The Hat "Wynners" for Matt Wynn

There are winners and then there are "Wynners". 

You could become a big "Wynner" with Your Hometown Radio Station, Bargains and Buyouts, Harrison Building and Loan, ConexTalk and the Grand Ole Opry!

Listeners can now nominate anyone to win The Hat. It can be a teacher, veteran, mom, dad, coach, volunteer, emergency personnel, etc. Nominate anyone who is exceptional at what they do and stays when the going gets tough. 

The person who nominates another individual will be entered to win a trip to Nashville. Plus, the person they nominate will be available to win a trip to Nashville once the voting session begins. 

The contest will run September 12 - October 29. We will announce a qualifier each Thursday. Qualifiers will receive a pair of tickets to the Grand Ole Opry and some Matt Wynn swag. 

The grand prize winners will receive a trip to Nashville ($500 in hotel and travel) a pair of tickets to the Grand Ole Opry, Matt Wynn swag, and some other items.

Enter the contest by nominating a person below. Please note that we need your name and the name of the person you are nominating. 

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Nomination from Sarah Smith

I am nominating Mr. Dave Caldwell, the principal of Saint Lawrence School. This is his second year as principal, and he has done an amazing job in the role. He genuinely cares for each and every student and family in the school and is always communicating not only about the school and activities, but how we can partner in raising our students to be saints, which is the school’s mission. You can tell that he is invested in every single student and takes the time to get to know them. I am so proud to have my son at a school with such strong, caring, and invested leadership.

 

Nomination from Donna Morgan

Mary Bailey is the Director of Community Partnerships for South Dearborn Community Schools. She has gone above and beyond for the students .She established the Knights Closet, a pantry for students with food and clothing insecurities. Mary also began a preschool program at Aurora and Dillsboro Elementary schools. She works with the Dearborn County Recycle Center on the costume swap and Christmas tree drive. The list is endless of the things Mary does for the students. She is a huge asset to the students at South Dearborn.

 

Nomination from Bianca Abbott

I’m nominating Noah Walcott, he does nothing but work for the things he has. If he’s not working Tuesday-Sunday at Wendy’s he’s out trying to start a lawn care business with his friend. He’s always there when you need him and always willing to lend a helping hand if he can.

 

Nomination from Gena Allen

Jack "Derek" Stevens. Derek is not only a father of two and a husband, but he also works full time as a Detective/Sgt at the Dearborn County Sheriff's Office and will be assisting the FBI as a task force officer in the near future. He is also on the 911 and EMS Alliance Boards, the Assistant Chief at the Moores Hill Fire Dept, EMT for the Moores Hill Life squad, Internet Crimes against Children Investigator, CPR, Stop the Bleed, and Field Sobriety Instructor and teaches internet safety to students in all three school districts in Dearborn County. Derek also serves on the Sparta Township Board and coaches his daughter's travel softball team.

 

Nomination from William Halbig

I am honored to nominate Assistant Chief Pamela Taylor for “The Hat” Award.

Pam began her law enforcement career with the Indiana University Police Department in Bloomington, Indiana, after completing her certification through the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in August 1991. With more than 30 years of dedicated service in law enforcement, Pam has built a career defined not only by professionalism and knowledge, but by compassion, integrity, loyalty, and an unwavering commitment to doing what is right. She plans to retire in early 2027, making this recognition especially meaningful as she approaches the conclusion of an extraordinary career.

Throughout her more than three decades in law enforcement, Pam has never received disciplinary action from her supervisors. Instead, her career has been marked by recognition and accolades for a job well done. Those who have had the opportunity to work alongside Pam know that she is someone who can always be counted on. She approaches people with kindness and patience and is often the first person to step forward when a difficult or unpopular task needs to be done.

Pam possesses an exceptional knowledge of the law, but what truly sets her apart is her ability to combine that knowledge with common sense and an understanding of the challenges people face in everyday life. She understands that effective law enforcement is not simply about enforcing laws—it is also about treating people with dignity, listening to them, and finding the right solution to difficult situations. That combination makes Pam a unique and invaluable public servant.

Pam’s commitment to serving her community extends well beyond her regular duties. For many years, she has devoted countless hours to helping less fortunate families in our community during the holiday season through her involvement with the FOP Cops N Kids, also known as Shop with a Cop. This program provides clothing, gifts, and memorable experiences to nearly 300 children throughout Ohio and Dearborn Counties. Pam’s involvement reflects the kind of officer she has always been: someone who recognizes that serving the community means making a difference in people’s lives, both on and off duty.

