Muncie Magazine June 2023

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3RIVERS FEDERAL CREDIT UNION OPENS NEW BRANCH IN MUNCIE

3Rivers Federal Credit Union opened their new Muncie branch on Monday, May 1. The new 3,000-square-foot, freestanding branch is located at 6220 W. McGalliard Road, in front of Meijer.

The project broke ground last summer and is part of 3Rivers’ larger, $8 million expansion into Central Indiana. 3Rivers’ Fortville branch opened in December 2022, and a branch in Pendleton is currently under construction, with expected completion in the third quarter of this year.

The Muncie branch features an open concept, with separate rooms for use by business, mortgage and investment services. 3Rivers also offers youth and college services, including student lending. The full-service Muncie branch also features three drive-thru lanes and an inwall, exterior ATM.

All artwork in the branch was purchased or commissioned from artists local to Muncie, including Dan Woodson, Larry Fentz, Carrie Wright, Brian Gordy and Tom and Linda Farris, as well as many other works curated by the Muncie Artist Guild. 3Rivers began building relationships with businesses and nonprofits in the community, and participating in local events with the Muncie-Delaware Chamber Commerce and Downtown

Muncie, while the branch was under construction. The credit union will continue and increase their community efforts now that their doors are open. 3Rivers will host a formal Ribbon Cutting ceremony later this spring.

“We’re thrilled to see our expansion to Central Indiana continue to come to fruition with the opening of our newest branch in Muncie,” Don Cates says, 3Rivers CEO and President. “As we prepared to open, the Muncie community has welcomed us with open arms. We look forward to deepening our involvement and impact in Delaware County, both as a community partner and by helping people with their financial wellness.”

About 3Rivers: 3Rivers Federal Credit Union empowers our community to achieve financial wellness through personalized service, tools, and education. Founded in 1935, 3Rivers is a member-owned, not-for-profit, cooperative that serves over 110,000 members with 26 branches and nearly 500 employees. Offering a complete line of financial services, including mortgages, business services, college funding, and retirement planning.

For more information, including how we give back and invest in our community, visit www.3riversfcu.org/community.

Story & Photography Provided

ALBANY: BIG PLANS FOR SMALL-TOWN CHARM

“We are getting a lot of notice here,” Dunnuck says.

town’s dedication to beautification and making a visitor-friendly space.

Albany is a small town of around 2,000 residents with exciting growth happening this year, increasing opportunities for locals and visitors to shop, eat and play around the town. Randall Dunnuck, a native to Albany and the town board vice president, spoke a little on the investments that the city has made to increase appeal for residents of the community and generate gathering places for the summer months.

He has served previously as town board president, and has been serving the town of Albany since 2006. Dunnuck sums up working in politics in a small town with a simple statement: “I love the town, I love the people.”

The town boasts several murals in its charming downtown, and small independent restaurants and shops dot the main street. The artwork reflects the

“What’s desirable for the community is a place to live, play, shop, and good schools,” says Dunnuck, who has four children currently in the school system there. “We have great schools.”

The town has invested in new spaces to encourage locals to get together and enjoy summer weather. These include a new splash pad (opening to the public on Memorial Day weekend), located right

Writer & Photographer / David Fennig

Randy Dunnuck at the new amphitheater currently under construction

off of Highway 67 as it passes through town. Adjacent to that location, the city is building a new amphitheater with a stage, alongside permanent game installations like corn hole, ping-pong and pickleball. The amphitheater should be open for summer concerts and gatherings this summer.

Not all of the new quality-of-life investments are for socializing, though. New water lines and new roads are coming to Albany next year, as well as new shopping options west of town. The town

has also made long-term investments in the water and sewage treatment systems that should enable it to provide good infrastructure to its residents for decades to come.

The police department also recently invested in a K9 unit to mitigate drug problems in Albany. The new dog, Griffin, is trained in searching for fentanyl and heroin, and would be useful in searching for missing persons.

