Meet The 2012 Milford Citizens of the Year

This Milford couple spends countless hours of their time to improve their surrounding community.

Paul and Joan Dargie were named the Milford Citizens of the Year at the 2012 Milford Pumpkin Festival earlier this month. They have lived in Milford for 21 years and have spent these many years dedicating themselves to local causes.

Joan Dargie is the founder and co-owner of Consigning for Good, which takes in consigned items that can be sold to benefit worthwhile charities. She has also been the school district clerk for almost nine years. Her volunteer work includes many years on the Milford Recreation Commission, vice president of the Milford High School Band Boosters, NHDI coach, co-fundraising chair of Dollars for Scholars and other local organizations and programs.

Paul Dargie has been on the Milford School Board for 10 years, advancement chairman of Boy Scout Troop 407, secretary of the Lions Club and joins his wife in helping out in many more community efforts.

The committed couple were humbled to be awarded this year, which was given by the Milford Improvement Team.

“It was a huge honor,” said Paul. “We were not expecting it and were surprised that we both were named Milford Citizen of the Year.”

The Dargies have three children, and they said that the biggest drive for them is creating a positive environment for not just their kids, but others as well. They originally got involved in the Milford community when they joined an effort to bring kindergarten into the town.

This later became a reality, but the Dargies were nowhere near finished.

“It is important to have an opinion and pay attention to what is going on, and try and get involved,” said Joan.

“We just do it because we like it,” added Paul. “If someone needs help with something, they call me and I go.”

When asked what they were most proud of over the years, Joan said that running Consigning For Good for the past three years has been a major accomplishment. Her store has 70 charities signed up that benefit from the consignment sales.

Paul said he is most proud of being a part of a school board that has evolved over the years and risen above the level of infighting that used to plague it. Working together they have been able to guide the projects such as the building of Heron Pond Elementary, addition to Jacques Memorial Elementary School and adding a track field to town.

The Dargies said that they love living in Milford because of its friendly, rural character, but is still active and near many popular destinations. They added that the Milford School District also affords many opportunities for students and is filled with teachers that are flexible and care for the students.

While honor of Citizens of the Year was given to them this month, they insisted that there are plenty of others who deserve the honor.

“There are over a hundred people in town who would be viable candidates,” said Paul. “Everybody donates their time.”

All of the volunteers on the local committees, boards, nonprofits, and other groups deserve recognition for the many hours they put in, according to the Dargies. These are the people that make so many great things happen in town.

“A lot of people forget that the people who run these things are all volunteers,” said Joan. “They spend a lot of their time for us.”

The Dargies are nowhere near done serving the community and are looking to do even more to ensure a bright future for Milford. Paul serves on the Capital Improvement Team and is looking forward to improving town buildings and utilizing new land for community resources, such as playing fields. Joan said she wants to continue to see her consignment store grow and work toward enhancing senior transportation services in the area.