She also remains actively involved in community outreach events sponsored by the Greendale Police Department. Whether she is working directly with residents, helping organize an event, or simply lending a hand where it is needed, Pam consistently demonstrates that her commitment to public service extends far beyond her badge.

Perhaps one of Pam’s most admirable qualities is her humility. She has never sought recognition or praise for the things she does. In fact, she often seems more comfortable giving credit to others than receiving it herself. Pam consistently looks for the right way to solve a problem, rather than the easy way. That principle has guided her throughout her career and is a true reflection of the character she brings to the law enforcement profession.

Pam Taylor’s more than 30 years of service represent a remarkable commitment to her profession, her fellow officers, and the communities she serves. Her knowledge, compassion, dependability, humility, and dedication have made a lasting difference in the lives of countless people.

For these reasons, I respectfully and wholeheartedly nominate Assistant Chief Pamela Taylor for “The Hat” Award. I can think of few people who better represent the values of service, character, and dedication that this award is intended to recognize.

 

Nomination from Gena Slone

Terry Slone.

My husband wears many hats. He wears a hat of a job that has utilized most of his life, in construction building anything from utilities underground that you can’t see to the roads you drive on everyday. Even the temporary roads that get the power companies to the power lines & back safely to keep your lights on. He also has the hat of a small cattle farmer. It maybe small but it means something to the people he supplies food for. He wears the hat of a brother, a father an amazing grandfather & lucky for me a husband. He’s the hardest worker I know. With his dirty hands, cow poop or mud on his boots, stains & holes in his jeans a safety vest & a hard hat. But the hat that he wears, the best is the hat of strength & love because he shows the people around him that hat every single day. He’s rough and tough & his words aren’t always the easiest to hear. But for the ones that he loves that hat means the most to us. He shows that to us in every early mornings & late night in temperatures that’ll make your breath freeze, the heat nothing on you is dry as soon as you walk out the door. The hat he wears in a ditch digging along side the men that call him boss, the hard work he has shown us all teaching us we should give our 110% everyday of our lives. In these hats he has shown & continues to show not only his children & grand children the hard life values it takes to wear all these hats. But at the same time the tenderness in the man that wears a hat that pats his grandbabies backs and tenderly hold my hand.

Nomination from Emily Orcutt

If I could give my dad one thing in return for everything he has given to our family and our community, it would be the opportunity to step away from work, responsibility, and taking care of everyone else, and simply enjoy something for himself.

My dad has spent his entire life serving others\. For more than 20 years, he volunteered as a firefighter in our community, standing alongside my mother, who served with the auxiliary team. While many people were home celebrating birthdays, holidays, and family milestones, my dad was often somewhere else, answering a call and protecting the people in our town.

At the same time, he worked at our local power plant, American Electric Power, providing for our family and helping provide power to the very community he was serving. He worked hard, and he worked a lot. As a kid, I didn’t always understand why he couldn’t be at every birthday or holiday. As an adult, I understand it differently. He wasn’t missing those moments because he didn’t want to be there. He was working, serving, and doing everything he could to take care of the people he loved.

When the power plant eventually closed, my dad didn’t slow down. He started his own tree-cutting business, following a family tradition passed down from his father, who also owned a tree-cutting business. Today, my little brother works alongside him when he can, carrying that tradition into another generation. My dad also owns a blacktop business, and I suppose that’s where we kids got our work ethic. Somehow, you can always count on one, or all, of us to be working multiple jobs. 😅

But what I admire most about my dad isn’t how hard he works. It’s the kind of man all that hard work made him.

My dad taught us that you work hard, you show up, you keep your word, and you treat people with kindness. He taught us to always try to be the best versions of ourselves, but never at the expense of someone else. He is the kind of person who would give you the shirt off his back without thinking twice.

One of the things I will always remember from growing up is something that might seem small, but says everything about who my dad is. If he had food, the people around him better have food too. If he stopped somewhere for lunch and noticed an employee didn’t have anything to eat, he would buy them something. He never needed recognition for it. To him, that’s just what you do.

My dad has never known a stranger. He has spent decades helping people, whether that meant answering a fire call in the middle of the night, working long hours to keep our family provided for, cutting down a dangerous tree, paving someone’s driveway, helping an employee who needed a meal, or simply being the person someone could count on.

Recently, my dad has faced some serious health challenges and has been doing his best to recover. For someone who has spent his entire life being strong for everyone else, watching him have to slow down has been difficult. It has also made me realize just how much he has given of himself over the years.

That’s why I want to nominate him.

