A Sense of Centerville and Washington Township

Berry was a Washington Township Trustee from 2008 through 2023. A real-estate professional, Berry used that training in his role as a member of the zoning commission. Berry, also represented Washington Township serving on the board at Centerville-Washington History for over a decade. Before retiring, he was the teacher coordinator of Kettering Fairmont High School’s vocational program. He has been...

Megan Sparks has been a school board member for Centerville City Schools since January 2018. She has a master’s degree in education and a bachelor’s degree in human ecology from the Ohio State University. As a second-generation Elk and a mother to 5 children, Megan has learned to work hard and stand up for her values and beliefs. On the board, she serves as the Legislative Liaison. She advocates f...

Steve is in his 34th year of teaching in the Centerville City Schools. For the last 11 years, he has been a 4th grade teacher at Stingley but before that, he served as the director of the Grant Nature Center. Besides being parents to four children, Steve and his wife Nancy have been foster parents to 45 others over the past ten years. Spending time outside has always been important to Steve and hi...

Ed Ross is a retired businessman and is the current president of Centerville-Washington History. He has served as the Chairman of the Centerville Board of Architectural Review and is the current owner of the historic Ida Weller estate. 

Liz Fultz is the Director of the Washington-Centerville Public Library. She began her career at the library in 1996 in the Reference Department and held various roles before becoming the Director in 2019. Liz has a Master of Library Science degree from the University of Kentucky and a Bachelor of Business degree from Morehead State University. She is a member of the Centerville Noon Optimists and...

David Warren McDaniel was born December 7, 1938, in Portland, Indiana, a small Midwestern community. He helped with chores in his family’s grocery store and was interested in biology and sports. Dave played football in college where he chose teaching as his profession. After he got married he moved to the area and met Hadley Watts, superintendent of Centerville City Schools. He began as one of the...

Mark grew up in Wooster, Ohio and came to Dayton to attend Wright State University to study Theatre Directing and Management. This led to employment in 1996 to provide programming to the newly renovated Washington Township Town Hall Theatre. In 2016, Mark became the recreation director for the Township, where he oversees Town Hall Theatre along with a wide variety of activities, programs and facil...

Anna Weller is a recent graduate of Centerville High School and also the 2023 scholarship winner for Centerville-Washington History. While in high school, Anna participated in National Honor Society, Elk Connectors, varsity soccer, Lunch Buddies and the Swim and dive team. Anna is attending The University of Dayton in the fall and majoring in Education.  

Joellen Ulliman has been the Curator for Centerville-Washington History for over 6 years. Prior to that, she was a language arts teacher for 23 years in Waynesville. Joellen has lived in Centerville for over 25 years. She loves spending time with her husband, two grown children, and three grandchildren. In her free time, Joellen loves to hike, read and stay fit.

Kristen Marks is the Executive Director for the Centerville-Washington Park District. She has been with CWPD since 2002 where she began as the Park’s naturalist. In addition, she is the former president of the Ohio Park and Recreation Association and a member of the Centerville Noon Optimist Club. Founded in 1959 as the Washington Township Park District, the Centerville-Washington Park District no...

Wayne Markworth was Director of Bands at Centerville High School for 35 years. He developed the marching band, known nationally as "The Centerville Jazz Band", into a unique and entertaining ensemble that performed an all-jazz format on the field. In 1992 they were the Grand National Champions. Wayne is an active clinician, adjudicator, arranger and trumpet performer and president of the...

Vickie was Executive Director of Centerville-Washington History for over 14 years. She began as a volunteer and joined the staff as a museum assistant and later becoming Walton House Site Manager and administrative coordinator. To help promote local history, Vickie built collaborations within the community.  In 2016 Vickie guided a rebranding of the organization by changing the name from Centervil...

Rajeev Goel is a local Technology entrepreneur who co-founded AccuFit Solutions, Inc. Through his business he helps to provide software applications and tools to help metal manufacturers manage their raw material more effectively. He has been involved in the community through Science Olympiad and more recently, The Centerville Education Foundation.  Rajeev is a Centerville High School graduate and...

