At the beginning of every year, the subject of health is brought up. Many people make (and keep) resolutions that deal with their physical, mental, and emotional health. I recently spoke with a man whose very career deals with the health and well-being of others. Meet Neil Mangus, the first La Porte County Life in the Spotlight of 2013.
Mangus was born in Elmhurst, IL and raised in South Bend, IN. There he attended Jefferson Elementary, followed by Warren Elementary, Dickinson Middle School and then La Salle High School. In high school, Mangus was very interested in biology, chemistry and other sciences. He knew from an early age that he wanted to be a part of the medical field.
After graduating from high school, Mangus attended IU Bloomington where he had a double major in business management and entrepreneurship and a minor in psychology. He went on to graduate school at IUPUI. While holding down a full-time job, night and weekend classes were worked in to bring him to his master’s in health administration.
After a series of different internships and jobs, Mangus came to IU Health La Porte Hospital where he has now been for over three years. As the Director of Marketing for both IU La Porte Health and IU Starke Health Hospital, Mangus’s job duties are many: he oversees all marketing efforts including ads, PR, internal communication, communication outreach, sponsorships, web content development; he is in charge of two quarterly publications; and he is the Public Information Officer for IU La Porte Health Hospital. This is quite a bit for one man, but Mangus takes it all on with ease.
“I love my job. It’s very interesting high pace, and creative,” Mangus said. “I have a lot of control over what goes out. And it’s really great to put your finishing touch on things and tweak them to make everything just right. I find it fun to think artistically and be a business man at same time. Business can be super-stressful, so having art in your work can make much more engaging and fun.”
When it comes to community involvement, Mangus is no stranger. With work, he is very involved with the La Porte Hospital Foundation such as Tour de La Porte, and much more.
“The hospital does around 125 sponsorship events per year around the county,” Mangus said.
Outside of work, Mangus just became elected as VP of the La Porte Rotary Club, he is the President of the La Porte Mainstreet Association, a board member for Junior Achievement for La Porte County, and an advisory board member for NWI Leaders (Young Professional Network). Last year, Mangus received the honor of being part of the 40 Under 40 Program for 2012 and in 2010 he became a member of Leadership La Porte County.
When he has free time, Mangus likes to cook and spend as much time with his friends and family as he can. In the future, he hopes to become a CEO of a hospital. He shared his personal mission with me and I deemed it too good to be kept from you, readers. His personal mission is this: to improve quality of life for as many as possible as much as possible. It’s simple and to the point, but the powerful impact that this mission has when put into action is not rivaled by many.
His personal mission has been shared, so are there any other words of wisdom that Mangus wishes to send us off with into 2013? Why, yes!
“Live by your personal mission and values to determine what drives you,” Mangus said. “That way you never have to cover you bases or explain yourself. You can be comfortable with the decisions you made.”
Here’s to your health, readers. And here’s to Neil Mangus: A La Porte County Life in the Spotlight.