My dad has spent his life giving back to his family, his friends, his employees, and his community. He has spent decades working, serving, sacrificing, and showing up for other people. He taught his children that kindness matters, that hard work matters, and that if you have enough to share, you share it.

Now, I would love nothing more than to see someone give a little of that kindness back to him.

He deserves a trip where he doesn’t have to be the firefighter, the business owner, the boss, the provider, or the person everyone calls when they need something. He deserves to sit back, breathe, laugh, make memories, and enjoy being taken care of for once.

My dad has spent a lifetime making sure the people around him had what they needed. I can’t think of anyone more deserving of having someone make sure he has what he needs, too.

If I could give him this trip, it wouldn’t just be a vacation.

It would be a small thank-you for a lifetime of giving.

Nomination from Aiden Sirk

Carmen Lusk
Carmen is a special education teacher at GMS and has been the Student Council Adviser at Lawrenceburg High School for over 8 years. She is also the Executive Director of the Indiana Association of Student Councils, where she oversees an organization of student councils for across Indiana. She dedicates lots of her time to this position, without payment. She is a fabulous person and has been such a mentor and positive role model. Before coming to GMS, Carmen was the JAG Specialist at the high school. Her classroom was a place where all students felt welcome. Chances are if you are driving by the school late at night, her car is still parked in the parking lot. She organizes most school events. She organizes the Homecoming Parade each year and does all the work behind the scenes. There is no student she doesn’t believe in. She would do anything to help a student out and she does so quietly without expecting recognition. She always empowered her student leaders, she taught me so many lessons that I’ll never forget. She always taught us to treat others with respect and she’s never met a stranger. When she accompanied us on our trips with Student Councils and the IASC, we would sometimes get annoyed, were waiting to check into our hotel and we’d find that she’s still chatting it up with the front desk. But that’s who she is, she makes it a point to love everyone and make everyone feel important. She makes sure to recognize those around her though she often doesn’t receive any recognition herself. She also taught us to never forget where we came from and that nobody is better than anyone. Carmen is so deserving of this recognition and I’m so proud to nominate her for this.

 

Nomination from Shana Lane

I would like to nominate my husband, Jeffery Allen Lane, for going above and beyond to serve his community.

For nearly four decades, Jeffery has dedicated his life to protecting, helping, and serving others. He has been a police officer for 38 years, spending 25+ years with the City of Greendale Police Department, including 20+ years as Assistant Police Chief. After retiring from Greendale, he continued serving with the Ohio County Sheriff's Department for another two years.

For the past 27 years, Jeffery has served as the Fire Chief for the City of Aurora. During those years, he has responded to countless calls and emergencies, from what may seem like the smallest of rescues—saving kittens and puppies—to some of the most dangerous situations imaginable.

He has worked through floods and ice storms, helping people when their communities were dealing with dangerous and difficult conditions. He has put himself in harm's way to help others, including an incident where a building collapsed on he and two other firefighters. He has literally risked his own life and safety while doing what he believed was his duty to protect others.

But Jeffery's service doesn't only happen during emergencies. He has spent countless hours participating in community events and making himself available to the people he serves. He has also made fire prevention and educating children an important part of his career, teaching students throughout the South Dearborn School District about fire safety and what they can do to protect themselves and their families.

And his commitment to the community extends beyond police and fire service. Jeffery has served on the South Dearborn School Board for 12 years, continuing to dedicate his time and experience to local students, families, teachers, and the future of the community.

What makes Jeffery so deserving of this recognition is that he has never seemed to view community service as simply a job. Whether he is responding to a dangerous emergency, helping a family through a difficult situation, rescuing an animal, teaching a child about fire safety, attending a community event, or sitting in a school board meeting, he has always found a way to help. For 38 years, he has answered the call as a police officer. For 27 years, he has answered the call as Aurora's Fire Chief. For 12 years, he has served on the school board. And throughout all of those years, he has continued to give his time, knowledge, energy, and sometimes even his own safety to the people around him.

He doesn't do these things for recognition. He does them because serving others is simply who he is. I have had the privilege of watching him dedicate much of his life to this community, and I couldn't be prouder of him. From saving kittens and puppies to standing in the middle of floods and ice storms, from risking his life at emergency scenes to teaching children how to stay safe, Jeffery has spent nearly four decades showing what it truly means to serve. He has spent his life answering when his community calls. I believe it's time for his community to answer back and recognize him for everything he has given.

