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LEADERSHIP LAKE COUNTY LEADER OF THE YEAR

 

Congratulations to the 2025 Leader of the Year, John Griffin

The prestigious Leadership Lake County Leader of the Year Award  is presented to one outstanding recipient each year for their contributions in Lake County. We encourage you to nominate someone who you believe is worthy of such an award of distinction.

The Leader of the Year Committee is comprised of Leadership Lake County Trustees and graduates from a broad span of years and companies.

Click here for the 2026 Nomination Form

Click here for the selection committee decision rubric to better understand what information is being ask for on the nomination form and how it will measured during the deliberation process. Materials submitted outside of the official nomination form will not be used in committee deliberations.

Nominations are due on or before February 22, 2026.

Completed forms are automatically submitted to Leadership Lake County via this system. The Leader of the Year Committee appreciates your sincere interest and cooperation.

Current Leadership Lake County Trustees are not eligible for this award. Nominees do NOT have to be graduates of Leadership Lake County, however, nominators MUST be alumni in good standing (current annual dues paid). Nominations for candidates actively seeking partisan elected positions will be deemed ineligible.

All nominations received are kept confidential.

The winner will be announced at Leadership Lake County's 2026 Graduation and Leader of the Year Celebration on Wednesday, May 27th from 6:00 PM - 8:30 PM at St. Noel's Banquet Center in Willoughby Hills.

Leader of the Year Award Recipients 1989-2024

  • Wilbur R. Moyer, 1989
  • Joseph D. Rusnak, 1990
  • Richard H. Gehring, 1991
  • Michael D. Lyster, 1992
  • Joseph A. Lesak, 1993
  • Dr. Ralph R. Doty, 1994
  • Kenneth M. Iwashita, 1995
  • Jack E. Daniels, 1996
  • Arthur S. Holden, Jr. & Constance P. Irvin, 1997
  • J. William Stanton, 1998
  • Paul J. Beddia, 1999
  • Harry L. Allen, Jr., 2000
  • Dr. James H. Capitan, 2001
  • Thomas W. Benda, 2002
  • David J. Enzerra, 2003
  • Cytnhia Moore-Hardy, 2004
  • Roger J. Sustar, 2005
  • Dr. Morris W. Beverage, Jr., 2006
  • Ellen Foley Kessler, 2007
  • Judie & Dave Crockett, 2008
  • Nancy & Ed Brown, 2009
  • Bruce M. Kephart, 2010
  • Michael T. Victor, 2011
  • Dr. Jacqueline Hoynes, 2012
  • Rita & Peter Carfagna, 2013
  • Bob Cahen, 2014
  • Judge Colleen Falkowski, 2015
  • Andy L. Meinhold, 2016
  • David Cowen and Dennis Eckart, 2017
  • Nancy Guthrie, 2018
  • Sheriff Dan Dunlap, 2019
  • Nancy Brunner Sanden, 2020
  • Kevin Malecek, 2021
  • Pamela D. Kurt, 2022
  • Dr. Jessie Baginski, 2023
  • Jay McDonald, 2024
  • John Griffin, 2025
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