Phil and Karilyn Metcalf

This year the North Webster Mermaid Festival will be represented by two very important people, the citizens of the year. Phil and Karilyn Metcalf have been named 2015 citizens of the year. The honorary title is used to thank those in the community who have devoted their lives to making North Webster a better place, and this year’s couple has done just that.

“There are so many people in this community who do so many things,” said Karilyn. “It’s really an honor to be chosen and to take our turn, but it also gives the town a chance to honor other people during other years.”

Phil Metcalf was born and raised in North Webster and currently lives four blocks from his childhood home. Phil and his wife both attended Ball State University and after graduation they were married in 1970. The couple moved back to North Webster and have lived here ever since.

Many people will remember both Phil and Karilyn from encounters in the classroom. They both retired after teaching for 38 years. Phil can be best remembered as the CTE director at Wawasee High School and Karilyn as the music teacher at North Webster Elementary.

In retirement they both stay very active in the North Webster community and beyond.

Karilyn is president of the Dixie Sternwheeler Inc. and is on the executive board of the North Webster Chamber of Commerce. She has also served as secretary of the North Webster Park Board.

Phil is the president of the North Webster Community Public Library Board and was a board member for the Webster Lake Conservation Association. Now his main job is as the lead evaluator for AdvancEd, which evaluates international schools for accreditation overseas.

The Mermaid Festival has been a part of their lives for many years. Phil and Karilyn both remember always going as a child, back in the days when the bank still threw shiny, new pennies off the roof for the children to scramble after. The couple got involved with volunteering for the festival after moving back from college. They spent many years judging the Mermaid Festival’s talent show and parade. The parade still means a lot to the couple and members of their family, like Phil’s dad, Bill Metcalf.

“My dad was the fire chief here in North Webster for 40-some years and he always rode the fire engines in the beginning of the parade,” said Phil. “When we would judge on the judging stand we would always look for my dad and every year when the fire trucks come through and he’s not there it’s very difficult.”
The many years spent active in North Webster means that the couple has been able to participate in every aspect of the Mermaid Festival somewhere along the way. Now they spend most of their time at the Mermaid Festival judging the bands and helping out with the Dixie Boat booth and parade float.

“We certainly appreciate the honor and we will do our best to live up to it,” said Karilyn.