Jesse Gaither - The Americana Festival, America's 250th Birthday

Wayne Davis - Keeping the City of Centerville Operating

Wayne Davis was appointed City Manager in the Fall of 2017. He is responsible for the City’s overall operations. Previously Davis worked as a city manager in Montgomery, Ohio. Davis has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Vermont and a master’s degree in public administration from Wright State University.

Jesse Gaither - The Americana Festival, America's 250th Birthday

Jesse Gaither is the Executive Director of the Centerville-Washington Township Americana Festival. He is also owner of Minuteman Press in Centerville, a local print marketing company that designs and prints promotional products.

Jason Riley: Service to country, community and local advocacy

Originally from Millersburg, Ohio, Jason and his family adopted Centerville and Washington Township as their permanent home in January 2021 following his retirement from a 25-year career in the U.S. Army. The Army took Jason and his family across the U.S., Korea and Germany, including multiple deployments to Afghanistan and Qatar. Jason holds a B.A. from the University of Akron and master’s degrees from the U.S. Army War College and the Naval Postgraduate School. A disabled veteran, Jason is a local diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility advocate.

Hylda Strange: Restoring Historical Houses

Hylda has been a conservator of historic homes since 1985. Hylda worked as a teacher’s aid in Centerville City Schools. In 2004 Hylda and her husband Jerry purchased the Aaron Nutt Jr house, an 1833 stone cottage on Alex Bell in Centerville. The couple also own a historic home in Ripley, Ohio and are active in two communities. Hylda is involved in many local boards and has been involved in Centerville Womne’s Civic club. Besides managing gardens in her two homes she also volunteers to make the Aaron Nutt Research Cottage garden a beautiful place to visit.

Bob and Berneta Daley - Treasured community volunteers

Bob and Berneta Daley met in New York when Bob was with the Army, stationed in Staten Island. Bob worked as a journalist and an assistant to Governor Jack Gilligan in the 1970s. In later years, Bob was with the Kettering Foundation with a focus on public affairs and communication. Berneta, an avid gardener, focused her career on nursing, both at Good Samaritan and Kettering hospitals.  Berneta and Bob, honored in 2015 by Centerville-Washington Foundation, have been involved in many local organizations, giving hundreds of hours of service to the community.