“Hats Off” To Fred Bagg, One of “The Best”

The PRSA Hoosier Chapter celebrates a legend in the profession as Fred Bagg, ABC, APR, Fellow PRSA, recently retired after 35 years at Franciscan St. Francis Health.

Bagg is a longtime member and supporter of the PRSA Hoosier Chapter. He has held numerous leadership positions within IABC, PRSA, PRSA Hoosier Chapter and the American Society of Health Care Marketing and Public Relations. In 2003, Bagg was elected to the prestigious PRSA College of Fellows, where he served on the national board and was its national chair in 2011. He also taught numerous public relations professionals through his 30 years of teaching marketing and communications graduate courses at the University of Indianapolis and at IUPUI.

Bagg’s friend and colleague, Billie J. (Scott) Fouts, has written a “Hats Off” tribute as he enters the next phase of his life. We share that tribute with you below:

Indianapolis is blessed with many accomplished communications professionals, to be sure, but if you were to survey the entirety of the public relations, community relations and media communities in our community seeking the names of members of our profession who could rightfully be classified as the “Best of the Best”, there is one name that would appear high on virtually everyone’s list:

“Frederick Bagg, ABC, APR, Fellow PRSA”

That’s the way he is introduced on his LinkedIn page, which you are encouraged to visit to learn what you never knew about this local PR legend. On that page you can read about this Indianapolis resident whose pursuit of higher education landed him on three Indianapolis college campuses, plus a fourth where he taught for many years. You’ll read all about his career spanning some 35 years at Franciscan St. Francis Health, a tenure virtually unheard of in contemporary times.

You may also read about him in “Who’s Who in Public Relations” to which he was first elected in 1994. And a Google search will no doubt unearth countless other facts about Frederick Bagg.

For example, you may read about his stint in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War era, and you certainly will find a long list of professional affiliations and leadership positions in organizations spanning the full spectrum of marketing, communications and public relations fields, capped off by his 2011 national chairmanship of PRSA’s College of Fellows.

But it’s not just about “what Fred has done”. More so, it’s about “who Fred is.” Fred is the person you might have worked with who you quickly realized was not only well educated and very experienced in all facets of marketing, public relations, communications and community relations, but extremely smart, resourceful, methodical, adaptable and forward-thinking.

Fred is the adjunct professor who you might have been blessed to study under at U of I or IUPUI who imparted to you not just his textbook knowledge, but who brought it all to life with such enthusiasm and a rich tapestry of experiences to which you could virtually always relate.

And Fred is the fellow professional with whom you might have sat at a PRSA or IABC luncheon where you might learn about his passions – for learning, for his family, for adventure and, last but not least, for his work at St. Francis Hospital.

Fred, our heartiest of congratulations.  All of us – whether we’ve been by your side, at your knee, or perhaps even don’t yet know you — have a vast amount of respect for what you have accomplished (and still may, knowing you!) You embody the highest ideals of our profession. You have truly left your mark. And we thank you for the contributions you have made to our profession.

Billie J. (Scott) Fouts is vice president of marketing and development for The International Center and a longtime friend and colleague of Fred Bagg.