NORTH WEBSTER - After 24 years as the Tippecanoe Township trustee, Richard Mitchell is calling it quits when his term finishes at the end of this year.

He ran for the position - his first - in 1978 and then took office in 1979.

Of course, he's not planning to get away from the trustee's office completely. He said he plans to run for the township advisory board so that whoever takes over for him will have help to make it a smooth transition.

"I have to get elected first," he said.

Mitchell said he first ran for the office because "... John Kussmaul was trustee at the time. He was running for re-election after filling in for the incomplete term of his predecessor. And I thought that would be a good time to (run). And I was very active in the fire department prior to that. I was president of the fire department. At that time, we were having some minor disagreements with policy ... So, it just appeared it was time for a change, so I decided to run."

He had "no idea" he'd be trustee for 24 years, but he said during those 24 years, he's helped a number of changes occur.

"The first big accomplishment was there was a flat roof on the fire station for years from the time it was built in '64 that had given us leak problems repeatedly," he said. "So I was able to put a gable roof on that. Probably, the next biggest thing was getting this building (the community building/township offices) donated to us from the Dekko Foundation. That was probably in '81."

The building, which was an old factory, wasn't dedicated until 1994.

"It rained as hard inside as it did outside when it rained," he said. "The roof was shot. We had to completely reroof it. All the interior had to be remodeled."

At that time, the ambulances from the fire station also were moved to the community/township offices building. With the fire station housing both the fire trucks and ambulances, the station was overcrowded. By moving the ambulances, the problem was alleviated.

"And we've been able to house the library. Furnish community rooms. Office for myself when I moved down from the fire station. Also, the township assessor moved here, too," Mitchell said. 'It's been a very worthwhile project."

Over the years, he said, as the township has grown, the EMS grew into a paramedic service, approximately in 1996. "So that's been a big challenge - to keep that working right."

His most rewarding project, he said, is the recovery and restoration of Shock Lake Cemetery.

Mitchell said, "We dug out the woods, the briars and brambles with the help of (Superior Court II) Judge (James) Jarrette and his community service time kids. We were able to restore that and get it all cleaned up. It's in the process now of being deeded to the township so we'll be able to maintain it properly from here on out. That's being deeded from the Bockman family."

The cemetery was platted in 1836.

As Mitchell heads out the door, he's leaving with the township reaching another milestone.

He said, "We're about to reach another plateau as far as EMS operations. We now have a new administrator/director hired to fill the job I was doing on a voluntary basis. I was serving as director since '96. So that will now become a full-time paid position to run the operations of the EMS. That's really a big step. ... So we're kind of looking forward to that."

In 2000, Mitchell was inducted into the Kosciusko County Democrat Party Hall of Fame. He said the induction was a big honor and unexpected.

"I've been very fortunate to serve the citizens in the township for 24 years. Basically, it's a Republican community but I've been able to serve them, allowing me to, which means our policies must have met with their approval or they wouldn't have kept me in there. That's kind of rewarding," he said.

With his retirement as trustee, Mitchell plans to now look forward to another kind of reward: Spending time with his children and grandchildren.

"I retired from my machine shop job in '92. Prior to that, I was township trustee and working at the machine shop full-time. I really wonder how I worked full-time. I'm looking forward to slowing down in 2003 and kind of work around the house. A lot of projects at my home I want to get done. I won't have any trouble keeping busy, I'm sure. And once you get to the age I'm at, it's really time to slow down and think about grandkids and kids and so forth."

Mitchell has a son, a daughter, two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. In addition, he has two stepchildren and three stepgrandchildren.

He is the husband of Kosciusko County Auditor Sue Ann Mitchell. They were married on Valentine's Day 1981. They met when Sue Ann was Richard's deputy. She then ran for township assessor.

Whoever takes over for Mitchell, he offers this advice: "Just to do the best possible job they can." [[In-content Ad]]