A small town can accomplish beautiful

things for its residents, but that always requires many different people coming together. Building the new amphitheater required close cooperation between the school district, the town leadership and even a local farmer, Jeff Smoot of Smoot farms, who volunteered his time and heavy equipment to level the field for the amphitheater.

“It’s all been a labor of love, just trying to build a good community,” Dunnuck says.

DISC DEVOTEES

Muncie Area Disc Golf Club Aims to Grow and Celebrate the Sport

The 2023 Delaware County Open brings together over 140-disc golfers for tournament play on July 8 at McCullough Park in Muncie and Carl Scott Memorial Disc Golf Course in Yorktown. The event is divided into two rounds, one at each course. The Muncie Area Disc Golf Club is hosting the event, with the Professional Disc Golf Association sanctioning it in order for players to receive ratings.

The history of disc golf can be traced back to the early 1900s, but modern-day disc

golf began in the late ’60s, with many fans of the sport crediting “Steady” Ed Headrick with legitimizing the sport. He formed the Disc Golf Association in 1976 to promote installing and using disc golf courses worldwide. Headrick coined the term disc golf after inventing the disc pole hole. The sport has grown exponentially, with fans worldwide ever since.

“The Muncie Area Disc Golf Club received our 501c3 status last year,” Chris Carroll says, a board member of the club. “We’re in charge of managing the Muncie and Yorktown courses. Our goal is to create a strong and growing disc golf community

in Delaware County. Our mission is to facilitate a strong and growing community structured by creativity and collaboration, which produces a better player and individual.”

The tournament brings together disc golfer players and fans of the sport each year. Friends, fans and spectators are encouraged to attend. Carroll says they will have food trucks for lunch between rounds and a mobile disc golf store at each course.

“Last year, Sight and Sound donated a guitar for anyone who could hit a hole-inone during the tournament,” Carroll says. “A couple of people got really close. Last year Baked, a Cookie Company also helped sponsor, and our title sponsor was Prodigy, a major disc golf company. We’re working to have more sponsors like that this year. Those sponsorships go over very well.”

Writer / Renée Larr

Photography Provided

Delaware County also offers another course for players to utilize—Frank Merry Park in Selma. It’s a private park, but memberships are available, and players can play along with the Muncie Area Disc Golf Club or any Frank Merry member as a guest. Carroll suggests players download the UDisc to learn about other courses, local events and resources for players.

“The app is great because it shows you all the disc golf courses in the country ranging from people’s private backyard courses to 72-hole courses at giant properties,” Carroll says. “You can even use it to score your rounds.”

Carroll says they are still accepting sponsor applications from businesses for the event. Sponsors can reach out via munciediscgolfclub@gmail.com. For more information about Muncie Area Disc Golf Club, visit munciediscgolf. wordpress.com/home.

Creative Force

Madjax Helps to Facilitate Community and Creativity

Located near downtown Muncie, Madjax was named for the intersection of Madison and Jackson streets.

“Madjax was developed as a ‘Maker Force,’ intersecting the innovation of the maker movement with support for the emerging workforce,” says Allison Robbins, president of the Sustainable Muncie board of directors. “The original goal was to redevelop an abandoned building at the heart of the city into a

vibrant maker community with spaces for learning, skill exploration and entrepreneurship.”

Madjax provides a variety of opportunities ranging from workshops to leasing opportunities. There are two different membership opportunities including the Co:Lab and the Design Lab. “The Co:Lab is part of the Indiana Coworking Passport and provides dropin desks, working hubs, private offices, conference rooms, and all the amenities

of a typical office in a brightly lit, openconcept space,” Robbins says.

The Co:Lab memberships start at $50 per month, while Design Lab memberships begin at $25 a month, and they provide a variety of equipment and tools for individuals to use.

