News release from the TinCaps:
TinCaps’ Shank Named “Forty Under 40” Award Winner
Richmond Native Honored for Community Contributions & Service(February 10, 2014) – Brad Shank, Vice President-Ticket Sales for the Fort Wayne TinCaps, has been named a “Forty Under 40” award winner by Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly. Shank becomes the fifth member of the TinCaps front office to win the award.
The 33-year-old Shank has worked for the ballclub since 2003, beginning his career with the Fort Wayne Wizards as a group sales representative. In 2005, he became the director of group sales, and was promoted to Vice-President-Ticket Sales in 2013. Shank was an instrumental part of the re-branding of the Wizards into the TinCaps, and the opening of Parkview Field in 2009.
“It is an incredible honor to be included in this group of individuals who are making a difference in the community every day,” Shank said. “I am certainly blessed to work with an amazing group of people and an organization that gives me the opportunity to do what I love while striving to make a positive difference in the community.”
Shank is an active member of the Fort Wayne community and is involved with many organizations including The Garrison Group, where he has helped raise more than $6,000 for Kate’s Kart and Pathway Community Church. He has also aided in the “1 Billion Rising” event at Parkview Field, been a participant in the #Ball4ACause basketball game fundraiser, helped in the production of a “Stand Up to Bullying” program for approximately 5,000 local students, participated in the Three Rivers Festival Bed Race and is currently enrolled in Leadership Fort Wayne.
A native of Richmond, Indiana, Shank is well-known for being the on-field emcee during TinCaps home games and a member of the award-winning Bad Apple Dancers. He is a 1998 graduate of Richmond High School and a 2002 graduate of Taylor University (Upland Campus) with a degree in Business Administration.
Along with Shank, other TinCaps staff members to have won the award include Vice President-Marketing Michael Limmer, President Mike Nutter, Vice President-Finance Brian Schackow, and Senior Ticket Account Manager Justin Shurley.
Shank, along with the 39 other young professionals recognized for their contributions to the community, will be honored Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at a dinner at Ceruti’s Banquet and Event Center in Fort Wayne. The 40-member class will also be featured in a special edition of the Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly, distributed March 21st to 24,000 readers in 12 Northeast Indiana counties.