Charlie Carr Is Named Outstanding Citizen Of 2009
BY NANCY GAGNET— MIRROR REPORTER
If you ask Charlie Carr how he has time to do so much volunteering his answer is simple: “I’ve got a good wife.”
During their nearly 31 years of marriage, Charlie and Mary have not only raised their children Andy and Angela, but they’ve devoted a lot of time to the community they’ve grown to love.
“A lot of the volunteering we do has been together – the festivals and parades. Mary’s been right in the middle of it and so have the kids. It’s been a family thing for much of it,” he said.
On March 11, Charlie will be honored with Maumee’s Outstanding Citizen of the Year award, which his father Charlie Sr. and his brother Richard also received.
“It humbles me because not one single thing I could have done was done alone – it’s the entire community that gets behind each problem,” he said.
The list of civic and community groups Charlie is connected with is lengthy. He is a member of the Maumee Rotary, the Maumee Chamber of Commerce and Habitat For Humanity.
He is the co-founder of the Maumee Holiday Light Parade and a volunteer tutor at Queen of Apostles School, where he also spearheads several building improvement projects.
He is a member of the Monclova Township police safety commission, former commissioner of the Maumee municipal planning commission and former member of the Maumee administrative board.
Charlie is an active volunteer at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Maumee, where he has co-chaired several parish festivals and helped raise thousands of dollars as a member of the reverse raffle committee. He is also a member of the campus improvement campaign and the property and finance committees.
He serves on the board for the Lucas County chapter of the American Cancer Society and is co-chairman for the Maumee Relay For Life, which raised over $200,000 locally for cancer research.
He helped raise funds and was a member of the committee to design the Maumee Performing Arts Center at Maumee High School, a $4.1 million project. He also chaired a memorial fund honoring his high school choir director, John Swartz.
In 2004 he chaired a program to save Maumee Little League, which raised $50,000 in less than three months.
“When I was growing up there were many adults that I admired who made sure we had baseball and play grounds and band programs. Now it’s up to us to make sure the kids in this community have the things we had,” Charlie said.
A sense of commitment to the community was instilled early on by his parents, Mary said.
“He has a wonderful mentor system within the community, starting with his parents,” Mary said.
“His dad was chief of fire prevention in Maumee and he did a lot for the church and for the community and his mother was the first female Rotarian. His brother and sister are also involved in Rotary, so helping others is the climate in his family and the climate in Maumee,” she said.
“Charlie is not unique. It’s just that he’s following a really nice footprint of other people,” she added.
Mary believes Charlie is the type who, when presented with a problem, will roll up his shirt sleeves to figure out a solution.
“He loves to help people and he doesn’t get involved just to get on a committee. He does something,” she said.
While Charlie spends much of his free time volunteering, his employer of 37 years, The Andersons, where he serves as manager in the plant nutrient group, has also been supportive of his work. The company mission statement is clearly focused on serving the community and each other first, Charlie noted.
“It’s an amazing statement. The company believes it,” Charlie said.
The Andersons chairman Dick Anderson wrote that he was delighted to support Charlie’s nomination as Citizen of the Year.
“His dedication to service to others in every phase of his life is truly compelling. He makes a positive impact wherever he focuses his attention,” Anderson wrote.
Andy and Angela Carr, now 30 and 26 respectively, say they also carry a sense of service to the community because of their father’s example.
“Still to this day, whatever I can do to help him I do,” said Angela, who is also impressed with the many friends and acquaintances that have come to know and rely on her father.
“I think it’s so cool that throughout all of his volunteering he has made so many good friends and has done so much networking that people call him for recommendations for something as small as finding a mechanic to a job recommendation. People think highly of him for all of the good things he has done for everybody else and I’m just proud of him for that,” she said.
Andy, who lives in New York City with his wife Lindsey, says he now realizes how important it is to be involved in a community.
“When I look at what my dad does it means a lot more than giving money – he gives his time,” he said.
“The older I get the more I appreciate what he does and I hope I can give my time and be as unselfish as he is some day,” he said.
Charlie remains optimistic and said that now more than ever is the time to get involved and make a difference.
“It makes you feel good to know that you’ve helped others – it’s just a good feeling,” Charlie said.

Joe Ankenbrandt Honored For 50 Years Of Service To Maumee
BY NANCY GAGNET — MIRROR REPORTER
Even now, Joe Ankenbrandt receives an occasional late-night phone call requesting help to resolve a domestic conflict, usually between a teenager and parent.
“He has confidence and always seems to know the right thing to say,” said Dorothy, his wife of 54 years.
Known for addressing those he encounters as “kid” and referring to his wife as “Ma,” Joe Ankenbrandt, a retired Maumee police officer and former deputy bailiff for the Maumee Municipal Court, was recognized February 26 for 50 years of service to Maumee.
Maumee Municipal Court Judge Gary Byers said he looked forward to the nights he worked with Anken-brandt.
“Not only was it entertaining but also inspiring,” Byers said. “In this community, it’s not enough to live here. You have a dedication to service in the truest sense, and that’s what makes our home what it is.”
Ankenbrandt joined the Maumee Police Division in June 1955, serving as the first and only juvenile officer.
“He loved his job, he loved the city, and he loved the police department,” said retired officer Bob Boggs, who served with Anken-brandt on the department for 30 years.
Fully dedicated to his profession, Ankenbrandt said he was never late for work and used only four sick days.
“I always enjoyed working,” he said.
Maumee Mayor Tim Wagener presented Anken-brandt with an official city of Maumee flag and medallion, and he received a proclamation and Lifetime Achieve-ment Award.
Maumee Police Chief Bob Zink thanked him for his dedication to the community and police division.
“Joe taught myself and a couple of other officers all kinds of great stuff,” he said.
Ankenbrandt retired from the department in June 1985, and according to his wife Dorothy, he helped resolve many disputes involving teens during his years of service.
“Kids always felt free to call him. He had a confidence. He just always knew the right thing to do,” she said.
Far from boring, twice he dodged being shot while on duty, and he once came to the aid of Hollywood actor Burt Reynolds, who needed directions while driving down River Road in Maumee.
“I had a lot of fun,” he said.
Ankenbrandt served as deputy bailiff in the Maumee Municipal Court from August 1985 to November 2009 and had a simple philosophy in the way he approached those in the courtroom.
“How you treat people is how they will treat you,” he said.
His son Gary said he always showed deep commitment to serving the city.
“He’s a great father and he’s always been dedicated to the city and to the citizens of Maumee,” Gary said.
The Ankenbrandts raised four children and have seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
He also spent 12 years as a volunteer at St. Luke’s Hospital.
At the event honoring his 50 years of service, Ankenbrandt continued to praise the two departments he has grown to love.
“The police division is fabulous. We’ve got great people working here, and we’ve got the best judge in the country,” he said.