degree in Criminal Justice and…

By Dr. Jeff Bird— MUNCIE, IN—Participation in youth sports improves outcomes for children in multiple important parameters.  The data is convincing.  Youth sports participation is linked to significant improvements in physical health, cognitive function, and social-emotional development.  I have recently helped form a new non-profit board called “the Muncie Youth Sports Organization.”  Several community leaders and educators have agreed to serve on this board.  We are partnering with Muncie Community Schools and local foundations to begin putting structure and process together to encourage all Muncie Community Schools students K-8th grade to engage in sports for simple fun and recreation or…

By Dr. Jeff Bird— MUNCIE, IN—This article will be my first of many forays into our local economy and economic development.  Many similar practical and conceptual examples will follow.  I met with two local leaders who play significant roles in local economic development.  Jeff Howe is the recent chair of the Muncie Redevelopment Commission (MRC) and was recently appointed Deputy Mayor of Muncie.  The MRC exists to acquire and dispose of abandoned residential properties, stimulate economic growth and manage the city’s allocation districts and tax increment financing (TIF).  Traci Lutton serves as Vice President of the Economic Development Alliance of…

By Dr. Jeff Bird—  MUNCIE, IN—The Thomas Park/Avondale and South Central neighborhoods have long had a special place in my life.  Many of my cousins grew up in the neighborhood and attended Southview elementary, Wilson middle school and Muncie Southside high school.  I grew up watching my father play slow pitch softball for Local 287 at Thomas Park, and looked forward to an ice-cold root beer at the BK root beer stand on Memorial Drive after his games.  I then followed Dad in my young adulthood playing softball there for many years.  I also helped coach my sons who often…

By Dr. Jeff Bird— MUNCIE, IN—Full disclosure here…I am privileged to serve as one of the community members on the Ball Brothers Foundation Board of Directors. Being on the board is one of my favorite things to do in service to our community, and is one in which I take great pride. The Ball Brothers Foundation (BBF) is a family foundation originating in 1926 with gifts from the Ball Family at the time of the passing of Edmond B. Ball, one of the original five Ball brothers. Over decades other members of the family left money and property to the…

By Dr. Jeff Bird— MUNCIE, IN—After an incredibly challenging yet wonderful and rewarding 40 plus years in healthcare as a practicing Family Physician, teacher of aspiring family doctors and administrator at Indiana University Health Ball Memorial Hospital, this new phase has taken effort to get my arms around. I am hoping to stay busy with purposeful work as I embark on this new journey.  I’m pleased to start a new endeavor highlighting Muncie and Delaware County with a new forum, writing for MuncieJournal.com and hosting a new radio show titled: Taking Flight: Chapter 2 on WMUN radio every Friday afternoon…