GreatNews.Life celebrates Northern Indiana community leaders and difference makers at 11th annual Good Life Awards

Recognizing the positives in Northern Indiana has been at the heart of what GreatNews.Life has done since 2009. On Wednesday, October 7, GreatNews.Life celebrated another chapter in highlighting the good during its 11th annual Good Life Awards. This year’s ceremony inducted six new community and business leaders to the list of Good Life Award honorees, along with six Positive Spark Award honorees.

This year’s event was hosted at the Indiana Welcome Center in Hammond. The Good Life Awards recognizes and honors Northern Indiana individuals who have had a positive impact on local communities. Each honoree received an award that was handcrafted by GreatNews.Life New Media Journalist Kyle Boyd.

“It was 11 years ago, we created the Good Life Awards — not to recognize the person with the biggest title, the most money, or the loudest voice. We recognize people for being good,” GreatNews.Life Founder Chris Mahlmann said. “Today, we added six more people to that list, and through the Positive Spark Awards, six previous recipients have each pointed to someone else and said, ‘I see the good in you.’ That’s how this grows. One person recognizes another. One act of kindness inspires another. One spark lights another. Six becomes 12, which becomes hundreds, and hundreds can change a community.”

The 2026 Good Life Award honorees included Stephanie Krol, owner of Stephanie Krol Public Relations; Josh Huddlestun, Mayor of the City of Hobart; Ed Charbonneau, Indiana State Senator; Annette Loeffler, administrative assistant for the City of La Porte Mayor’s Office; Phil Taillon, president and CEO of the South Shore Convention & Visitors Authority; and GreatNews.Life’s very own Damon Modglin, editorial director.

Mahlmann welcomed each honoree to the stage and shared stories of kindness and dedication that warranted the award recipients with this recognition.

Krol was the first recipient honored during the program. In two decades of Stephanie Krol Public Relations, she has learned how public relations is more than simply getting your name out there: it’s about finding true stories. She is proud to receive a Good Life Award and shares stories with others, especially ones regarding great news.

“Businesses are taking chances, entrepreneurs are making things happen, people are helping out their neighbors. Those are the stories that matter. These stories need to be told,” Krol said. “It builds connection, pride, and momentum, and that’s what the Region needs right now. It’s really important to bring good news to our community, and my kids see that firsthand. They tell the news to their friends and it spreads like wildfire.”

Mayor Huddlestun shared the gratitude for different departments within the city, the City of Hobart staff, volunteers, and his family, as examples of what the Good Life Award stands for.

“When you can have someone like Chris and his Lifers sharing good stories, it matters to folks. It matters to us. It matters to me and my family,” Huddlestun said. “I appreciate each and every one of you that wake up every morning and look for the positive, or look for the things that you can do for not only your family, but also your communities.”

As Charbonneau joined the stage to receive his Good Life Award, he took a group picture from the podium with everybody in attendance at the event. He used this moment to help guide a phrase that he tells people often.

“No matter who I am talking to, no matter what business we’re in, we’re in the business of people and relationships,” Charbonneau said. “I know full well that the good Lord has surrounded me all my life with people that make me look better than I really am. I am very proud of this award and for being recognized as someone who has lived a good life.”

Being someone who is often behind the scenes of operations in her daily routine, Loeffler was honored to stand on the same stage as all of the award recipients and be recognized with a Good Life Award for her work with the City of La Porte.

“I’ve been blessed to work at the same job for many years. It’s a job that allows me to do meaningful work in a community that I really love and believe in,” Loeffler said. “I can’t think of a higher honor than to be recognized for kindness, leadership, integrity and service.”

Taillon credited his coworkers, friends, and family members for helping him be in a position to receive a Good Life Award. He believes that GreatNews.Life embodies what the news is supposed to be about.

“I feel like nowadays, all the news does is bring negativity and divide us. That’s why it means so much to me what Chris is doing with his team in GreatNews.Life. It’s important to talk about the positive things going on right now and reward people for them,” said Taillon. “We have a thing  our friends and family say. ‘Today is the beginning of the best 10 years of our lives.’ That’s the way we approach every day, and I suggest you all approach it that way, too.”

When he first sent in an application at GreatNews.Life, Modglin applied for four different positions. From working in the office as an editor to stepping out of the office for coverage to solving problems on the fly, Modglin has been an invaluable asset to the team since he joined in 2022.

“Over the four years I’ve been here, I have had every opportunity to grow, try new things, and be challenged,” Modglin said. “I would like to thank Chris, Natalie, and the entire team. None of this would be possible without all of you guys. It’s a great honor, and I hope it’s one I continue proving worthy of embodying.”

The Positive Spark Awards were nominated by former Good Life Award honorees such as Ashley Spargo, Kami Tupiak, Bill Marshall, Bert Cook, Chris Mahlmann, and Austin Bonta. 

In the same order as their nominators, this year’s recipients included Mary Freda-Flores, communications director for the City of Crown Point; Andrea Ledbetter, director of events and marketing for Navarre Hospitality Group; Todd Evans, physical education teacher/department chair and coach at Valparaiso High School; Nate Loucks, development director at Steiner Homes; Charles Beard, new media journalist at GreatNews.Life; and Meg Bonta, founder of SoundTide Music School.

Each Positive Spark Award recipient also shared a few comments on their level of appreciation as they made it to the stage.

“Celebrate these 12 people who have deposited into the lives of other human beings. Listen to their stories. We see you. We see how you treat people. We see the energy you bring. We see the lives you touch, and it matters,” Mahlmann said. “Today, we recognize it. Tomorrow, we pass it on, and together, we keep going.”

GreatNews.Life is thankful for the opportunity to acknowledge the individuals and organizations who help make Northern Indiana a better place, along with the sponsors who helped make the Good Life Awards possible. This includes the La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership (LEAP), City of Crown Point, and premier event sponsors such as the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority (CVA), NorthShore Health Centers, and the Elkhart County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB).

A special thank you to everyone who joined the GreatNews.Life team in celebrating the 2026 Good Life Awards! This support helped make for a meaningful celebration of the people who preach positivity in the Region.