Waynesburg chamber selects service award recipients
WAYNESBURG – The Waynesburg Area Chamber of Commerce selected its 2013 Distinguished Service Award recipients.
Chosen for the individual award was retired Waynesburg Police Chief Timothy Hawfield. The Greene Community Church was selected as the organization winner, and John McCracken also will be honored with a posthumous Distinguished Service Award.
Hawfield served as chief of the Waynesburg Borough Police Department for 32 years. He retired in July.
A native of the Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Md. area, he came to Waynesburg to attend Waynesburg College, where he received a bachelor’s degree in history. While at Waynesburg, he met and married his wife, Carol.
After graduating, Hawfield entered the U.S. Army where he studied Chinese. He then worked as a manager in a psychiatric ward at a hospital in Washington D.C., while he received a bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Maryland.
The couple decided to return to Waynesburg, which they believed offered a better place to raise their son. Hawfield joined the Waynesburg Borough Police Department in July 1979.
Many people don’t know that Hawfield turned down a job with the federal government the same day he started with the Waynesburg police. His heart was in Waynesburg and that is where he chose to serve, he said. In 1981, Hawfield became chief of police.
Anyone who knows Hawfield knows he didn’t just put in his time; he served his community and his fellow man. Hawfield supposedly worked day shift; however, he often could be found at the office late in the evening handling any problems that arose.
Hawfield was instrumental in promoting the “Officer Phil” Program in area elementary schools. Anyone who was a student in the Central Greene School District in the last 30 years will remember Hawfield coming to the school and the messages he and the program addressed.
Hawfield spoke to countless organizations including parent groups and civic and governmental organizations. He has been a member of the “STOP” grant committee, which deals with issues of domestic violence, since its inception.
He also has been a member of the “MAGIC” committee, Making a Great Impact Collectively, for many years. This group visits local schools and counsels students on problems adolescents face.
Hawfield is active with the “Safe Kids Committee” which focuses on child safety. As a leader in the organization, he has made sure the community is safe by distributing smoke detectors, bike helmets and car seats.
Since 1995, Hawfield has served on the Salvation Army advisory board, assisting local people in need and during times of crisis.
A strong supporter of the enforcement of the driving under the influence law, Hawfield spearheaded the Greene County DUI Task Force.
He did everything, from writing grants to get the task force started to working sobriety checkpoints.
He was always the first there and the last to leave.
Hawfield also taught criminal justice courses at Waynesburg College for several years. Many students received the benefit of Hawfield’s knowledge and experience.
Hawfield has a great passion for history, particularly for the Civil War. He also is well versed in the history of Greene County and the Waynesburg area. He has shared this knowledge with many local groups and individuals.
Another of Hawfield’s great passions is the Boy Scouts of America. He has served as a pack leader and as a member of the district committee for many years. He is currently the district chairman and a member of the Eagle Scout Board of Review.
Hawfield has given countless hours beyond the requirements of his position and the call of duty. His service has always focused on the advancement of Waynesburg Borough and the surround communities.
In July, Hawfield retired after 34 years of dedicated service with the Waynesburg Borough Police Department. He may have stopped working but he will never quit serving.
Almost eleven years ago, Greene Community Church began as a vision of four Southern Baptist Churches in Georgia, South Carolina and Pennsylvania, that wanted to join the Baptist Association of Southwestern Pennsylvania, and plant a new church in Waynesburg. The church was the second award recipient.
With a handful of Greene County residents, who gathered for Sunday morning Bible study at the Comfort Inn and an in-home Bible study at Cedar Ridge Apartments, Greene Community Church became a reality.
From the start, the church’s desire was to be active in the community, knowing God was raising this church family up from within this very community.
“We knew we wanted to be good stewards of our time and our resources and that included making a commitment to invest in the lives of those in Greene County and the activities of Greene County,” said David Crowe, pastor. “If we wanted to make a difference for the kingdom, we knew it should begin right here where we live.”
The church’s first community service project in September 2004 was to provide children’s activities and free photographs of classic cars at the 2nd Annual Waynesburg 50s Fest & Car Cruise.
The church website reads:
“At Greene Community Church, we hope you’ll find that we are a covenant Body of Believers who love the Lord and delight in serving those within our Body and those outside our Body.
As such, you’ll find Greene Community Church very active in the community, whether face-painting at community events and festivals, serving hot chocolate at parades or wielding hammers and nails to work on community construction projects.
We love our community and we desire to see individuals come know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. With this desire, we’re ready to roll-up our sleeves and follow Him in going where He calls us to go within our community.”
After a little more than a year of meeting at the Comfort Inn, the church outgrew the hotel conference room and needed a larger and more permanent place to gather. It then moved to its current location of 653 East High Street, the former state unemployment office.
Community service activities include providing the children’s activity tent at the Sheep & Fiber Festival; children’s activities and cruise pictures at the 50s Fest and Car Cruise; free gift wrapping at Waynesburg Prosperous and Beautiful’s Holiday Open House; helping with parade traffic at the end of the Waynesburg Christmas Parade; providing hot chocolate at the Waynesburg Christmas Parade; helping to park and unload vendors at the Chamber of Commerce Business Expo; hosting the Independence Day Children’s Parade; operating Mission Children’s Camps in Waynesburg and Bobtown; providing a Trick or Treat cookout for families in North Waynesburg for Light the Night; and conducting local construction and ministering to local senior adults for Operation Light.
John McCracken, McCracken Pharmacy employee, received an award, as well.
McCracken was born in Columbus, Ohio, the son of the late Jack and Dolores McCracken. Soon after birth, he and his parents moved to Waynesburg, where he spent the rest of his life.
McCracken graduated from Waynesburg Central High School in 1976 and attended Salem University in West Virginia where he studied education.
After college, McCracken began his career at McCracken Pharmacy where the community came to know him in his steadfast role of delivery man.
He could navigate the streets and alleys of Waynesburg better than anyone and had most addresses committed to memory.
McCracken was a member of Whiteley Creek Community Church, Waynesburg Lodge No. 153 F. & A. M. and the Scottish Rite Valley of Uniontown.
He was also a member of the Isaac Walton League of America, and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows for which he served a full term as Noble Grand.
He had a deep affection for the Humane Society and like to provide a helping hand at Fairall Church dinners. An avid fan of the Three Stooges, Penn State and the Pittsburgh Pirates, McCracken enjoyed bowling and driving his Mustang convertible.
McCracken worked at the pharmacy for more than 30 years until his unexpected death on Aug. 23, 2013. He was 56 years old. He had no idea of the impact he had on people’s lives.
He was blessed to be able to live a life that honored God and his family.
Each year, local residents are invited to make nominations for the awards which are based on lasting contributions to community welfare, participation in civic organizations, evidence of leadership ability, success in vocation, personal and/or business progress, and cooperation with other individuals and organizations.
The award has no relation to work performed for the Chamber of Commerce.
Hawfield, McCracken, and the Greene Community Church will be honored at the chamber’s annual membership meeting and banquet Nov. 23 at Waynesburg University’s Benedum Dining Hall.
The public is welcome to attend and may purchase tickets at the chamber office at 143 E. High St. prior to Nov. 18.
For more information, call 724-627-5926.