INDIANAPOLIS (December 6, 2021) – The Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee (GIPC) and Mayor Joe Hogsett presented the Charles L. Whistler Award for 2020 to Milton O. Thompson and for 2021 to J. Murray Clark at a breakfast ceremony on Thursday, December 2, at the Ivy Tech Community College Culinary and Conference Center. Two awards were given due to the pandemic-related cancellation of the Whistler Award celebration in 2020. The annual award recognizes individuals who, outside the regular duties of their chosen professions, have brought together the public and private sectors for civic improvement in Indianapolis.

Milton O. Thompson, attorney and of counsel at Bleeke Dillon Crandall and President and CEO of sports, entertainment, and recreation management consulting firm Grand Slam, has long been dedicated to making Indianapolis the vibrant city it is today. A First Team All-American baseball player at Wittenberg University, Thompson has an extensive history of successfully combining his love of sports and community. He co-founded RBI of Indy (formerly Play Ball Indiana), a nonprofit whose mission is to reach and serve Indianapolis youth through baseball and softball. Former General Counsel to the Pan Am Games, he has served on the boards of the IHSAA Foundation, Indiana Sports Corp, and Indianapolis Indians Baseball Club, as well as on the Capital Improvement Board, Indiana State Lottery Commission, and Visit Indy Tourism Tomorrow Board. He played key roles in the creation of the Central Indiana Community Foundation and Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Indiana, and the Crown Hill Board of Managers, Crown Hill Heritage Foundation, English Foundation, Indianapolis Foundation, and his collegiate alma maters have all benefitted from his board service.

Murray Clark, government and regulatory affairs partner at Faegre Drinker and former Indiana State Senator, is a proud, lifelong Indiana resident who has committed his time, wisdom, and experience to the success of the City of Indianapolis. In the Indiana State Senate, Clark was active in a wide range of issues and recognized repeatedly as an outstanding legislator. In his private practice, he provides strategic legal and governmental affairs counsel to help clients achieve their goals. In addition to his career, Clark is an extraordinary philanthropic and civic leader, serving on the board of the Riley Children’s Foundation, Indianapolis Foundation, Central Indiana Community Foundation, Brebeuf Jesuit, the Hundred Club, and Downtown Indy. A longtime member of GIPC, he is currently an Executive Committee member, served as Board Chair under Mayor Greg Ballard, and was chair of the Whistler Award Selection Committee for several years. He is also known for his leadership in the sports community, having served on the board of the Indiana Soccer Association, Indy Eleven Foundation, and College Football Playoff Championships Indy Host Committee.

“The Whistler Award and winners Milt Thompson and Murray Clark remind us of the years of personal commitment it takes to build a great city,” said GIPC Board Chair Mary Chandler, Vice President of Corporate Responsibility and Community Relations at Cummins Inc. and CEO of the Cummins Foundation. “They inspire us to do more.”

“The Charles L. Whistler Award is named for an individual who helped to make and re-make the city of Indianapolis through a commitment to both public and private sectors,” said Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett. “Milt Thompson and Murray Clark exemplify that commitment and build on Whistler’s legacy, each in their own way.”

This year’s event was made possible by the generosity of its many sponsors. Faegre Drinker continued to support the event as Title Sponsor. Yvonne Shaheen was Partner Sponsor, and Keystone Construction and Indy Eleven were Associate Sponsors.

Additional biographical information:

Milton O. Thompson (2020 Awardee)
Thompson’s many professional and civic contributions have been recognized by the Center for Leadership Development, Indianapolis Business Journal, Indianapolis Monthly Magazine, IU Maurer School of Law, National Center for Black Philanthropy, and Phi Kappa Psi. After receiving his Bachelor of Arts from Wittenberg University in Ohio, he earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from IU Maurer School of Law. In 2001, he was inducted into the Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame. Thompson’s hobbies include attending sporting events, cooking, singing, golfing, and working on his new television show, “Playing for Keeps” on WHMB TV 40. He is an active member of Bethel United Methodist Church and enjoys spending time with neighbors and family, including daughter Macey (Michael), granddaughter Gwenyth, brother Harold (Ethel), and nephews Malcolm (Kenya), Marc, and Brian.

Murray Clark (2021 Awardee)
Clark has earned accolades for both his volunteer service and professional accomplishments: along with awards from alma mater Brebeuf Jesuit and Indiana Soccer, he has been recognized consistently by Best Lawyers®, Indiana Bar Foundation, Indiana Super Lawyers, Indianapolis Bar Foundation, Indianapolis Business Journal, and The Indiana Lawyer. After receiving his Bachelor of Arts from Kenyon College in Ohio, Clark earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from IU Robert H. McKinney School of Law. He and his wife Janet, a pediatric dentist, are parents of four children—Jimmy (Jane), Holly (Peter), Kate, and Annie, all of whom reside in Indianapolis—and grandparents of Teddy, Margot, and Campbell.

About the Charles L. Whistler Award:

Charles L. Whistler understood working for the future. To ensure Whistler’s legacy lives on, GIPC instituted The Charles L. Whistler Award—the most prestigious award given annually to a community volunteer. The Whistler Award continues to honor the legacy of its namesake, a lawyer and community leader in the grand tradition, who gave his time and extraordinary abilities to the Indianapolis community without asking for power or position in return. At the time of his death in 1981, Whistler was a senior partner at Faegre Drinker (then Baker and Daniels) and chair of both GIPC’s Urban Growth and Revitalization Task Force and the White River State Park Citizen’s Advisory Committee.

Thompson’s and Clark’s names will be added to a limestone and granite monument containing past award recipients’ names located in the Charles L. Whistler Memorial Plaza at the City Market in downtown Indianapolis.