Jeff Balon grew up just outside of Valparaiso. He spent his younger years living on a farm in rural Jackson Township but later attended Chesterton High School. He’s wanted a career in law enforcement since he was little. After graduating from high...
Megan Lawrence is from the Region. Today, she works at one of her alma maters, Valparaiso High School as an education teacher with a specialization in teaching for the school’s applied-skills program. It was called the Life Skills Program when she...
Daniela Mancusi-Shreve’s parents come from South Philadelphia. While she herself was born in Hammond, she spent her formative years growing up on the East Coast — specifically, southern New Jersey. There she grew up and became close with many of...
Laura Herrod resides in Chesterton today, yet she grew up on the South Side of Chicago. She is a middle school counselor working in the Region. Twice she has battled cancer and survived it. Her stories now serve as testaments of endurance to women...
Michael Bendicsen grew up near the Region. He comes from Addison, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago. He attended Valparaiso University to earn his bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in secondary-education studies. Following the completion of...
Donald A. Heichel II was born, raised, and went to high school in the Region in La Porte, Indiana. He still resides there, yet when he goes into the office to work, he’s in Indianapolis, as he currently works for the Department of Defense as a...
Dr. Stephen Schnurr got his first church job when he was still a student in high school in Louisville, Kentucky. Then he went on to complete his undergraduate studies at Duke University in North Carolina. His graduate work was done at Yale University...
After graduating from high school in 1972, Sue White became a preschool teacher. She got her first job working at First Christian Church in Valparaiso. In 1976, she met her husband, Seth, at Valparaiso Nazarene Church. They had three daughters...
Deb Kucharyski grew up in the Midwest and met her husband after her college graduation. He took a job in Houston, Texas shortly thereafter, and then the couple moved there to live together and raise their children for 17 years. They also lived in...
John Kilavos has a big role with the ability to have a positive impact, as he’s the executive and family-ministry pastor at Heartland Christian Center in Valparaiso, Indiana, a church where community and faith cooperate. He took on his current role...