Throughout Brad D. Smith’s 11-year tenure as Intuit’s CEO, he always had a desire to return to West Virginia and reconnect with his roots. In 2019, Brad stepped down from Intuit and co-founded the Wing 2 Wing Foundation with his wife, Alys. This marked his first step towards returning to "The Mountain State" as an advocate for the region.
The Wing 2 Wing Foundation was established to level the playing field of economic opportunity throughout the Appalachian region. A main priority of Brad’s is to transform “the seventy-five percent reality.” This means that while seventy-five percent of the next generation has entrepreneurial aspirations, seventy-five percent of venture capital is controlled by just three states.
Brad and Alys founded Wing 2 Wing based on three core principles, fostering educational, entrepreneurial, and environmental pursuits across the region. Four years later, the Wing 2 Wing Foundation is still operating with the same guiding principles to improve the economic opportunities available to West Virginians.
Expanding The Ascend West Virginia Program
In 2021, the Wing 2 Wing Foundation partnered with The West Virginia Department of Tourism and West Virginia University to create Ascend West Virginia, a program created to attract remote workers to live and plant roots in West Virginia. Since the program’s inception, over 350 people have moved to the state and now call it home.
In 2023, two years after the launch of Ascend West Virginia, Brad and his team knew they wanted to grow the program and started to think of ways to keep local young professionals in the state after graduating from college. Through his work as the President of Marshall University, Brad was able to identify the greatest wants and needs of new graduates in the area. Using this knowledge, the Wing 2 Wing team launched a spinoff program to Ascend West Virginia called First Ascent West Virginia.
First Ascent West Virginia encourages recent graduates of West Virginia University and Marshall University to start their professional careers in West Virginia. Program participants receive business mentoring, networking opportunities, and access to coworking spaces and other professional resources. The program also focuses on the beauty and natural wonders West Virginia has to offer that make it a great place for work-life balance.
Leading the First Women Warriors Summit
Another new initiative that the Wing 2 Wing Foundation helped launch in 2023 is the Women Warriors Summit (WWS). Wing 2 Wing Co-founder Alys Smith spearheaded the creation of the summit to gather women and allies of all backgrounds to help inspire, grow, and celebrate the women of West Virginia.
The Women Warriors Summit (WWS) was a one-day event that featured workshops, training sessions, and presentations aimed at empowering women's voices across the state. Over 750 people attended the inaugural summit to work together to create a better today and tomorrow for women in the Appalachian region.
Sponsoring the Inaugural Almost Heaven Classic
2023 was a year of firsts for the Wing 2 Wing Foundation and West Virginia. Outside of the launch of the Women Warriors Summit and First Ascent West Virginia, the Almost Heaven Golf Classic held its inaugural event last year.
The Almost Heaven Classic was created to provide Mountaineers with the opportunity to connect, network, and foster professional and personal relationships. Before any golfing took place, attendees were invited to a full-day professional summit that featured some of the best business leaders across West Virginia.
Wing 2 Wing was a high-level sponsor and enjoyed being a part of the first Almost Heaven Classic. Wing 2 Wing co-founder Brad D. Smith participated in a panel discussion at the summit. Brad focused on the state's notable achievements and discussed some of the ongoing efforts that are aimed at providing future economic opportunities across the region.
Investing in Local Startup, Rhetoric
Fostering entrepreneurship is one of the core pillars of the Wing 2 Wing Foundation. By providing business coaching, mentoring, and investment support, the Wing 2 Wing team has played a pivotal role in nurturing the establishment of several startups.
In 2023, The Wing 2 Wing Foundation invested in local startup, Rhetoric. Rhetoric was founded by Luke Yingling, a born and raised West Virginian and WVU alum. Rhetoric is a legal technology startup that leverages AI to help lawyers make data-driven arguments in court. The platform prides itself on helping litigators know more, persuade more, and win more cases.
Maintaining Momentum
2023 was an amazing year for the Wing 2 Wing Foundation. Now, five years into operations, the organization remains focused on its commitment to empower and create economic opportunities for the people of West Virginia.
Learn more about the Wing 2 Wing Foundation and its ongoing efforts at:
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