Business Community Recognizes Students

WABASH COUNTY, IN –

Grow Wabash County and the North Manchester Chamber of Commerce co-hosted the 18th Annual Honor Student Luncheon, which was Academically Sponsored by Manchester University on April 19, in the Honeywell Center. The purpose of the event was to honor top graduating seniors from the county high schools, and to have an opportunity to encourage local talent to return to their home for employment opportunities during the summers or after graduation from their college experience. Students were seated by area of interest with business persons who could speak to those interests.

After a warm welcome by Tyler Karst, Project Coordinator for Wabash Marketplace, Inc , attendees were led in the invocation by Rev. Chris Tiedeman, Pastor of Christ United Methodist Church. The students enjoyed a light lunch while gaining valuable networking experience with business/education attendees. Students were invited to introduce themselves and share future plans, while employers let attendees know what job opportunities awaited them here in Wabash.

Emcee for this event was Tyler Karst, Project Coordinator for Wabash Marketplace, Inc.
Karst graduated from Southwood Jr.-Sr. High School in 2009. He moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 2010, and back to Wabash in 2014. He completed his B.S. degree in Interdisciplinary Studies in Education of Learning and Pedagogy from Northern Arizona University in 2015. Once he moved back, he joined the Promotions and First Friday committees with the Marketplace and really saw the difference that Marketplace was doing for downtown Wabash. Tyler joined Wabash Marketplace full time in July 2016 and has enjoyed working with many community partners since then to grow awareness for Wabash.

Parker Beauchamp, a Wabash High School graduate, was the keynote speaker. Parker has a degree in Master of Science in Industrial Administration from Purdue University, Krannert School of Management. “Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been dreaming of revolutionizing insurance; it was literally my childhood passion. My friends wanted to be professional athletes, rock stars or famous actors. I wanted to be the guy who insured them.

So that’s what I did. I am a fifth-generation insurance executive and have spent my career helping transform insurance from a slow-moving, fragmented industry to a tech-driven ecosystem. As the CEO of INGUARD, I work with an awesome team that provides unparalleled ideas, products and services to individuals, organizations, healthcare providers, insurtech companies, startups and incumbent insurance carriers.

When I’m not developing insurance solutions for customers across America or abroad, I am often following my love for all styles of alpine climbing—rock, ice, glacier travel and dry tooling in locations such as remote mountains in Alaska, the Cascades, San Juan and the Peruvian Andes, as well as historic buildings in my hometown. I live and breathe the probabilities and consequences of risks and the management of them.

I run a co-working space at INGUARD in partnership with Manchester University and own a drive-in movie

theater. In every aspect of my life, I work on combining the best of the new and the old to bring people together in my little hometown arts community, Wabash, Indiana.”

Over 100 students and educators were sponsored by local businesses. Students being honored include:

Manchester High School – Remington Trick, Emma Casper, Sydney Day, Madison Dockter, Lindsay Egner, Leah Gatchel, Hannah Gish, Kerigan Hatfield, Erika Kendall, Chloe Leckrone, Kaitlyn Mize, Emily Mize, Nathan Ozenbaugh, Montgomery Pattison, Sarah Pyle, Maria Ramos-Hernandez, Benjamin Reichenbach, Lindsay Rice, Kennedy Rosen, Nathan Self, Madison Sorg, Kiera Stacy, Hayes Sturtsman, Paige Wagoner, Audrey Weimann.

Northfield High School – Anna Driscoll, Jacob Fulkerson, Alexia Hodges, Mariah Kirtlan, Natasha Leland,Kylie Mitchell, Madison Nevil, Kathryn Pefley, Attie Schuler, John Schuler, Ellie Schuler, India Shear, Madison Snyder, Jared Vigar, Joe Halderman.

Southwood High School – Alyssa Bitzel, Jessica Bott, Chad Elliott, Kyrstin Gouveia, Ellie Hobbs, Kim Hobson, Nikita Jacobs, Kaitlyn Jones, Parker Mays, Makayla Proffitt, Katie Springer, Lucas Topliff, Allen Warren, Chase Guenin.

Wabash High School – Cody Beeks, Aidan Benysh, Jacob Bruss, Chaney Byers,Courtney Eshelman, Alexis Hartley, Kaitlyn Hashbarger, Olivia Hipskind, Isabel Hughes, Ayden Kocher, Brayden Lutz, Luke Mattern, Gage Miller, Evangelia Reed, Alicyn Sheets, John Stewart, Michael Swango, Austin Vinopal.

Indiana has been faced with a statewide problem commonly referred to as the “brain drain.” Indiana is turning out a great group of educated young people who then turn to other states for their first employment opportunities. This lunch is one effort at encouraging our group of talented young people to consider their hometown, or at least home area, in their future plans. This is an opportunity for us to extend this message before outside sources have an opportunity to attract their talents. This is also a special opportunity for the entire group of Wabash County Honor Students to gather together.

Table Sponsors included: Beacon Credit Union, Bulldog Battery, City of Wabash, Edward Jones & Company, Ford Meter Box Company, Inc., Manchester University, Mutual Bank, NIPSCO, The Honeywell Foundation. Inc.

Student sponsors were Crossroads Bank, Dawes & Pugh CPA’s, LLC, Douglas C. Lehman, PC, Gaunt & Son Asphalt, Grandstaff-Hentgen Funeral Service, Halderman Real Estate and Farm Management, OJI Intertech, Pettit Printing, Inc., The Investment Center at Crossroads Bank.

The Honor Student Luncheon Committee members include: Chelsie Pattison, Mutual Bank; Kerri Mattern, Parkview Wabash Hospital; Diane England and Tenille Zartman of Grow Wabash County and Susan Mattern, North Manchester Chamber of Commerce.

About Grow Wabash County

Grow Wabash County (legal name Wabash County Business Alliance Inc.) is a not-for-profit corporation that spearheads economic and community development efforts in Wabash County, Indiana. GWC is designed around five pillars of service – assisting business development needs, promoting livability, fostering entrepreneurship, supporting workforce development, and offering programming and investor services. GWC was formed with the merger of the EDG of Wabash County and Wabash County Chamber of Commerce in July, 2017. For more information about GWC, please visit www.growwabashcounty.com or call us at 260.563.5258

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