“We provide access to a wide variety of equipment and fabrication tools including 3D printers, laser cutters, sublimation printer and heat press, large-format vinyl

Writer & Photographer / Kylee White

cutter, embroidery machine, Wacom drawing tablet and more,” Robbins says. The Design Lab has been relocated to the first floor of Madjax for better accessibility for those who wish to use the lab. With the relocation, Madjax leaders are also planning to expand membership offerings later this year to include largescale fabrication space and access to woodworking and metalworking tools.

“Our workshops are run a bit differently than other organizations,” Robbins says. “Through our Maker in Residence and Educator in Residence initiatives, professional makers, artists and teachers participate in a yearlong fellowship leading seasonal workshops and projects within our maker community.

The workshops taught in each session

will continue to be dynamic in nature, with new opportunities offered in each series based on the strengths, talents and interests of the current makers and educators in residence. One of the benefits of the fellowships is a membership to the Madjax Design Lab, where members can access a wide variety of tools and resources to continue learning new techniques and applying skills both personally and professionally.”

Madjax is open to the city and community of Muncie. Those who wish to get started can simply join one of the workshops or many activities they have to offer. There are many different activities and groups that can be found through Madjax.

“One of the best ways for people to get involved is to bring a friend or family

member and participate in a workshop or activity together,” Robbins says. “It is truly the people in our maker community that make this space so vibrant. On any given day you could throw axes at Mad Axe, grab a pizza at Guardian Brewery, exercise with Aerial Annex, support the makers at Beyond I CAN, attend a meeting at the Co:Lab, be immersed in an interactive exhibit created by Ball State students, learn a new skill in a Madjax workshop, or bring your own idea to life in the Madjax Design Lab.”

To learn more about Madjax or sign up for their monthly newsletter, visit madjax. org, or visit their Facebook and Instagram pages @MadjaxMuncie.

Writer / Christy Heitger-Ewing Photography Provided

The first time Brittini Miles enrolled at Ivy Tech was in the fall of 2009. She majored in health care and was planning to pursue a career in nursing, but before long she found herself on academic probation. The following year she gave birth to her son, so she chose to press pause on her studies.

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT

“I didn’t know if I’d be able to get back into college after that, but I did,” says Miles, who returned to Ivy Tech in the spring of 2020 and opted to change majors.

“I realized I had more of a passion for business than nursing,” she says. “Now I’m taking business management and learning how to run a business so that it’s fair for employees, customers and shareholders.”

Growing up, Miles always heard people say that college was a scam, but her experience with Ivy Tech has been nothing but positive.

“I feel like you’ve got to find the right college and Ivy Tech is perfect for me,” says Miles. “If I need help with anything I know who to call, and they don’t tell

BRITTINI MILES

you to wait two or three days. They’ll say, ‘Come on up here and we’ll help you right now.’”

She recognizes that she’s older, wiser and more mature now than the first time she was a student at Ivy Tech. As a result, she’s learned not only to ask for help when she needs it, but to also step outside of her comfort zone by networking.

“I’m trying to get into different clubs and organizations to meet people and give me experience on how to talk to people,” she says.

In February of 2023, the Indiana Housing & Community Development Authority asked Ivy Tech to assist them with creating a single-parent housing project. Miles was chosen by the school to serve

on a committee that will help select the developers who will build this community.

“I was shocked, honored and excited to be picked,” says Miles, who got to meet the lieutenant governor in the process. “Eight developers made presentations and the committee chose two. I’m grateful for this opportunity. They even put me on their social media page.”

Miles admits that she’s a lot busier now than the first time she was a student at Ivy Tech, but she’s OK with that.

“What I’m learning about myself is I like a challenge,” says Miles, who hopes to one day own her own social media business or perhaps run someone else’s business. Whichever it is, her goal is to make the business successful.

“It’s not just about money either,” says Miles. “I want everyone to be happy. That includes my employees, managers and customers.”

Miles wouldn’t trade her time at Ivy Tech for anything in the world, as everything she has learned there, both academically and socially, has served her well.

“We all go through hard times, but the people at Ivy Tech care for their students from the moment you apply to the moment you graduate,” she says.