Businesses and organizations share good news about new hires, promotions, accolades
Agribusiness
Greg Schmitt was appointed a strategic adviser at Merrillville-based FiberX. He formerly served in several roles at Borregaard LignoTech. FiberX won the AgriNovus Indiana AgBioscience Innovation Award at the 2026 Mira Awards, presented by TechPoint in Indianapolis.
Banking
Karin DeVries and Kathy Ireland joined Purdue Federal Credit Union as senior account vice presidents and member business loan officers. Both have more than 30 years of financial services experience. Purdue University Northwest Chancellor Chris Holford was appointed to the board of directors.
Tech Credit Union, which has headquarters in Crown Point, hired the following associates: Ashley Patterson, teller in Merrillville; Lanice Lightning, teller in Cedar Lake; Ronnie D. Bogle, contact center sales specialist; Parker Reynolds, teller in Crown Point; Makayla Blair, teller in Lowell; Katie Domoras, teller in Crown Point; Sarah Roe, MSR in La Porte; Sam Seegers, teller in Crown Point; Avery Seberger, teller in Crown Point; Jasmine Cerda, teller in Crown Point; and Natalie Baughman, teller in Valparaiso.
Alexia Martinez was appointed a mortgage loan originator at Notre Dame Federal Credit Union. Mireya Olvera was appointed vice president and regional area manager, and Jose Cazarez to assistant branch manager at the new Elkhart branch. Cesar Calvo was named assistant vice president and branch manager and Emilio Olvera to a mortgage and market development officer, both in Fort Wayne.
Tara Minix was appointed a mortgage loan originator at Horizon Bank based in Michigan City. Adam Lukas was named a senior business banker. Mark Ulyas was named vice president and wealth investment portfolio officer based in Michigan City.
Mike Dunn was promoted to a vice president of 1st Source Bank based in South Bend. He joined the bank in 2025 as the bank’s west region commercial and business banking manager, which he will continue. Josh Birky was promoted to officer of the bank and is a business banker.
Chris Doyle joined Old National based in Evansville as president of commercial banking, and John C. Thurston was promoted to president of corporate banking. Joe Wicklander, president of treasury solutions and payments. Tim Kocher will transition from chief credit strategy officer to chief service delivery officer. The leadership changes follow the departure of commercial banking CEO Jim Sandgren, who retired after 34 years.
Austin Christner was appointed a commercial lender at Interra Credit Union’s new business center in Granger. Jennifer Tinker was welcomed as an assistant vice president and member experience strategy lead. Jamie Loher was named director and head of mortgage sales.
Commercial real estate
Michelle Czysczon of Latitude Commercial based in Crown Point was promoted to director of business development. She will grow business in Indiana, Illinois and Denver, Colorado. Edith Valdes takes over Czysczon’s office manager role. Bailey Wirkus was welcomed as marketing coordinator.
Construction
Ritchey Moore was hired as vice president of Tonn and Blank Construction’s western Indiana region, which has an office in Lafayette. Moore also is an engineer officer in the Indiana Army National Guard. He replaces Matt Weller, who was promoted to executive vice president of the Michigan City-based company.
Amy Henningfield, director of workforce development for Superior Construction, joined the Northwest Indiana Influential Women Association’s board of directors. Florida-based Superior has offices in Portage and Gary.
Benton Harbor, Michigan-based Wightman promoted several staff members: Pete Siglow and Kevin Marks advanced to principal associate from senior associate; Paul Schram, Stefany Holland, Joel East, Melanie Stanage, Suzannah Deneau and Patrick Schwyn were promoted to senior associate from associate.
Economic development
Bethany Hartley, president and CEO of the South Bend-Elkhart Regional Partnership, was named Woman of the Year by the Greater Elkhart Chamber of Commerce at their 2026 annual meeting.
Jeffry Bennett, managing partner at McColly Bennett Commercial Advantage, joined the Economic Development Corp. Michigan City’s board of directors.
Wendel McCollum, superintendent of Michigan City Area Schools; Cassie Martin, vice president of operations at D. Martin Enterprises in Michigan City; Aco Sikoski, chancellor of Ivy Tech Community College in Valparaiso; and Antonio Conley, CEO and founder of Temerity Boutique in Michigan City, joined the Economic Development Corp. Michigan City’s board.
Chuck Hughes, president and CEO of the Gary Chamber of Commerce, was awarded the Distinguished Hoosier Award, one of the state’s highest honors.
