The Indiana Historical Society has been named WPCI’s 2019 Joan Bey History Award recipient.
The award was created in 2018 to honor Joan Bey, a WPCI member since 1952. She has served WPCI in a number of positions, including president, and for years was the keeper of the organization’s records.
“She’s a walking encyclopedia of all things WPCI,” said Elizabeth Granger, the organization’s current vice president who presented the award at an Indiana Historical Society event Nov. 4. Bey was in the audience.
For years, WPCI members have been fans of the Indiana Historical Society and all it does as “Indiana’s storyteller,” Granger said. In 2017, the society accepted, restored and catalogued WPCI’s documents and artifacts.
“It was the overwhelming choice for this year’s award,” Granger said.
WPCI also contributed funds to the IHS records and restoration department.
“The Indiana Historical Society is like our Joan – about a billion times over,” Granger told the IHS gathering. “We in WPCI marvel at the meticulous care that you have always given to Hoosier history – and continue to give to Hoosier history. The best part is that you celebrate that history. And tonight, WPCI celebrates you.”
