Sue Straatman sat in a doctor’s office in the Community Healthcare System (now Powers Health) Hospital Emergency Room next to her only son, Rob, when she received her ovarian cancer diagnosis in 2008. The team of five doctors sitting in front of...
Ivy Tech Community College offers a wide variety of programs for students of all ages to expand their knowledge and grow their skills. Whether completing a certification program or earning an associate’s degree, students of all ages can find the...
In October of 1966, Michael Chiarodo enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. By January of 1967, he was stationed in Vietnam to serve America in the Vietnam War. “The Marine Corps was the only branch of service that I thought to...
Bob Strempka has become one of the most popular names in sports photography not only around the Region but around the state of Indiana. Yet, sports photography was not his original intention when picking up the camera. After graduating...
Colleen McQuillan, a resident of Highland, has religiously received mammograms since she turned 40. When she couldn’t secure an appointment at her doctor’s office in Illinois in 2020 for a mammogram, she made an appointment in Indiana instead....
AJ Portable Buildings has been servicing the Midwest’s custom-design building needs since 1983, offering storage sheds, garages and more. With custom craftsmanship and generous warranties, AJ’s invites customers from the Region, eastern Illinois,...
The son of a United States Navy man, Joe Scida grew up all over the country in varying cities and states based on his dad, John’s, station. With most of his upbringing in Hawaii, Scida graduated from high school in upstate New York. In September of...
Brenda Mecchia knows what it’s like to be a Region native through and through. She grew up in Merrillville, graduated from Merrillville High School and is now an employee of the Town of Merrillville. For the past five years, Mecchia has been the...
It’s not common that one can spend their afternoon experiencing a simulated space mission, but the folks at Challenger Learning Center of Northwest Indiana (NWI) can make it a possibility. Lara Bates, the executive director, is the driving force...
The golf industry is a field that is stereotypically dominated by men, yet Jill McCoy has cemented herself as a prominent figure in Northwest Indiana’s golf scene. McCoy grew up just outside of West Lafayette in a farming community and began...