Education
Purdue University Northwest faculty members received promotions starting in the 2026-2027 school year. Jesse Cohn will become a professor of English, and Grethe Hystad, a professor of statistics. Six faculty members were promoted to associate professors, which includes academic tenure: Jodi Allen, nursing; Manisa Baker, nursing; Matthew Bauman, hospitality and tourism management; Farai Gombedza, biochemistry; Omeed Ilchi, criminal justice; Aref Yadollahi, mechanical engineering. Arash Asrari, an associate professor of electrical engineering, also received tenure. José Castro-Urioste, professor of Spanish in the College of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences, was named a U.S. Fulbright specialist.
Brianne Oliver was hired as the director of exceptional achievers by the School Town of Munster board of trustees.
Mary Grace Almandrez was appointed senior vice president and chief of staff to Valparaiso University President Brian Konkol. She most recently was vice president of people and culture at Syracuse University.
Raj Biyani was appointed chief innovation officer at Goshen College after a 30-year career at Microsoft.
Brian Blagg, the Charles Huisking Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and director of the Warren Family Research Center for Drug Discovery and Development at the University of Notre Dame, was awarded the 1st Source Faculty Commercialization Award for his work leading to Grannus Therapeutics, a venture focused on the development of ovarian cancer treatments. Nathan Swenson, the Gillen Director of the University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center and professor in the department of biological sciences, was named a 2026 Fellow of the Ecological Society of America. Joyelle McSweeney, the William P. and Hazel B. White Professor of English, won the Windham-Campbell Prize for her work in poetry.
John McKiernan was appointed executive vice president and chief operating office of Holy Cross College. He also will serve as a member of the President’s Executive Council. He most recently served as chief of staff to the president at Wilmington College in Ohio. Holy Cross awarded honorary degrees to Thomas Gryp, chair and CEO, Notre Dame Federal Credit Union; John Gschwind, senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary, Rexel USA Inc.; Sister Ann Lacour, congregational leader of the Marianites of Holy Cross; and Alex Jones, CEO and co-founder of Hallow during the 59th commencement ceremony in May. Jelani Cotton, a South Bend native, was named the college’s first Fulbright recipient. He will spend a year in Spain as an English teaching assistant.
Kenneth Smith was promoted to director of building, grounds and maintenance for the Gary Community School Corp. Smith began his career with the district in the 1980s. Jessica Fullilove, family and community engagement liaison at West Side Leadership Academy, received the 2026 FACE Impact Leader Award.
Todd Grace was appointed the Tri-Township School Corp.’s athletic director. He replaces Rick Snodgrass, who retired.
Finance
Brandon Sinclair was promoted to director of marketing at Calder Capital.
Amanda Calvert and Hunter Mang were promoted to financial adviser relationship managers at CAPTRUST Chesterton.
Edward Jones Financial Adviser Brock Lloyd qualified for the Edward Jones recognition conference, Momentum, which celebrates the contributions and achievements of 406 of the most successful financial advisers.
Government
Steve Poulos was named city administrator for the City of Valparaiso. He most recently was the executive director of Valparaiso City Services, a combination of public works and utilities departments. Matt Zurbriggen was named utilities director.
Capt. Christopher Gootee was promoted to assistant chief of police for the Hammond Police Department. He was hired in 2005 and earned captain in 2025.
Gov. Mike Braun made 33 appointments in March. Lake County: John Todd of NIPSCO to the Underground Plant Protection Advisory Committee; LeAnn Angerman, to the Emergency Response Commission; Vince McGowen, of Traditions, to the Medicaid Waiver Work Group; Tony Ferraro to the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission. La Porte County: Gene Schmidt, farmer, to the Soil Conservation Board. Poter County: Jason Lenz, CEO of Creek Run Environmental, and Keith Slater, of Family Express, to the Petroleum Storage Tank Financial Assurance Board; and Dr. Jerry Rodenbarger, of Vale Park Animal Hospital, to the Indiana Board of Veterinary Medicine.
The governor also made April appointments. Jasper County: State Rep. Kendell Culp, farmer, and Sue McCloskey to the Agricultural Promotion and Regulation Task Force. Porter County: Jenny Orsburn to the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission. Lake County: Robert Ochi and Anthony Broadnax to the Little Calumet River Basin Development Commission. Elkhart County: Philip Goodrich of Comcast to the Statewide 911 Board. St. Joseph County: Iris Hammel, of TeachMe3D, to the State Board of Education.
Jeff Schaffer was appointed director of public works for the City of Elkhart. He was appointed city engineer in July 2025 after five years on the engineering team.
Health care
Dr. Susan Murrey, obstetrician and gynecologist, joined the Franciscan Physician Network in Michigan City.
