Chamber honors Fort Mill volunteers, students, educators and support staff

Lisa McCarley, one of the newest members of the Fort Mill Town Council, has been named the 2015 Citizen of the Year by the Fort Mill Area Council and York County Regional Chamber.

McCarley was honored along with other residents at the 2015 Education and Volunteer Awards event April 27.

“Lisa is creative, resourceful and dedicated to serving the Fort Mill community,” Fort Mill Mayor Danny Funderburk said.

A Fort Mill native and graduate of Fort Mill High School, McCarley and her husband Bill McCarley have two children. Her son attends Wingate University and her daughter is a second-grader at Doby’s Bridge Elementary.

She helped form the Fort Mill School District Athletic Board and produces the Dancing with the Stars – Fort Mill annual fundraiser for middle school sports. She was also the co-chairwoman of the 2013 School Bond Referendum Committee.

“I couldn’t do what I do without all the people around me,” she said.

McCarley said she got involved because she saw a need.

“We can all make a difference,” she said. “My faith pushes me to give back and make a better world.”

McCarley said she was honored and surprised by the award.

“We live in a community where a lot of people give back on a daily basis,” she said.

More honorees

Nation Ford High School graduate Emily Kluttz was named the 2015 Young Citizen of the Year. Kluttz, 19, has participated in Future Business Leaders of America, was involved with the drama department technical crew at Nation Ford and was the co-captain of the swim team.

Kluttz received the Congressional Silver Medal from U.S. Rep. Mick Mulvaney in 2013 and attends Clemson University, where she studies general engineering with a minor in business. She is also active in Women in Engineering.

Kluttz “is a positive, self-motivating lady whose demeanor is contagious to everyone that comes in contact with her,” said Harvey Hawkins, manager of South State Bank’s Fort Mill branch, who presented the award.

A former volunteer with Carolinas Medical Center’s youth volunteer program, Kluttz she said she originally wanted to go into health care, but after a teacher encouraged her to pursue Future Business Leaders of America, she found her true passion. She said her parents have always encouraged her to give back to the community.

“I don’t do it for the recognition, I do it just because I like it,” Kluttz said.

The 2015 Murray B. White Preservationist of the Year award went to longtime Tega Cay resident Jeff Updike, who has worked with the Nation Ford Land Trust for 13 years, helping to protect more than 9,000 acres of land in the York County area.

“We are a vehicle to help prevent some of the growth,” he said.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to longtime Fort Mill resident Lunsford McFadden, who worked for the Springs textile operation. He served on Fort Mill Town Council from 1959 to 1968 and is a lifetime member of both the Lions Club and York County Regional Chamber of Commerce.

“He is an icon in Fort Mill,” S.C. Rep. Raye Felder said.

“He is very much loved and admired in the Fort Mill community and one of the reasons Fort Mill is the community it is today.”

McFadden’s son accepted the award on his behalf.

This story was originally published May 5, 2015 at 8:08 PM with the headline "Chamber honors Fort Mill volunteers, students, educators and support staff."