By Tom White
6/19/05

The late Charles Mitchell, who served for almost 50 years as an unpaid track volunteer at the Delaware, Ohio County Fair, is the 7th Joe Neville Memorial Award recipient. He was also a 10 year member of the Delaware County Agricultural Society.

A native of Delaware, Mitchell was president of Larcom-Mitchell, a company founded in 1952 to manufacture and sell harrowing and leveling equipment to race tracks around the world.

"We are very proud, very touched at this award honoring my father," said son David Mitchell. "The timing couldn't be better with the announcement coming right before Fathers day. Dad loved the race, the track, and all of the people who worked there."

Greg Coon, track consultant and starting judge since 1991 at Delaware, said of Mitchell, "His company's leveling and harrowing devices were heavy enough to cut a cushion on the track at a controlled depth, and his equipment did not dig any holes on the track surface." Greg also remembers, "You had to be very careful not to ask him to do something when he got time, because he would immediately drop whatever else he was doing to help you out. He worked at the fairgrounds from sunup until dark. I enjoyed his company for 15 years."