2026 Distinguished Communicator of the Year
Brian Combs
This year’s recipient of the Distinguished Communicator of the Year Award is Brian Combs, who has served as the morning news anchor for 700 WLW News Radio for 20 of his 40 years with the station, working alongside Jim Scott, Mike McConnell and Thom Brennaman.
In their nomination, colleagues praised Brian for his “encyclopedic knowledge of our collective history,” noting that he “doesn’t just report the news – he understands the context and the connections that make the story meaningful… he genuinely cares about people and our city.”
A Cincinnati native and graduate of Elder High School and Xavier University, Brian has earned numerous honors throughout his career, including Associated Press awards and the prestigious Edward R. Murrow Award. Beyond the newsroom, he shares his time and talents with students at Archbishop McNicholas High School, serving as a coach and Kairos retreat leader.
2026 Lifetime Achievement Award
Sister Angela Ann Zukowski, MHSH
The Salesian Guild is honored to present Sister Angela Ann Zukowski, MHSH with the Lifetime Achievement Award for Catholic Communicators. A Mission Helper of the Sacred Heart, Sister Angela Ann serves as Executive Director of the internationally renowned Institute for Pastoral Initiatives at the University of Dayton, where she has taught in the Department of Religious Studies for more than 45 years.
A trailblazer in using emerging communication technologies for evangelization and education, she helped launch early distance‑learning programs in the 1980s that have since grown into the global Virtual Learning Community for Faith Formation (VLCFF). She is the co‑author of several books, including The Gospel and the Internet and Voices of Courage: An International Profile of Women in Catholic Communications.
Sister Angela Ann served on the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Social Communications (1994–2002) and has received numerous honors, including the Salesian Guild’s 2004 Distinguished Communicator of the Year Award.
Since 1994, the Salesian Guild has awarded the Distinguished Communicator of the Year award to a Catholic communicator who exemplifies the Guild’s core values of integrity, professionalism, fellowship, and idealism.
These Catholic communicators have demonstrated excellent communication skills, have impacted the people in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati through their work, and have exemplified religious values in work and in life.
Past Winners Include:
Year
Name
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
Jeanne Hunt
2017
Michael D. Pitman
2016
Maryanne Zeleznik
2015
Rev. Robert Hater
2014
Tom Sparough
2013
Mark Curnutte
2012
Nick Clooney
2011
Most Rev. Daniel E. Pilarczyk
2010
Judy Ball
2009
Rev. Greg Friedman, O.F.M.
2008
Brian Patrick
2007
Patricia A. Frey
2006
Melvin Grier
2005
Michael Flannery
2004
Sr. Angela Ann Zukowski, MHSH
2003
Dan Andriacco
2002
Jeremy Harrington, O.F.M.
2001
John Kiesewetter
2000
Scott Barkley
1999
Dan Hurley
1998
Elizabeth Bookser Barkley
1997
Charles Carey
1996
Norman Perry, O.F.M.
1995
Harriet Janszen
1994
Dane Kane