Amazing People Index – Fishers

This was a super fun experiment that led to unexpected conversations and great stories. If you see your name here, someone locally thought you were just swell and worth writing about.

An image of the Amazing People Index

How we made this list

On July 23, we asked Fishers Digest subscribers if they thought it would be cool if we did a spin on the Indiana 250. Focused on people in Fishers with three rules:

  1. You have to be nominated by someone else
  2. The nominee has to be doing something objectively cool
  3. Can’t be related to politics

That’s it! If we received no submissions we weren’t going to do it. But we received SO many. Enjoy the list!

Waseema Ali

Nominated by: Rodney Kuhl

Waseema is a lawyer, academic, global thought leader, and a Well-Being consultant. She’s also the Curator of Storybrook Estates, a luxury lodge and barn unexpectedly nestled here in Hamilton county.

We’re told that Waseema started this rental estate as a retreat to encourage well-being and celebrate people and their stories. Here’s their pitch: “Envision spending a weekend diving into wellness workshops and mindful practices. This dedicated time for self-reflection and growth leaves you feeling empowered and ready to conquer your goals.”

You can sign me up! The property is rented for families to enjoy, company recharge events, and everyday celebrations. You can get a glimpse of this swoon-worthy stay here. Tip: if you follow on socials, they give away a free stay annually! Win!

Storybrook Estates
Clip from her website StorybrookEstates. Too beautiful not to share!

Sara Baird

Nominated by: Samuel Stan

For most, being laid off from a job closes doors, but not for Fishers local Sara Baird.

Instead Sara decided to pursue another dream: creating needle felted art. You may have seen Sara and her creations at local farmers markets, Broad Ripple Art Center, or at the GenCon Makers Market (which is happening right now!)

We love her unique felt-mounted creature heads, custom pet ornaments, and glow in the dark wall hangings. Thanks, Samuel, for highlighting your awesome wife!

Check out Sara’s Instagram for a preview and where you can find her next.

Sara Baird

Mary Susan Buhner

Nominated by Susannah Buhner

Mary Susan is an IU grad with tons of experience in fundraising, advancement, and work establishing parent engagement with educational institutions and not-for-profit organizations.

There’s a long list of accomplishments under her belt: chairperson, advisory board member, book author, e-magazine creator, column writer, podcast host… Mary Susan is also WXIN FOX 59’s On-Air Parenting & Family Lifestyle Contributor & Expert.

Mary Susan started the Hearing Resource Center, which provides free hearing aids, speech therapy, and ENT visits for families. What’s cool is this was also the first-ever free clinic in Indiana.

But her latest passion is about mental health. Her nominator (Mary Susan’s daughter) said her mom’s goal is for families to talk about mental health at the dinner table the same as grades and sports practices. This is awesome, work!

MarySusan

Linda Calvin

Nominated by: Teresa Conroy-Roth

Meet Linda, a local with an impressive career journey. Her previous jobs include being a Global Digital IT Leader for Stanley Black & Decker, a Global Digital Product and Marketing Leader at Dow Chemical, and even an Assistant City Prosecutor for Indianapolis.

She is currently the Chief Impact Officer for Reboot Representation, an organization dedicated to doubling the number of Black, Latina, and Native American (BLNA) women graduating with computing degrees by 2025.

According to her website, “Linda believes, “When you See Us, You can Be Us.” She has a full calendar of volunteering, from speaking with girls at Girls Inc of Greater Indianapolis, at STEM camps, and with organizations like Brown Girls Code, and even creating scholarship with her husband to provide funding for black and latinx and Hispanic residents and current students in Indianapolis to earn tech credentials at Ivy Tech Community College.

Debbie Cook

Nominated by Debi Slone 

If you’ve been a Fishers resident for a while, you may already be familiar with Twigs and Tea, an elegant shop, restaurant, and tea room. Debbie started her boutique “Twigs European Home” 28 years ago, and later added on a tea room, changing the name to Twigs and Tea. As her nominator put it, “Debbie has been in business here before Fishers was cool”.

This European-inspired charmer has become a destination stop for people visiting Fishers as well as a local favorite. Debbie and her staff serve around 50 people daily in the tea room. Twigs and Tea also frequently hosts special occasions like baby and bridal showers.

Debbie’s favorite menu items include the Chicken Salad on a bed of greens dressed in our champagne vinaigrette, the Bread Pudding with white chocolate & raspberry sauce, and the Paris Tea is a fan favorite!

Her nominator said, “I have worked for Debbie for 12 years and I love going to work! She puts her whole heart into everything she does and works tirelessly to make sure everything runs smoothly. She cares deeply for her employees and I can say we have become family because of that.”

Debbie Cook

Teresa Conroy-Roth

Nominated by: Andrew Roth

Teresa has been a resident of Fishers for 19 years and currently serves as the Director of Business Development and Engagement at AXIA Consulting.

