Kyle is the Executive Director of the Jay Community Center. Prior to joining JCC in January of 2013, Kyle worked full time with a local family business, Cook's Nursery & Trim. His educational background includes being a 2002 graduate of Jay County High School and receiving a BS from the nationally ranked Ball State Entrepreneurship Program in 2006. Civically, Kyle was a past member of the board of directors in both the Portland and Jay County Chamber of Commerce and is currently active with the Portland Revolving Loan Committee, 20/20 Implementation Committee, and the Jay County Tourism Commission.
Mitch is the Director of Operations at the Jay Community Center. Mitch is married to his wife Angie, and they have 4 children. He was a 2002 graduate of Jay County High School. He then attended Ancilla College from 2003-2004, before graduating from Manchester College with a bachelor’s degree in Physical Education in 2007. While attending Manchester, he was a 3 sport athlete (Baseball, Basketball, and Track & Field.) After graduating, he played professional baseball for the Kalamazoo Kings of the Frontier League. After being released from Kalamazoo, he then became the General Manager of two Gold’s Gym’s. One in Merrillville, Indiana and the other New Buffalo, Michigan, until 2010 when he got the unique opportunity to play professional baseball in Italy from 2010-2012.
Emily Tarter- Director of Development
Emily Tarter grew up in Dunkirk, but has lived most of her adult life in Portland. Before coming to the Jay Community Center, Emily had 7 years of experience in Child Care. She opened her own Child Care Facility in 2014. After closing her daycare, Emily was eager to find a new career. She started at the Jay Community Center in April of 2016 as the Senior Outreach Coordinator. While working with Senior Programming, Emily received her certification in SilverSneakers and started teaching fitness classes. Emily is a 2008 Jay County High School graduate. She is currently pursuing her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration at Indiana Wesleyan University. In her down time, Emily enjoys spending time with her husband Cody and their two young children.
Eme Miller started with the Jay Community Center in September 2016 as the Senior Outreach Coordinator, Tabata instructor, and a personal trainer. Eme Miller has lived in Jay County most of her life. She graduated from Jay County High School in 2012 and went on to receive her Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Science from Defiance College in 2016. Eme holds all of the distance records in track at Defiance College. She also received the best female athlete throughout her time in college. She is a Personal Trainer, HITT Fitness Class Instructor, SilverSneaker Certified, and she is proud to be the Fitness Center Coordinator at the Jay Community Center.