Cynthia Hedge was selected as the recipient of the 5th annual Ned E. Kalbe Community Leadership Award, presented at the recent Purdue Extension La Porte County Annual Meeting held at the Silver Palace in La Porte. Cynthia was presented a plaque and will have her name added to the permanent plaque on display at the Extension Office. The permanent plaque was donated by Dick Reel, who served as the Extension Director for many years.
Cynthia Hedge worked in the legal community for many years, as an attorney, Deputy Prosecutor and Prosecuting Attorney. She is also the co-founder of the Center for Creative Solutions. Throughout her career she has served as a passionate community leader, inspiring others with her view of service to the community as her civic duty. Over the years she has been active with many community organizations, including Dunebrook, the United Way, Humane Society, Parents & Friends, CASA, Bethany Lutheran Church and the LaPorte Hospital Foundation.
Cynthia was nominated for the Kalb Award by a team of community members. She was recognized for being gracious, tough, charming, smart and determined to fulfill her mission in collaboration with other like-minded organizations for the greater good of our region, state and world. It was noted that her unique leadership style shows that she genuinely cares about others. Her servant leadership puts others before her needs. She wants the best outcome for her community and refuses to give up on making progress.
The annual leadership award is a partnership between the Purdue Extension La Porte County office and Leadership La Porte County. Ned Kalb served as Extension Director for many years and was a catalyst for the formation of Leadership La Porte County. He died in November 2011, and the award was created soon after to honor his memory. Previous award winners include: John Coulter (2012) Dr. James Dworkin (2013), George & Dory Morley (2014) and Diana Werner (2015).
“Ned served La Porte County in so many ways. He saw needs and brought people and resources together to solve the challenges, not only locally, but across Indiana and the world,” said Hugh Tonagel, current Extension Director. “Ned was a mentor to many and an excellent teacher of community development and leadership,” added Jim Jessup, a volunteer for Leadership La Porte County. “Ned, Kathryn Dearborn, and I worked several years together during the planning, organizing, and facilitating of the leadership program,” Jessup said. Monica Komasinski, Executive Director of Leadership La Porte County, stated, “The mission of Leadership LaPorte County and the impact the organization has had on the community is a lasting legacy of Ned Kalb’s vision. We are proud to honor him and to recognize good community leadership with this award.”
Nominations for the next award will be taken beginning in January 2017. For more information contact either the Extension Office or Leadership La Porte County.