First Lady Maureen Braun speaks in Sheridan

Joined by OCRA Director Fred Glynn at Sheridan Main Street event

Sheridan Main Street Inc. welcomed distinguished guests Fred Glynn, Executive Director of the Indiana Office for Community and Rural Affirs, and First Lady of Indiana Maureen Braun to a dinner Wednesday evening as the group celebrated its recent accreditation and other milestones.

Hosted by Sheridan Main Street President Cindy Keever and the organization’s Promotions Chair Heidi Kienholz, the dinner at the Adams Township Community Center on 296th Street was attended by Sheridan business owners, town officials, and community members.

Glynn, who was recently appointed to his current post by Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith, is an Indiana-based entrepreneur with over 20 years of experience in business and finance. He previously served as a Hamilton County Councilman. He spoke briefly about the role of Main Street organizations like Sheridan’s and how they work with the Office for Community and Rural Affairs to strengthen communities.

The First Lady, in her remarks, praised the efforts in Sheridan to strengthen Main Street and its local businesses and shared her personal story of similar work with her own business and Main Street organization in her hometown of Jasper.

In 1978, Braun opened her own store, Finishing Touches, a home decor and gift store which continues to operate today.

She went on to help establish Heart of Jasper, a non-profit modeled after Main Street America’s national organization. She said she is active in promoting Jasper’s downtown, believing a city’s downtown is the heart of any community. The Jasper group has gone on to improve building façades, help create public art, and increase retail occupancy in the newly renovated downtown. Braun said she also wants to help encourage women entrepreneurs.

Sheridan Main Street Inc. achieved accreditation status in March, a milestone that Kienholz said helps the group increase funding and grant capabilities to spur further improvements in Sheridan’s downtown corridor. That work is ongoing, Kienholz explained in the evening’s closing remarks.

In recent years, Sheridan Main Street has helped administer a privately funded façade improvement matching grant in partnership with United Animal Health, as well as a publicly funded matching grant with Sheridan’s Redevelopment Commission. To date that work has seen $204,850 in improvements to buildings on Main Street with another $226,508 in improvements expected by the end of 2025.