CLAYPOOL – David Dills' service to his community didn't end when he retired, according to colleagues on town council.
Dills, a member of Claypool town council from 2004 to 2011, died March 12 in Grace Village Health Care and Rehabilitation, Winona Lake. Council members held a moment of silence and remembered him in the opening prayer during their meeting Monday.
Dills ran for council sometime after moving to Claypool, having previously lived in Franklin, N.C., and Kalamazoo, Mich. He was a Korean War veteran and worked for General Motors.
After his election, he was involved in town issues like new personnel policies and water and sewer projects, councilman Don Miller said.
“Dave was always in the middle of it, always digging into it,” Miller said Monday. “He served very diligently, very faithfully... He really enjoyed serving the town.”
Dills was first elected to take over from Niki Miller, who moved to the town clerk position.
“He was a very nice gentleman. He did a lot of very nice things for the town,” she said.
Dills also served on the town Economic Development Commission.
Don Miller recalled that Dills was disappointed to lose his most recent bid for reelection, and said he believes the former councilman would have continued serving the town if he could. Dills suffered a sudden illness in October, preventing him from attending the November and December council meetings.
“He would have stayed very much a part of town,” Don Miller said. “He was sad to lose the election. He was really eager to continue.”
