Brandon Noll and Mark Schindel, left, gather for a conversation, whlie Marlene Mullero Batances and Vicki Kuhl talk with Dr. Jeff Fawcett, dean of the school of business at Grace College, during the social hour of the KEDCO Annual Meeting and 40th anniversary celebration.

By Deb Patterson
InkFreeNews

NORTH WEBSTER — The past, present and future were highlights of the Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation’s annual meeting and 40th anniversary celebration Thursday, Oct. 24. The event was held at The Owl’s Nest, North Webster, with over 200 people present

Peggy Friday, CEO, stated the evening was celebratory. “There are so many great stories and so many people doing great things in the county,” she said. To celebrate those stories Suzie Light presented a reflection on the past 40 years. Brandon Noll, Plug and Play Indiana director, shared the programs creation and its future in Warsaw and Indiana; and Ralph Meyer, grandson of Ralph Teetor, an inventor, industrialist and visionary with ties to Syracuse and Lake Wawasee, shared his grandfather’s story.

“Anniversaries are a very special time to celebrate,” said Light. “They are also a time to reflect … time is moving very fast, but it also feels very slow.” She stated a debt of gratitude goes to Deborah Wiggins, who was instrumental in 1984, after a four-year effort, in the creation of Kosciusko Development Inc. KDI was officially organized to “promote growth, support industry, agriculture, recreation and tourism as well as the retention of business.” Wiggins was quoted as saying “KDI will be involved in actively locating sites for new industry.” Original board members included leading persons from throughout the county including Syracuse, North Webster, Milford, and Warsaw. The members of the founding board “had a vision and they worked hard as KEDCO board members.”

That same year Explorer Van moved to it’s location on US 30 and Cardinal Services celebrating its 30th anniversary.

“Wiggins continued to be the standard bearer for economic development,” said Light. “She continued to define economic development as a process by which a community improves its financial well being of all citizens, accomplishes through various means such as creating new jobs, attracting new businesses and providing training and support for existing businesses.”

Other highlights noted by Light was POLYWOOD coming to Syracuse in 1991, Oakwood Foundation taking over Oakwood Park Hotel and making renovations along with Zimmer locating its headquarters to Main Street, Warsaw, in 1993.

Brandon Noll discusses Plug and Play.

The growth in the county, restoration of the Village at Winona by Dr. Dane and Mary Louise Miller, Center Lake Park redeveloped to Central Park and creation of the City County Athletic Complex, all in 1994.

The sale of Kosciusko Community Hospital in 1998-99 resulted in the formation of K21 Health Foundation. The city of Warsaw taking ownership of the Gatke Building in 2003, which is now being developed for housing; and the creation of Orthopediatrics in 2005 along with Lewis Dreyfus Commodities opening in Claypool.

It was 2008 when OrthoWorx was founded through a large grant from the Lilly Endowment and Ivy Tech finding a permanent home. It was in 2014, the YMCA opened up its new facility off Mariner’s Drive and Warsaw Tech Park ribbon cutting took place.

The opening of Creighton’s Crazy Egg and Coffee Bar and The Roost, Parkview Hospital’s outpatient, emergency room and doctor’s offices and Ignite Orthopedics occurred in 2016.

Between 2019 and 2022 a housing market study resulted in new housing projects beginning throughout the county, CTB Inc. made a $20 million investment in upgrading its facility and ground was broken for the Miller Sunset Pavilion ice rink.

The past year, according to Light, saw Cardinal Services celebrate its 70^th anniversary with a renovated and expanded building and Plug and Play came to the county.

Past leaders of KEDCO noted were: Rob O’Brian in 1993, Charlie Sparks in 1995, Joy McCarthy-Sessing in 1998, George Roberts in 2010 and Al Tio from 2019-2022.

“In reviewing the changes that have happened over the last 40 years, I hope, like me, you are surprised at how quickly time passes and how long, how very long it takes to get things done,” said Light. “Let’s honor and recognize our past and move boldly into the future. Because our citizens need us. There’s much to do. Let’s get to work.”

KEDCO Highlights

Friday, who has been in the position for four months, noted she has spent time on the road, talking about the services and work KEDCO plans to do in Kosciusko — building partnerships, networks and friendships.

She touched on the direction KEDCO is going. “We are all about economic development. There is one thing I want you to know. Economic development is not a race. It’s more of a marathon.”

Friday noted a site selection meeting earlier in the week could bring 1,600 jobs to the county. “The opportunity this creates for our community,” she said, can “create wealth, but most important too, in working on site selection is business retention. We take seriously our business organizations here are healthy, thriving and have everything they need for success.”

She talked noted helping smaller communities. “We want to help our small communities grow. A part of that is helping them grow their infrastructure.” She noted community conversations being held with partners and local communities next week. “To listen to them, bring them to the table, hear what is it they want in their communities … what don’t you want. We are also making sure we’re the gatekeeper of the communities. Making sure the projects that we bring here are in the best interest in the county … We want to have a thriving community. … we’re the dot connectors, dot fillers, problem solvers and we hope to be your trusted advisors.” She noted the slogan is “There is much work to be done, so let’s get it done.”

In introducing Nolan, Friday stated he is bridging the gap between Silicon Valley and Indiana, bringing innovation, investments and opportunity to the state.

Nolan highlighted how Plug and Play happened, what it is and the next step. He noted the first batch of startups had eight participants and four of those startups have an interest in Warsaw. An agreement has been reached with Zimmer-Biomet to sublease space in the building for businesses,. Plug and Play will be adding new corporate partners, expanding and activating other Plug and Plays throughout the state.

The timeline of how the company came to Warsaw was reviewed, including bringing the CEO, CRO and U.S. expansion officials from Silicon Valley to Warsaw. Plug and Play opened in March 2024. Noll additionally provided information of how the program works, financial support, partnerships, expansions and workshops. He stated there is a need for mentors and how important Warsaw is for Plug and Play.

The evening ended with a presentation by Ralph Meyer, grandson of Ralph Teetor, 1890-1982, an inventor, industrialist and visionary. Teetor, who at the age of 5, became blind, but never thought of himself as handicapped.

Teetor, from an early age, was interested in engineering and inventing. Meyer spoke of the Teetor family business in Hagerstown, his grandfather’s work with the military, and various inventions including the cruise control. Teetor had over 50 patents in his life and has been recognized by the Smithsonian and Inventors Hall of Fame.

A documentary of Teetor’s life has been created, titled “Blind Logic,” and after being released in Indiana, Michigan and South Carolina, has been deemed an award winning movie.

Ralph Meyer is the keynote speaker, speaking about his grandfather Ralph Teetor, and the documentary on Teetor’s life “Blind Logic.”