Her career is marked by significant accomplishments that have greatly benefited our community. With a passion for technology and business, Teresa has driven impactful outreach initiatives, promoted Indiana STEM scholarships, and taken on various philanthropic roles. She even launched a podcast series where executives share their growth stories and learning experiences.

Teresa is known for her “super connector” nature, aiming to connect people from all walks of life. We agree with you Andrew — your wife sounds pretty cool!

Lighting Leadership Logo
Two of the people on this list on the same podcast together… must be good!

Nathan Davis

Nominated by: Anonymous 🙂

Nathan Davis is a creative Fishers native who has a passion for cooking, music, and coffee.

Nathan keeps busy. He’s an Adjunct Professor of Music Technology at IU Indianapolis (rip IUPUI). When he is not teaching college students how to make music with their laptops, you can find him running Open Coffee, a mobile espresso cart that supports the nonprofit Mission Uprising in building homes for the houseless on the Baja Peninsula of Mexico.

Born out of a dream during the height of the Pandemic, Nathan and his dad Mitch constructed two coffee carts that have been serving up specialty coffee to offices, Teacher Appreciation Days, grad parties-you name it.

If all of that isn’t enough, Nathan creates and produces his own music under the name stage name Spring Term. He designs all of his own social media graphics, and merchandise, and ships out a bi-monthly newsletter focused on the intersection of music, faith, art, and history.

Pellegrino Song
Clip from his song “Pelligrino”. It’s a great song and the music video is so fun! Please watch it.

Dan Dezelan

Nominated by: Mike Hagan

We love a good startup story. Dan is the President and CEO of the Indy-based cleaning company, XL Clean. Dan started this company from scratch, and his client roster now boasts big establishments like Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Lucas Oil Stadium, and even a few schools.

The company mantra on their website is “Your mother isn’t here to clean up your mess. [But we are].” 😆 We love your humor, Dan! His nominator also mentioned that he is a very humble guy and struggles to believe the success he has had.

Dan is also a pilot, and from his line of work we can bet his cockpit is pretty clean too.

XL Clean logo

Molly Dubovec

Nominated by: Ryan Kennedy

Molly is the Board President at GiGi’s Playhouse, a Down Syndrome Achievement Center in Fishers. Their mission is to increase positive awareness of Down syndrome through national campaigns, educational programs, and by empowering individuals with Down syndrome, their families and the community. GiGi’s hosts educational programs, offers family support, holds fitness classes & kitchen programs, and lots more.

Visit their website and you’ll find a full calendar of activities for various learners, volunteer opportunities, and community fundraising events.

Each GiGi’s location (there are around 60) is run by volunteers. Molly’s contagious energy, dedication, and passion seem to be a driving force at Indy’s location. Here’s Molly on Instagram being shown as volunteer of the month!

Molly GiGi's

Dan Hollis

Nominated by: Skyler Braun

I’m also nominating Dan Hollis as the CEO of Cyntheanne Park’s pickleball… kidding (not really). If you play pickleball here, you probably know Dan. If you are part of the Indy Pickleball club, you probably know Dan. If you’ve been to a sanctioned pickleball event locally… you probably met Dan. He always brings sweet tunes to the courts which make the evening pickleball vibes immaculate.

But seriously beyond the sport, Dan was one of the earliest supporters of Fishers Digest, has given his time to help grow it over coffee, and is all-around fun to be around. He just does great things for the Fishers community.

Dan — you are awesome and deserve your spot on this list!

Dan Hollis
From Dan’s FB page!

Katie Ittenbach

Nominated by: The entire team at SMARI

We love her nominee’s pitch on Katie Ittenbach, President & CEO of SMARI Research. The team said, ”Katie leads a team of experts in a collaborative atmosphere that breeds curiosity, innovation, and creativity. SMARI is a national award-winning research firm where Katie’s leadership fosters a growth mindset by offering mentorship and continuous training.

Celebrating 41 years in central Indiana, SMARI recently ushered in its newest iteration of the company as we are now a certified WBE, with Katie at the helm. She, along with the rest of our team, is consistently called upon for her ability to strategize and take actionable insights and forge a path forward—from international Fortune 50 C-suites to smaller Indiana non-profits. We don’t specialize in one industry; we specialize in good research. And that starts at the very top with Katie.”

Others say she is a team player who always goes “above and beyond” to get the job done. Katie takes on roles outside of her normal job duties and often provides insight and lends expertise to other departments.

Katie, we envy your co-workers. You sound like a dream to work with!

smari logo

Freedom Kolb

Nominated by: Courtney Jones

Freedom is CEO of The Milk Bank, a nonprofit that receives and distributes donor breastmilk for babies nationwide. Last year, the organization collected, processed, and donated 562,171 ounces of milk to fragile babies.

Donor milk is both food and medicine for a newborn. This is so important since Indiana has a high infant mortality rate compared to the rest of the U.S.

About 10% of donor milk comes from bereaved families. The Milk Bank also provides support groups for these grieving families. There’s even a wall of gold leaves displayed at their facility for every bereaved baby and their family who donated milk.

We applaud this heroic effort, and agree with her nominator — Freedom certainly makes our community brighter!

