Paul Goddard always knew what he loved to do, but it wasn’t until recently that he discovered what he was born to do.
Two years after Goddard graduated from Munster High School, he took a job in the steel industry as a crane operator. However, he was passionate about the weather so much growing up that it would lead him to become a storm chaser.
“Growing up, I had a police scanner that I used to chase fire trucks and police cars around town,” Goddard said. “I always wanted to be a first responder and watch the action.”
After plenty of experience working with several storm chasers across the country, it inspired Goddard to open up a company that sold its videos to national TV networks such as the Weather Channel and ABC World News.
“Within that first year, we had about 200 storm chasers across the country working with national networks to air on the news,” Goddard said. “It was amazing. I never knew that’s how these networks did it and I learned there was actually a market for this.”
Goddard worked four years there before he decided that he wanted to expand something in the local area. He reached out to police departments in Lake County and Porter County.
This led him to become the founder of Region News Source in 2020.
“It was a match made in heaven,” Goddard said. “I created a Facebook page that really blew up after this one incident that I put the video and story together for. I never could have expected this. It basically fell into my lap and has worked out perfectly since so I haven’t been able to stop.”
Between all the messages and social media tags of people asking Region News Source for updates and information on their stories, Goddard takes the most pride in satisfying the local community with timely, accurate news. In some cases, his audience has worked with the company in some fashion to provide answers to the unknown.
“Two years ago, there was a toddler that wandered outside his home in Merrillville,” Goddard said. “The police asked me to make a post with a picture of him. The post received a lot of shares in the first 30 minutes and one of my Facebook subscribers actually saw the child near I-65 and called the police. Being able to work with the community to reunite families and find lost children motivates you to keep going.”
Each day, Goddard keeps on going. He acknowledges that within his schedule, sleep can be minimal some nights. However, he does not take for granted the extra opportunities to do the things he loves.
“I still work full-time at a steel mill locally,” Goddard said. “After that, it’s just nonstop work with Region News Source throughout the night. Every once in a while, you’ll get a slow day and a chance to relax. It can be tiring for some and a lot to take on, but I still have a lot of fun doing this.”
GreatNews.Life Founder Chris Mahlmann shares a relationship of mutual respect with Goddard for finding innovative ways to bring information to people in the community.
“He came onto my radar a couple years ago,” Mahlmann said. “Not only for breaking news but also for telling the story behind the news alert and shutting down a load of speculation that happens online. He has been working relentlessly and has made a significant impact here in Northwest Indiana.”
In the upcoming years, Goddard still envisions himself being highly motivated to seek out information for the local community with the hope of Region News Source becoming an even bigger business. He also looks forward to playing an integral part in his children’s lives.