“I’m having more fun than I’ve ever had in my life,” says Scott Lingle ’90, who majored in business administration at Olivet Nazarene University. “I know I’m doing what God wired me to do.”
Although Scott became an entrepreneur later in life, God has greatly blessed the two businesses he started. He is now in a position to give back and pour into entrepreneurs in a redemptive way. As one of the founders of the ONU McGraw School of Business’ Createur Conference and entrepreneurship program, he is contributing his gifts and talents to helping young entrepreneurs create faith-based businesses.
Where To Start
In 2021, with the seed of an idea, Scott and a group of alumni approached University President Gregg Chenoweth ’90 and McGraw School of Business Dean Glen Rewerts during Homecoming. They proposed setting up a program that would become the top faith-based business entrepreneurship program in the United States. Alumni would serve as funders and mentors.
“I led the fundraising team and secured the funds to get everything started,” Scott recalls. “To get it going, we needed 13 students to enroll in the program. For the first year, in 2023, we had 18 students enrolled. As we continued to dream, the Createur Conference became the pinnacle event of the program.”
Launched in 2023, the Createur Conference and Pitch Competition is a two-day event that brings together successful entrepreneurs, alumni, college students, high school students and faculty members. Guest speakers share from their entrepreneurial wisdom and RAVING FANS Scott Lingle ’90 experiences during Spark Session and keynote talks. The Pitch Competition offers two divisions — College and High School — for a share of the $20,000-plus prize pool. Networking and encouragement are also important elements of this event.
“I congratulate Dr. Rewerts for making attendance at the conference and competition a requirement for all ONU business students,” Scott says. “That brings so much additional energy to the event. I dream of the day when ONU makes this a school-wide event.”
Also launched in 2023 — with the help of professor Chris Perez and Karli Byrd ’23 — was The Createur podcast. Episodes highlight alumni business owners who share insights about their entrepreneurial journeys. The goal is to help connect alumni entrepreneurs with students and one another.
How To Continue
Scott is definitely living out the vision he has helped to create for the ONU program.
“ONU got me rooted in my faith and helped me think about business very differently, in a faith-driven way,” he says. “My wife, Linda [Matthias ’90], and I started Remodel Health. The company is going strong in its 11th year and has earned the Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies in America ranking for the past four years.”
Remodel Health began by selling health insurance to many churches in Indiana, Scott’s home state. The business goal was to save churches $1 million on their insurance expenses so that they were able to invest those funds directly into their ministries. In 2023 the company celebrated its client churches’ investment of $100 million back into ministry. The company invited pastors and other church leaders into its headquarters and gave them a platform to share their ministry success stories.
Today, Remodel Health sells health insurance to churches, nonprofits and small businesses with 1,000 employees or fewer. Many of Remodel Health’s 111 employees — including the top two sales representatives — are graduates of ONU. The company is committed to hiring ONU talent whenever possible.
Scott and Linda’s three sons, Tyler, Kyle and Ryan, also have entrepreneurial endeavors. Tyler ’17 and Kyle ’22 were Spark presenters at the 2024 Createur Conference. Their daughter, Macy, whom they adopted from China, is currently a sophomore in high school. In addition, Scott and Linda are brand-new grandparents of River and Cal Lingle.
Scott is one of more than 30 members of his extended family who have attended or graduated from ONU. He maintains his ONU connections by being part of a group of eight ONU alumni who have attended the Annual Olivet Open — Watson Memorial Golf Series and Homecoming events together each year since 1990.
Never Finished
Another aspect of Scott’s passion for young entrepreneurs is his work with underserved high school students through Shepherd Community Center in Indianapolis. Shepherd’s mission is to break the cycle of poverty by serving the people living on the near east side of the city. Food security, mentoring, education and advocacy are the focus.
Scott is helping to build an entrepreneurship path for high school students and young adults up to age 21. He assists them in starting their own home services businesses by providing the initial financial investment and then meeting them once a week for one hour to mentor them. He has also formed a team of business owners to serve as mentors. The program is SideHustleSchool.org, and the vision is to someday scale this nationwide.
“We are working to create redemptive entrepreneurs who put people over profit,” Scott says. “We want them to start and succeed with their faith-based businesses. Faith-based businesses must be built right with a love for employees and customers. These businesses can be a platform for Kingdom impact in our world.”
From Olivet The Magazine, A Need to Belong – Summer 2024. Read the full issue here.