 

Nomination from Emma Seaver

I am nominating my Dad for being such a hard working, kind, caring, always showing up, and never backing down from anything. From coaching high school football when I was little to coaching my softball team for nearly 10 years, to now coaching my little brother in Special Olympics. As we start to coach along side each other, I can’t help but hope I can be half the coach he was, and make half the impact he did!

Our all lives our dad has sacrificed so much to simply show up for the both of us. Whether that’s working an overnight shift and meeting us at a tournament to coach all day, spending countless hours and money on traveling across the United States for me to play travel softball, missing out on important events in others lives to show up for my brother and I, or just simply being there for us when things weren’t going our way. He made sure my mom, brother, and I never went without, and would do anything in his power to make sure we were happy.

We can’t think of a better person to nominate for this, and we love him so much!!

 

Nomination from Andrea Ray

I am nominating Ken Madden. Ken volunteers his time with food, clothing, housing of homeless and other needs. The community blessing boxes he has put up are true help to many. He has earned “The Hat”

 

Nomination from Lily Hoppes

Shelby Caldwell.
She is a mother of two. Shelby is a teacher to both littles at a preschool in Bright as well as a teacher to the community. Being diagnosed with cancer, she has taught the community how to navigate hardship. She turns to the Lord, staying strong when “the going gets tough.” She is also a worship singer at The Bridge of Hope Worship Center. There has to be an extensive impact she is doing on the community… that is, helping to bring people to God. God is working through her to reach many others — online and in person.

 

OFFICIAL RULES:

The contest begins September 12, 2026 and concludes on October 29th, 2026

Contestants will nominate an individual deserving of “The Hat”. This is a person that goes above and beyond for the hat(s) they wear. Submit a photo and short story of that individual.

Each week one person who nominated a person for “The Hat” will be selected until we have six total qualifiers. Once we have sixth qualifier on October 22nd we will open voting for anyone to vote for who they want to send to Nashville. On October 29th we will announce one of our six qualifiers and one of the nominated individuals to each win the grand prize.

In order to qualify for prize payment, an eligible contestant must successfully complete the form on eaglecountryonline.com Or have been nominated on the form.

IMPORTANT: TAMPERING WITH THE INTERNET-BASED VOTING SITE IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. Evidence of any act or submission that changes the functionality of the internet-based VOTING SITE will cause a claim to be denied.

1. ELIGIBILITY: Participation is open to legal residents of Eagle Country in Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky. Contestants must be 18 years of age or older. Employees of Wagon Wheel Broadcasting, LLC WSCH and WIKI and employees of participating sponsors, or any subcontractors of the above, and immediate family members or household members of anyone so employed are not eligible to enter or win. Void where prohibited or restricted by law and subject to all federal, state and local laws and regulations. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER.

2. LIMITATIONS: All participants agree to be bound by these rules. Void where prohibited by law. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply. If unable to contact a prize winner, after a reasonable effort has been made during two (2) business days from the first notification attempt, such person may be disqualified with an alternative winner selected. Winner must be 18 years of age or older at the time of the drawing.

3. PRIZES: Weekly qualifiers will receive tickets to the Grand Ole Opry plus one item off the Matt Wynn Prize Table. The grand prize winners will receive full Matt Wynn prize package and $500.00 and is responsible for all state and federal taxes. Winner will be required to fill out a W-9 and will be issued a 1099 for $500.00 and must show valid state issued ID to claim prize. Prize is non-transferable.

4. CLAIMING OF PRIZES: Prize Winner will be notified via phone and email

5. RESERVATIONS: Each entrant by entering this sweepstakes agrees: (1) to be bound by these rules and the judge’s decisions; (2) that none of the Entities, nor any of their officers, directors, employees, agents or representatives are responsible for claims, injuries, losses or damages of any kind resulting from sweepstakes participation or the acceptance, use, misuse, possession, loss or misdirection of any prize.

6. RELEASES: Participation constitutes permission for Wagon Wheel Broadcasting, LLC, without any further obligation to the contest winner, to use winner's name, address and likeness for purposes of advertising and trade, except where prohibited by law. Winner must release Wagon Wheel Broadcasting, LLC, and their parent, subsidiary or affiliated companies, prize suppliers, advertising and promotion agencies, and any subcontractors, employees, officers, directors, agents and representatives (the "Releases") of any of the above organizations, from and against any and all claims for losses or damages sustained by said winners, arising out of participation in the contest or acceptance or use of the prize.

7. SPONSORS: Wagon Wheel Broadcasting, LLC WSCH, Bargains and Buyouts Home, ConexTalk, and Harrison Building & Loan. More sponsors could be added.

See additional rules here: