A Columbus woman will be honored today with the Golden Hoosier Award, which honors recognizes people 65 and older for their service to the community.
Peggy Wampler has lived in Columbus for almost 60 years, and she has spent much of that time giving back to the community.
“There’s just a need for people to help and I have the time,” she said. “I just turned 80 years old and I still have lots of energy. I’ve been very blessed.”
Every Wednesday from 9 to 11:30 a.m., Wampler makes calls and greets guests at Mill Race Center.
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Thursday after lunch, she heads to Columbus Regional Hospital to staff the information desk from noon to 4 p.m.
On Fridays, Wampler spends her evenings in the hospital emergency room from 6 to 11 p.m., handing out bracelets and chatting with patients in the waiting room.
She also lends a helping hand at Gleaner’s food truck once a month.
And those are just her usual commitments.
“My husband thinks I overdo it,” she said, laughing.
The roots put down by Wampler and her husband Don in Columbus go back more than 50 years.
A native of Bloomington, Wampler came to Bartholomew County in 1961 when Don Wampler got a job teaching social studies at Central Middle School, then called Central Junior High.
Wampler stayed at home with her two sons while her husband worked. But once her boys were in school, she began working for the Indiana Bell Telephone Co.
As the company began consolidating, Wampler traveled to cities across Indiana for work. She said that she carpooled with friends to the various locations, some as far away as New Albany and Evansville.
“It made me realize I’d never want to be a traveling salesman or anything like that,” she joked.
The company was purchased by AT&T Teleholdings, Inc., formerly known as Ameritech Corp., and Wampler retired from there after 27 years of service.
Volunteering begins
To busy herself after retirement, Wampler began helping out at the Columbus Area Visitors Center, and so began an illustrious volunteering career that would later grow to include organizations such as the Salvation Army and the Philharmonic Notables.
On days she is not volunteering, Wampler makes time for herself. She tends to her garden and is part of the Common Ground Garden Club.
“I grew up on a farm and I’ve always enjoyed having a small garden,” she said.
Her husband, 86, still mows the front lawn, Wampler said, but the backyard is hers to fill with flowers.
“I always say that mine is God’s garden because whatever comes up blooms,” she said.
Wampler also spends time with family when she is not volunteering.
Her oldest son, Mark, 60, has been a nurse in the CRH emergency room for 18 years. Wampler’s other son, John, 55, works for the city of Columbus.
She also has four grandchildren.
State award
Wampler was among 21 recipients chosen from more than 80 submissions statewide for the Golden Hoosier Award, according to the office of Indiana Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch, which sponsors the awards program in collaboration with the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration’s Division of Aging.
She was nominated for the award by one of the organizations she has volunteered with, Thrive Alliance Inc.
Sue Lamborn, outreach and public relations manager for Thrive Alliance, said Wampler epitomizes the meaning of the award.
“It’s just not the work that she did through Thrive Alliance, it’s all the work she’s done throughout the county,” Lamborn said. “She speaks to what the Golden Hoosier Award means.”
The nomination was sent in by the organization’s volunteer coordinator, Kashmira Mehta.
“She (Mehta) told me she was going to nominate me, (but) I just really forgot about it,” Wampler said.
The tenth annual Golden Hoosier Award ceremony will be held at noon today at the Indiana Statehouse.
Wampler said her husband, two sons and Mehta will accompany her to the event.
The award’s ideal recipient is considered an unsung hero, who has not already received a Golden Hoosier Award, and commends the impact they have made in the lives of others and the community, according to nomination parameters.
Recognition, however, is not Wampler’s goal in serving Columbus.
“We (volunteers) don’t do it because we want an award. We do it because we really enjoy doing it,” she said. “I hope it helps some people and hope it encourages others to join in.”
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To be eligible for the Golden Hoosier Award, the nominee must currently be:
- An Indiana resident
- Age 65 or older
- A volunteer in the community for the past three years
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Age: 80
Hometown: Bloomington
High school: Ellettsville High School, graduated 1956
Moved to Columbus: 1961
Career: Bell Telephone Co., 27 years
Family: Husband Don Wampler, two adult children, four grandchildren
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See video of Peggy Wampler at theepublic.com
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