(INDIANAPOLIS) — The Indiana Chamber of Commerce held its 37th Annual Awards Dinner tonight at the JW Marriott Indianapolis, which featured Republican Trey Gowdy (Sunday Night in America With Trey Gowdy) and Democrat Jessica Tarlov (The Five) for a conversation on the national landscape just two days after the mid-term election.

Presented by SIHO, the celebration recognized four inspiring individuals and one remarkable city. The honorees were as follows:

  • Yamaha Community of the Year: La Porte – Bert Cook, executive director of the La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership (LEAP), asserts, “A lot of people will refer back to the mid-1980s (as the catalyst for transformational change) when Rumely Allis-Chalmers, which made farm implements, fully went out of business. They were the largest employer in La Porte by a long shot for a very long time. It started that process of what I would call ‘rebirth.’ ”
  • Ogletree Deakins Business Leader of the Year: Roger Penske, chairman of Penske Entertainment Corp. (Indianapolis) – He remarks, “Effort equals results. Just think about that. The people that work hard – you’re not lucky with success. It’s the ones that want to get ahead and want to help people.”
  • NextEra Energy Resources Dynamic Leader of the Year: Indiana University President Pamela Whitten (Bloomington) – She shares, “My vision for Indiana University has been clear and unfiltered since I walked in the door. It’s always about students. First and foremost, they are the center of our universe.”
  • Birch Bayh-Richard Lugar Government Leader of the Year: Noblesville Mayor Chris Jensen – He says, “We’ve had incredible success the past seven years and we’re not slowing down, so we’re going to continue to focus on that. One of my personal goals too is to talk to folks around the state about what good leadership looks like. I think that’s just a real passion project of mine.”
  • Keystone Group-Indy Eleven Entrepreneur of the Year: Nate Feltman, IBJ Media CEO, publisher and owner (Indianapolis) – He comments, “When the opportunity came to buy into IBJ, I brought (the) lens of, ‘Let’s look at opportunities for growth in terms of new products, new ideas, but also be open to acquiring opportunities where it makes sense. And that’s a risk that all businesspeople and entrepreneurs have to think about.”

“The Annual Awards Dinner is always one of our favorite moments of the year because it gives us the chance to celebrate people and organizations that care deeply about Indiana and are making a real difference,” offers Indiana Chamber President and CEO Vanessa Green Sinders. “This year’s honorees represent remarkable achievement and influence – from iconic business leadership to public service, education and entrepreneurial vision. We’re proud to recognize their impact and the example they set for leaders across the state.”

Earlier in the day, the Indiana Chamber welcomed Scott McCorkle, CEO of Metaimpact of Indianapolis, as its new chairman of the board at its annual board meeting in downtown Indianapolis at the Indiana Chamber Conference Center.

Feature stories on all of the award winners will be available starting this evening in BizVoice® magazine at www.bizvoicemagazine.com.

PNC was the opening reception sponsor for the Annual Awards Dinner. The speaker sponsor was Zimmer Biomet. Butler University was the Hall of Fame sponsor and Hirons was the VIP speaker reception sponsor. Corporate sponsors were AT&T Indiana; Eli Lilly and Company; Fineline Printing; Forvis Mazars LLP; French Lick Resort; Meijer, Inc.; Microsoft Corp.; OneAmerica Financial; Pacers Sports & Entertainment; Parkview Health; and Polaris Marine. Contributing sponsors were Connor Painting, Delta Dental of Indiana, Indiana Soybean Alliance and Indiana Corn Marketing Council, Inside INdiana Business (a division of IBJ Media), Kalshi, Markey’s, NIPSCO and Subaru of Indiana Automotive.

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The Indiana Chamber is the state’s largest business advocacy organization, representing employers of all sizes and industries while championing policies and initiatives that strengthen Indiana’s economy, workforce and overall business climate. Its long-range vision plan, Indiana Prosperity 2035, serves as a roadmap for advancing growth and opportunity for Hoosiers and their enterprises across six priority policy areas.