Kevin Kosek loves focusing on the positives of life and appreciates all of the individuals who have blessed him with their valuable time to discuss their own successes. The theme in his life is positivity and he will stop at nothing to expand that happiness to others.
As the Director of Business Development and Marketing at REGIONAL Federal Credit Union, Kosek is very thankful that he is allowed to travel and create positive relationships within his community. Jill Banning, CEO of REGIONAL, has allowed him to spread so much good throughout his career and he couldn’t be happier with the connections he has made throughout 8 years of employment.
“I couldn’t do what I do in the community without the support of REGIONAL and every single team member that works here,” Kosek said.
In 2011 and 2012, Kosek occupied the presidential role at The Valparaiso Sunrise Kiwanis for two years; this is how he first heard of Ideas in Motion Media and befriended Chris Mahlmann.
“When I heard Chris’ 15-minute presentation about taking everything positive in our community and creating a way for others to see what we are doing, I told myself that I needed to get onboard. That is the core of REGIONAL Federal Credit Union and Kevin Kosek—spreading good,” Kosek said. “We strive for a positive brand and one way to achieve that is through associating yourself with other positive people.”
Kosek has been a member of The Valparaiso Sunrise Kiwanis for five years and counting. During his presidency, he assisted in growing their membership numbers to over sixty people.
“I would like to say that the increase wasn’t because of me, but a lot of our members would say that I had a lot to do with it. They tell me that it has a lot to do with my positive, heartwarming demeanor. However, I have to say as a whole, we are all like that,” Kosek said.
The main goal of all Kiwanis clubs is to help children locally, stateside, nationally, and internationally. This year, the first golf outing was organized by the Valparaiso Kiwanis club to raise money for juvenile diabetes research at Riley’s Hospital. They also host spaghetti dinners, give scholarships out, help at various food banks, dedicate their time to the Builder’s Club, and so much more.
At Thomas Jefferson Middle School’s Builder’s Club, Kosek dedicates his time to help students raise money for Riley Children’s Hospital, assist with community service projects, and guide various organizational volunteer events. He works alongside Doug Hollar and Jim Martz, the two additional mentors at Thomas Jefferson.
The next project for the Builder’s Club is the Opportunity Enterprises (OE) Packathon.
“After I involved myself in the Kiwanis club, I realized just how much time and effort is sacrificed by its members and how much they love and care for everyone in their community. You can’t help to not be a Kiwanian once you get involved,” Kosek said.
Kosek has also been involved with the Hobart Chamber of Commerce board for five years and currently holds the Ex-Officio position which involves helping and supporting the President (Donna Vurva) with her agendas and highly involved obligations. He has held prior positions as a board member, Vice President, and President of the Hobart Chamber.
The core of his avid community engagement is his family. He wants to do as much as he possibly can for his lovely wife, Krista, and two little girls, Elizabeth and Hannah. Krista presently teaches 6th grade at Thomas Jefferson Middle School.
“My two little girls are my reason for being and existing. I want them to be proud of me; my position at REGIONAL is very public and I want to make sure that everything that I do is positive, not only for REGIONAL, but for my family,” Kosek said. “My wife and I are high school sweethearts and she is my rock. I do so many things before and after work and I’m able to do that because of her.”
At Christ Lutheran Church, Kosek is the stewardship chair and his main job is to spread the word of God in addition to his other positions in the community. He loves that his adoring wife understands just how much of a driven person he is and how much he wants to help others anywhere he possibly can.
“At Thomas Jefferson Middle School, I am a football coach and I bleed Viking green. I wanted to make my involvement in the Valparaiso community even better and one way you can make it better is by getting involved in kids’ lives. Being a positive role model for children helps them so much,” Kosek said.
Kosek has been assistant coaching for two years this fall alongside Nate Kaufman, Cameron Harris, and Doug Wassilak. The coaching team at T.J. instructs that those involved in football are student-athletes, not athlete-students. School is always first and foremost.
T.J. Elementary School’s PTO board and Valparaiso’s School Foundation board are happy to be associated with him as well. Later this year, Kosek will also be involved in Rebuilding Together (Hobart).
“We should always strive to be the best that we, individually, can be. If everyone strives to be the best that they can be, then we have a bright future,” Kosek said in closing.