The Hundred Club got its start in Detroit in the 1950s, said Grabeman, a Dayton Daily News Community Gem.
“One of the businessmen found the need when a firefighter or police officer goes down, they come in and help financially with the family, whether it be pay off the mortgage of the house, pay off the education for children,” he said.
Grabeman’s own journey with the Hundred Club began a decade ago, where he rose through the ranks of the Dayton chapter and eventually became its president. The club’s signature event honors two firefighters and two police officers who went above and beyond the call of duty. It also offers scholarships to children of first responders and financial support to families of those who die in the line of duty.
That mission is now being carried out in Miami County by Grabeman, who sold his dental practice in Kettering and worked for the company that purchased it. When he eventually opened a new practice of his own in Troy, he discovered a gap there when it came to Hundred Club presence.
Reaching out to Natalie Rolfes, the then-executive director of the Miami County Foundation, he co-founded Hundred Club of Miami County in 2023. The club formed a board with support from local leaders like Upper Valley Medical Center and Atrium Medical Center President Kevin Harlan, Troy Hospital President Mike Brendel and Miami County Sheriff Dave Duchak.
“Kevin was able to procure $50,000 from the the Upper Valley Medical Center Foundation’s community benefit fund to get us started,” Grabeman said.
The club already has doled out scholarships to six area students for post-high school education.
In April, the Hundred Club of Miami County participated in Miami County fire and police awards banquet to introduce the club to the community.
The club plans to award $5,000 to one firefighter and one police officer next April with the money going toward their individual departments.
“Those are nominated by the police chiefs and the fire chiefs of Miami County,” Grabeman said. “They all come together (and) talk about some of the people (in their departments) that have gone above and beyond.”
The group focuses on the efforts of paid departments in Piqua, Troy and Tipp City, he said.
The club also has responded to tragedy. Two years ago, a Preble County sheriff’s deputy was killed.
“David Duchak contacted me and said, ‘You know, this might be something really good for us to start with,’” Grabeman said.
The fallen deputy had a young daughter, so the Hundred Club of Miami County started a fund for her, putting $5,000 into it, he said.
“Being a dentist, I was always taught to give back to the community,” he said. “I saw the need, and the fire chief of Troy, Matt Simmons, was all behind it. It’s such a service to the organizations that they do for us. So for me, that’s why I started it. I just wanted to plug into Miami County and give back to Miami County.”
Grabeman said that, because he had experience with the Dayton Foundation and the Hundred Club of Dayton, “I knew how it worked.”
“For me ... this was just a perfect way of giving back,” he said. “It’s not a hard sell to have individuals donate, and they become individual members. What we really need to do is tap into a lot of the foundations and private businesses.”
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