Community Liaisons
Community Liaisons (CL) are strategically located throughout the state to assist communities in accomplishing the goals set forth by the local government. CL's proactively work to locate funding and other resources for community and economic development projects as well as facilitate the meeting of local officials, state, and federal agencies and other entities and provide information and access to the necessary resources. CL's also assist communities in meeting their community and economic development goals by providing technical assistance on all OCRA programs.
Northwest
Gerry White: 317-694-8372, gewhite@ocra.in.gov
Benton, Cass, Carroll, Clinton, Fulton, Jasper, Lake, Porter, La Porte, Marshall, Newton, Pulaski, Starke, St. Joseph, Tippecanoe, White, Warren counties.
Gerry joined OCRA in December 2006. During his time with the agency, he has represented the Northwest region. Before working at OCRA, Gerry spent 16 years in the administration at Purdue University, three years teaching in HS and three years in financial planning. The diversity of people, geography and opportunity in Indiana should be celebrated, encouraged, strengthened and experienced. Every day working with communities brings unique challenges making each day different.
“I really appreciate the diversity of the people and communities that I work with, which include the highly urbanized, as well as extremely isolated communities. This means that no two days are alike,” said White.
He holds a B.A. in Political Science/U.S. History/ Social Studies Education, a M.S. in Social Studies Education and is a dissertation shy of a Ph.D. in Educational Technology. Gerry lives in West Lafayette, with his wife Barbara. His extended family stretches across the state.
Northeast
Lindsey Hammond: 317-741-2264,lhammond@ocra.in.gov
Adams, Allen, Blackford, DeKalb, Elkhart, Huntington, Jay, Kosciusko, Lagrange, Miami, Noble, Steuben, Wabash, Wells, Whitley counties.
East Central
Teresa Ayers: 317-605-5816, teayers@ocra.in.gov
Delaware, Fayette, Franklin, Grant, Hamilton, Hancock, Henry, Howard, Madison, Marion (Lawrence, Washington, Warren Townships), Randolph, Rush, Shelby, Tipton, Union, Wayne counties.
Southeast
Bartholomew, Brown, Clark, Dearborn, Decatur, Floyd, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Jennings, Ohio, Ripley, Switzerland, Scott, Washington counties.
Vacant
Southwest
Johnny Kincaid: 317-760-5097, jkincaid1@ocra.in.gov
Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Gibson, Greene, Knox, Lawrence, Martin, Orange, Perry, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh, Warrick counties.
Many people in Southwest Indiana know the name and voice of Johnny Kincaid from the 35 years he spent in the area as a morning radio personality, but his experience is varied. He was a regional director for Smokefree Indiana, administered grants through the University of Evansville and tapped by Vincennes University to teach job skills to incarcerated individuals at Branchville Correctional Facility.
"I was impacted at an early age by the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, 'To succeed is to leave the world a better place...' So I do what I can to leave the world a better place. I'm excited by the opportunity that I have now to do exactly that, one community at a time."
Johnny loves to travel and has visited 48 of the 50 states. He lives in Evansville with his wife, Jill.
West Central
Sarah Froderman: 317-504-6965, sfroderman@ocra.in.gov
Boone, Clay, Fountain, Hendricks, Johnson, Marion (Center, Decatur, Franklin, Perry, Pike, Wayne Townships) Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Owen, Parke, Putnam, Sullivan, Vermillion, Vigo counties.
Sarah Froderman serves as the West Central community liaison for OCRA. She earned her bachelor’s degree at Purdue University and her master’s degree at Indiana State University.
Previously, Sarah was the associate director of financial aid at ISU, where she also taught. She currently volunteers with the Clay County Youth Food Delivery Program, College Goal Sunday, Festival of Trees, Habitat for Humanity, the Brazil Lions Club and Junior Achievement.
“My passion is positively impacting those around me and helping others achieve their unique version of success. By being in this role, I am able to do just that, as well as help others navigate ways to empower their own communities.”
Sarah lives on her farm in Clay County and loves to travel and visit National Parks.
Community Affairs Director
Dina Ferchmin : 317-460-6177, dferchmin@ocra.in.gov
Dina brings a wealth of leadership experience spanning the public, private and nonprofit sectors to her role as Community Affairs Director. A decorated U.S. Army veteran and West Point graduate, Dina has built a career dedicated to fostering meaningful relationships, driving community development and improving organizational processes.
Her extensive background includes executive leadership roles in health care, nonprofit management and business development, where she successfully expanded outreach efforts, secured funding and implemented process improvements. As a Six Sigma Black Belt, Dina has a keen ability to enhance efficiency and maximize impact. She's also played a pivotal role bringing communities to government agencies, donors and key stakeholders.
Passionate about rural, community development, Dina is committed to advancing OCRA’s mission by strengthening local partnerships, supporting economic growth initiatives and advocating for the needs of Indiana’s rural communities.