Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee Highlights Civic Leadership with Submission to Indiana Historical Society’s Indianapolis Bicentennial Collection

INDIANAPOLIS (January 27, 2021) – The Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee (GIPC) announced today that the Charles L. Whistler Award materials will be included in the Indianapolis Bicentennial digital image collection, which is housed at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick History Center, the home of the Indiana Historical Society. This will ensure that the story of the Whistler Award enlightens future generations about civic leadership in Indianapolis.

First given in 1983, the award is named after lawyer and active community builder Charles Whistler and is the highest civic leadership award given annually by the Mayor to a community volunteer. The award recognizes one or two individuals who have brought together the Indianapolis public and private sectors for civic improvement. Through this recognition, GIPC remembers Charles Whistler and his many contributions to our city and honors those who, like Whistler, continue to improve Indianapolis for a better today and an even better tomorrow.

“Highlighting civic leadership this year is more important than ever, in light of all that has happened in our city, state and world,” said Murray Clark, partner of the Indianapolis office of Faegre Drinker, the law firm, then called Baker and Daniels, where Whistler was also a partner. “While we were not able to give the award in 2020 due to the pandemic, including the long history of Whistler Award winners in the Bicentennial Collection is a fitting way to keep Charles Whistler’s memory alive.”

Whistler Award recipients’ names are added to a limestone and granite monument located in the Charles L. Whistler Memorial Plaza at the City Market in downtown Indianapolis. The first award winner in 1983 was Thomas H. Lake, then Chairman of the Lilly Endowment Board of Directors. Subsequent award winners have included corporate leaders, philanthropists, lawyers, and religious and not-for-profit leaders. Ever mindful of the breadth and depth of contributions to the city, the first African American recipient was Frank Lloyd, Sr., in 1985 (two years after the award was established), and the first woman to receive the award was Mattie Conley in 1987. The most recent recipient was Bill Shrewsberry in 2019. Pictures, videos, and information about each recipient can be found at indygipc.org/initiatives/whistler.

“I am thrilled to see so many organizations join our bicentennial celebration, including the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee’s submission of the Whistler Award materials to the Bicentennial Collection,” said Mayor Joe Hogsett. “Their contributions help us celebrate our past, challenging us to do even better than the leaders who came before us, and inspiring us to commit our passions and talents to the progress of the city we hold dear.”

About the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee

Founded in 1965, the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee (GIPC) is a private, non-profit, and non-partisan organization that provides a forum in which leaders of the public and private sectors of Indianapolis can work as partners to study, discuss, and address issues of concern and areas of opportunity which affect the progress of the city. Driven by business and civic leaders, GIPC represents the bipartisan alliance that is a continuing example of public-private partnership in Indianapolis.

About the Indianapolis Bicentennial

The Indianapolis bicentennial is underway, and beginning in June 2020, the city is coming together to recognize 200 years of innovation, expansion, and civic pride in the place we call home. The year-long celebration will last through May 2021 to pay proper homage to the creation of Indianapolis, while including all of our city’s most iconic events. Like other Indianapolis milestones, the bicentennial will seek to be inclusive of the rich diversity of our city, incorporating local arts, culture, civics, education, and more. Learn more at indyturns200.com.

About the Indiana Historical Society

The Indiana Historical Society (IHS) collects and preserves Indiana’s unique stories, brings Hoosiers together in remembering and sharing the past, and inspires a future grounded in our state’s uniting values and principles. IHS is a Smithsonian Affiliate and a member of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience.

CONTACT:
Beth White
GIPC Executive Director
(317) 327-3820
beth.white@indygipc.org