Making a Difference
Profiles of people who better the lives of others in the Tri-State area
This section, a publication of The Herald-Mail Company, features profiles of people who make our communities better simply by their actions and their dedication to a cause.
They give of themselves in different ways, but they share a common goal of helping others.
If you know someone who is making a difference in other people’s lives and think that person should be included in next year’s section, you may contact Joel Huffer at (301) 733-5131, ext. 2327. You also may email suggestions to joelh@herald-mail.com.
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- Anna Shetler
HoodHop founder has high hopes for youths
For four years, Anna Shetler has taught children in the “hot spot” neighborhoods of Hagerstown how to dance. On summer days, they practice hip hop, breakdancing, jazz and more exotic international dances in local parking lots and parks. - Beth Anne Stouffer
Childhood experience helped her understand others' needs
As one of eight children raised during the Great Depression, Beth Anne Stouffer knows what it’s like to be poor. Her father was an auto mechanic in Gooding, Idaho, a town so small people could walk anywhere, so he didn’t find a lot of work during the 1930s. - Chris Ardinger
Teen has his ducks in a row
It’s four o’clock in the afternoon. A small waft of steam rises from Chris Ardinger's "venti" Starbucks coffee. Wednesday coffee with family in Chambersburg, Pa., has become a much needed break for Ardinger on this busy day. - Darcé Easton
Easton passionate about serving others
HAGERSTOWN — Darcé Easton has spent her life serving others — something she says she does out of a sense of obligation. - Debbie Cohill
Hancock woman traded her commute for coalition
Debbie Cohill was living in Hancock and commuting to work at a law firm in Washington, D.C., in the late 1990s. “I enjoyed the excitement,” Cohill said of her career as a legal assistant. - Gary Naugle
For registered nurse, giving is in his blood
Gary Naugle delivers food for Meals on Wheels, mentors through Big Brothers Big Sisters and works at the free clinic. But he is most proud of a contribution he has made over the past 35 years: 157 pints of blood. - Gerald Reichard
Pa. farmer steering teens to agriculture
Gerald Reichard is a lifelong farmer who has nurtured teenagers as much as he has nurtured crops. Reichard, 72, was an agricultural educator in high schools for 37 years. Since retirement, the Waynesboro man has continued to work with more than a dozen organizations like the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau. - Jan Young
Retired teacher passes knowledge to newbies
After 33 years of teaching, Jan Young was ready for some free time. But not too much of it. - Jane Dumont
Mormon answers call to promote her ward
While adversity can defeat some people, it toughens others. Life has thrown Jane Dumont some painful curves, but through it all she has not only persevered but prospered. Dumont, 80, she said she owes much of her strength to her church. - Jim Marshall
Flexible job gives Marshall time to serve
HAGERSTOWN - When Jim Marshall retired in 2004, he asked his wife, Ann, what he was going to do with the rest of his life.
- Jim Winters
This Rebel’s cause is caring for students
Nine years ago, when the last of Jim Winters’ children graduated from South Hagerstown High School, students got worried. Without their devoted athletic boosters president, who would mow the athletic fields ... run the concession stand ... give them lunch money? - Kenny Mason
Parks president says children give him joy
Kenny Mason has been working with children for most of his adult life. The Morgan County Parks and Recreation president said that as a coach, his job is to teach teamwork and respect, and to accept both winning and losing gracefully. - Lisa Dunn
She’s searching for smiles
The children who receive dental care from Dr. Lisa Dunn are her “little munchkins.” The director of dental health programs at West Virginia University Health Sciences Center, Eastern Division, has seen about 1,500 children since she was hired for what she calls her “dream job.” - Loretta Thornhill
Professor helps make a difference through service
HAGERSTOWN — Loretta Thornhill said she thought she was going to be a lawyer. But she never ended up in the courtroom. Thornhill, 54, of Hagerstown, is helping determine people’s fates in other ways — through service. - Mike Kelbaugh
Softball league a hit with many
Little did Mike Kelbaugh know that joining the Hagerstown Area Church Softball League almost 20 years ago would change his life. Kelbaugh signed up to play in the league in 1991, even though he never went to church and would be required to attend services twice a month to be eligible. - Preston "Peppy" Carey Jr.
Club director gives his best to city youth
Hardly anyone knows Peppy Carey by his given name, Preston Carey Jr. Carey said he got his nickname as a 2-year-old who, despite having pneumonia, kept getting out of his crib. Carey, 39, is no less active today. - Robert "Bobby" Lyles, Jr.
Lyles generous with time and treasure
Emma Lyles remembers helping to form a local breast cancer awareness organization 19 years ago and how her husband, G. Robert “Bobby” Lyles Jr., was right there with her. - Ruth Ridenour
In her life, students take center stage
Ruth Ridenour wasn’t planning to be a school theater director — at least, not so suddenly. It was the spring of 1978, her first year at Williamsport High School after two years at North Potomac Middle School. - Susan Peterson
She makes a plan, then she sticks to it
Susan Peterson is a bit uncomfortable with the idea of a story written solely about herself. If it has to be done, she said, she wants to make sure the people who helped her form the Hagers-town Area YMCA Lacrosse Association (HAYLA) are mentioned.