Powers Health welcomed three physicians to Powers Health Medical Group: Breast Surgical Oncologist Raquel Gonzalez Heredia at Community Hospital in Munster; Cardiologist Elizabeth Riddell at St. Mary Medical Center in Hobart; and Orthopedic Surgeon Bryan Scott at Community Hospital and St. Mary Medical Center.
Sarah Paturalski was named hospital president of Beacon Dowagiac, after a national search. She spent much of her career at Memorial Hospital of South Bend, most recently serving as vice president of nursing and clinical services and interim president. Lee Herschberger was appointed interim vice president of nursing and clinical services at Memorial Hospital. He most recently served as executive director of operations at Three Rivers Health Hospital in Michigan. Mary Wendt joined Three Rivers as interim vice president of operations.
Paramedic Michael Okray was named director of Northwest Health Emergency Medical Services. Since 1996, Okray has served as a paramedic and then a captain.
Beth Lock, president and owner of Lock Strategies, is the new CEO and executive director of the Indiana Business Health Collaborative. She replaces Luke Messer who stepped down. Lock Strategies is a strategic consulting firm based in Fort Wayne.
Carolyne Wiesinger opened Face Time with Carolyne in Chesterton. She is a registered nurse.
Information technology
Taylor Griffin has joined Trust Tech in Valparaiso as vice president of sales.
Steven Rogers was appointed to vice president of external affairs for AT&T Indiana. Rogers previously served as director of external affairs for Indiana.
Eric Christopher was named president and CEO of Indianapolis-based TechPoint. Most recently, Christopher served as a strategic board and operating adviser to companies, including Zylo and Pimly and as a co-founder and adviser to a Stealth Startup, an AI company.
Law
Victoria Konstantinidis joined Krieg DeVault as an associate attorney. The law firm has offices in Indiana and Illinois.
Former Indiana Utility Regulatory Commissioner Angela Weber joined Barnes & Thornburg as counsel in the firm’s government services and finance department, based in Indianapolis.
Manufacturing
Henrik Nielsen was appointed chief financial officer of SMS. The Portage-based steel mill services provider also appointed Chris Dods, formerly president and CEO of Strategic Materials, and James Herald, formerly CEO of Evraz North America, to its board of directors.
Matthew Filer was appointed executive vice president of finance, chief financial officer and treasurer of Elkhart-based Patrick Industries. He succeeds Andrew Roeder, who stepped down effective Dec. 31.
Chase Sager, of Lippert in Elkhart, and Kartik Maheshwari, of enFocus in South Bend, earned a spot on Conexus Indiana’s 2026 Rising 30 list. Sager is a supply chain planner, and Maheshwari is an engineering project manager.
Patrick Brown was named a project manager at the Haire Group in Merrillville. Brown most recently worked for Automated Conveyor Systems Inc.
Michelle Fields, Gary, Indiana, plant manager at HWI, a member of Calderys, was recognized as a 2026 STEP Ahead Awards honoree by the Manufacturing Institute.
Philanthropy
Rebecca Weber was named the development director and Katelyn Kazakevicius marketing manager at the Art Barn School of Art in Valparaiso.
Natalie Krivas joined the Food Bank of Northwest Indiana as vice president of development and communications.
Claudia Ruiz Pena joined the Legacy Foundation, Lake County’s community foundation, as development and marketing manager, and Donna Stuckert as community news and initiative manager. Donna Catalano retired.
Melinda Mote, quality assurance director, and Cassandra Dunn, safety and facilities director at Valparaiso-based Opportunity Enterprises, were selected for the INARF Leadership Academy Class of 2026.
David Gaona was promoted from program director to executive director of Lifeline Youth Ministries in Elkhart. He replaces Darrell Peterson, who led the nonprofit for 17 years. Peterson will continue to support the organization’s work-based learning programs for high school students.
Melissa Litwicki was appointed director of community-based services at the Crisis Center in Gary.
Lauren Schregardus was appointed to the Marvella Foundation board of directors. Marvella plans to build facilities for girls sports at Fair Oaks Farms..
Glenn Northern was named executive director of the Elkhart County Symphony Orchestra. He was the Penn High School, Mishawaka, band director for 24 years.
Jessica Bamber was appointed director of events and strategic partnerships at Downtown South Bend.
Utilities
Violet Sistovaris was named the interim CEO of Jasper County REMC. Former CEO and General Manager Jon Rich retired Dec. 1. •
Read more stories from the current issue of Northwest Indiana Business Magazine.
Common sense beats process
Great ownership transfer
Bridge for skills gap
Passion project
Curiosity at heart
Quality trade show strategy
Employee wealth plans
Inside mid-career learning
Betting on Northwest Indiana
Digital infrastructure