Freedom Kolb

Ethan Lynch

Nominated by: Carter Barnes

Ethan Lynch is a recent HSES graduate and soaring to new heights in his military career. After successfully completing both Air Force Basic Training and Technical Training, Ethan is now headed to Charleston Air Force Base. There, he’ll be putting his skills to work as a Crew Chief on C-17 aircraft. It’s a role that keeps these vital transport planes mission-ready. We’re proud to see a Fishers native contributing to our nation’s air capabilities. Keep flying high, Ethan!

US Air Force Logo

Summer Pratt

Nominated by: Her Fam

Not only is Summer the best season, but she’s the best human. There are certain people that folks will just naturally gravitate for — that’s Summer. She has an energy about her that’s hard not to love, and that’s translated into so many things that make her a cool person to know. From traveling to almost every continent to being THE Vizsla mommy of Fishers.

She landed her first job at Sigstr as an intern in a pool of 50+ others who applied by going above and beyond to get noticed. Sigstr was eventually sold to Terminus, where she worked for a little while longer.

A few years ago, she took a brave jump and left to start her own Fishers based Web Design business at the encouragement of one of her mentors, Dan Hanrahan. Slowly but surely, it turned out to be one of the best decisions she could have ever made. Summer is able to work with dozens of clients she loves like Loxo, Movable Ink, and Tenon, while being part of something she’s proud of.

She’s always up for a chat, so if you have any website or design needs Summer’s your gal. (just know there is a bit of a line 😉 )

When Summer isn’t traveling the world or working on her business, you’ll find her fully using Fishers Parks with her dog vizsla Fletcher. So if you do see her, say hey!

Fletch and Summer

Tish Roberts

Nominated by: An anonymous person who loves your spirit

Tish Roberts is a Fishers resident who’s passionate about walking and being active. Together with a friend, Tish walks 5 miles daily. In honor of someone special to her, she has even walked the Monumental Marathon which has hosted past Olympians and Boston Marathon qualifiers!

We’re told by her nominator that Tish is dedicated to remaining active and healthy. Here’s a septuagenarian (someone in their 70s) we can all strive to be like! We love your enthusiasm, Tish!

If you want to sign up for the Monumental Marathon, tickets are here for November 9!

monumentalmarathon-logo

Rebecca Stevens

Nominated by: Barb Uggen-Davis

Rebecca’s the kind of person you meet to write this for and think “we’re not gonna have enough space”. She’s the President/CEO of the HSHC.

If you didn’t know, the Humane Society of Hamilton County is both our Humane Society AND Animal Control. Which means they’re considered an essential service. So it would be easy for them to act like any other shelter and put down the 4,500 yearly animals they take in.

But Rebecca saw the light in what could be for those pups. So in 2014, the HSHC became one of the only no-kill shelters in the state. Today, they’re one of the best in the country. 80% of their operating budget as a nonprofit comes from private donations and events — like the Woofstock event coming up next weekend (August 10).

If you want to participate in Woofstock to help their mission, you can sign up here and use code: FISHERSDIGEST to get $5 off your your ticket!

Humane Society of Hamilton County Logo

Matt Whitlow

Nominated by: Nick Ohmer

Matt Whitlow turned an overlooked spot in the Fishers Depot area into Parks Place Pub, a local hangout that just hit it’s 3-year mark on July 30th. Matt is not a silent owner – literally or figuratively. He is frequently present and on the floor, chatting with patrons, helping staff, and sometimes he can be found in the kitchen – presumably creating the next great menu items, but he usually reappears from there with a dab of BBQ or Buffalo sauce on his chin. 

What makes Parks Place Pub cool:

  • Something for everyone: live music, family-friendly vibe, pet patio
  • Sports heaven: flags from pro teams to high schools deck the rafters
  • Community-minded: supports local distributors and satisfies Fishers’ social needs

Check them out if you haven’t been! You won’t regret it.

Parks Place Pub

Honorable Mention

There is one more person that I (Skyler) think you should also know about. And that’s Lindsey, one of the lead writers at Fishers Digest.

Lindsey Watson

Lindsey is the brilliant mind behind this entire idea! We were chatting about how cool some of those lists that come out can be (specifically the Indiana 250 influential business people) and it sparked the thought… what if we did one for just Fishers? I have no idea if that list is paid but usually a lot of those lists are. We wanted this one to be completely free, community nominated, and all vibes.

And I think she nailed it.

If you want to know more about her, Lindsey has a BS in Education, and has been an English Teacher, editor, and freelance writer since 2012. Before she moved to Fishers, she did some freelance writing for a few local Knoxville, TN blogs which were FANTASTIC and a big reason she stood out when she first applied to write for Fishers Digest. Her contributions to this newsletter have been so appreciated and I hear it’s hard to tell who writes what in our emails.

She’s also a mom to her daughter, Ava. Which is way more important than any of that other career stuff (if you ask me).

So Lindsey, thank you for working so hard to make this list happen. You rock!

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