Governor helps honor Everyday Heroes
As an advocate for parents in Franklin County Family Recovery Court and a foster parent for more than 100 children over the years, 81-year-old Babette Feibel volunteers to fill the gaps in some of the toughest jobs the community has to offer. And she has no plans to slow down.
It is for these reasons that Feibel was honored with the 2018 Dispatch Media Group Everyday Hero award Tuesday. Feibel received a $10,000 donation from the Columbus Foundation for a charity of her choice and $15,000 from Dispatch Media Group in in-kind advertising for her causes.
Feibel and her fellow Everyday Hero finalists and semifinalists were recognized at a luncheon Downtown at the Boat House to celebrate the countless hours of volunteer work these 25 individuals contribute each year.
“This is where the future is,” said Gov. John Kasich, Babette Feibel, winner of the 2018 Dispatch Media Group Everyday Hero award, accepts $25,000 worth of prizes from Ray Paprocki, Dispatch Magazines publisher, to assist in charity work.
who led a roundtable discussion with the five finalists at the luncheon. “No one is coming in on a white horse to solve our problems. It is on you and I.”
The idea for the Everyday Heroes of Central Ohio came out of the divisiveness of the 2016 presidential election, said Dispatch Magazines publisher Ray Paprocki. The awards,
Paprocki said, showcase individuals whose good works don’t always make daily headlines.
Feibel was one of five finalists recognized for their altruism: Sister Nadine Buchanan, of the Dominican Sisters, who volunteers to help sex-trafficking victims; Brad Hutchinson, a philanthropist in Fairfield County; Brandy Jemczura, founder of the youth volunteer organization Seeds of Caring; and Rachel Muha, founder of the Run the Race Center on the West Side.
The 20 semifinalists were recognized with proclamations from the governors’ office.
During the round table with the governor, Feibel was not shy to mention the gaps she sees in the state Job and Family Services system. When Kasich told Feibel he runs the department, she said she looks forward to sharing her thoughts with him soon.
Despite the differences in their work, Kasich compared each of the finalists to the Good Samaritan, a figure he said transcends time because of his good works for someone in need.
“You can’t compare the work each of these people do,” Kasich said. “We can each do what we can to make a difference. Nothing good we ever do is lost.”