Dr David Meyer was raised in a large family on a farm in Northern Ohio. A Vietnam War-Era Air Force veteran, he is an accomplished public servant who has greatly impacted the Dayton area as a Professional Engineer. Dave, along with his wife Kathleen, became a member of Centerville-Washington History in 2015, and he joined the Board of Trustees in 2017. He has taught at The Ohio State University, T...

Brian was the co-founder and first executive director of St. Leonard Center and subsequently President of Mercy Senior Health and Housing Services. He is a fourth generation Daytonian and married to wife, Joyce for 50 years. Brian has a PhD from OSU and is an author, photographer and runner. Today Brian shares the history of St Leonard’s. 

Terry Obrien grew up in Centerville, Ohio. He is a local entrepreneur who owns Trilevel Records and Video. Terry helps local Dayton artists write and produce music. Through collaborations with the City of Centerville and Centerville-Washington History, he has produced award-winning projects. He helps to promote local history through his Facebook page, Centerville, Ohio Nostalgia. His recent interv...

Sam, a senior at Centerville High School is the current Student Council President. He is a three-time state qualifier in debate, attending Northwestern University in the fall majoring in political science. In addition, Sam is president of the STAGE club, the theatre club for CHS as well as a regular on the stage. He sings for FORTE, Centerville’s premier Accapella group. As an Elk connector, he he...

Bill and Faye Elam founded bills donuts in 1960 but the original shop was in downtown Dayton. In the 1970s there were several locations throughout the Dayton area with stores in Vandalia, Wilmington, Kettering, and Huber Heights. In Centerville, the original shop location was closer to the intersection of Franklin and Main but the parking was limited, necessitating a move to the current location a...

Richard Diaz works as a Community Coordinator at Miami Valley Communications Council (MVCC), Founded in 1975, MVCC is a municipal communications and technology organization representing eight communities in the area including Centerville. MVCC was formed to monitor, regulate and administer common cable television franchise agreements, manage the operation of the council’s cable access television c...

Bill Gaul moved to Centerville in middle school, attending Tower Heights Middle school. He graduated from Centerville High School during a time of growth and change. Bill joined the Washington Township Fire department as a volunteer firefighter in May 1979. After nearly 40 years of service to the department, including 11 years as chief, Bill retired in 2018. Retirement is still busy for Bill, who...

Laura is the Centerville-Washington History 2022 scholarship winner. This extraordinary young lady has demonstrated her athletic talents and leadership abilities as Varsity Captain of the Centerville High School Swim Team, President of the National Honor Society, and Unit Representative of the East Unit Assembly. Her club memberships include Students Against Destructive Decisions, Key Club and Fre...

Janet Watkins Black is a 6th-generation Washington Township resident. She grew up with her parents and grandparents on a 180-acre farm near Sheehan and Nutt Road. Janet taught 3rd grade for the Centerville School district and then worked at St Leonard Senior Living Community as an activity coordinator. She has been active in the community through Centerville-Washington History, Centerville Women’s...

Seventeen-year-old Charlotte shares her experience living through the pandemic, growing up in Centerville, and her memories of Centerville-Washington History's Summer Youth Programs. This episode also discusses the Centerville High School Band and favorite places and programs in the Centerville and Washington Township area. 

In this episode, Martha tells about her interest in the early stone buildings of Centerville and the process of discovering the stories that we read about in her book, "A Sense of Place." She talks about learning how to do research and how her curiosity helped her to do hard things.  Her passion for the buildings helped to preserve them for future generations to enjoy and learn about his...

The Turtons graduated from Centerville High School in 1953 and raised their family on a little plot of land near Rooks Road. They have had three generations of Centerville High School graduates in their family.  In this episode, Roy and Sue Turton share stories about many people and places that have shaped this area.