By Stephen Smoot
From the opioid crisis came lawsuits that led to an opioid settlement. From the opioid settlement came significant resources to help communities contend with the ravages of that crisis. The West Virginia First Foundation was then established to manage and disburse those funds effectively and for the very long term.
The Honorable Jeff Sunday, Board Treasurer, provided a financial report in which he shared what a “great accounting job Anthony Woods has done.” Woods shared that the Foundation had in both cash and investments $324,277,784 with the investments, following a formula emphasizing minimizing risk, up by 8.75 percent.
The Executive Director Johnathan Board provided his update, noting that “the state of the Foundation is very strong.”
Next came discussion of the grant opportunity that opened Monday of this week and whose application process will extend through October 10
The Momentum Initiative Grant, Board explained, reflected a “thoughtful and rigorous approach.” Board members and other attendees heard how the process examined unintended barriers that made application difficult for some.
After “ a deep dive of what a successful application looks like,” tools were put in place to help to educate applicants on how their request will have the best chance of acceptance. That includes a “much more user-friendly” website.
Another tool for applicants is a list of previous grantees to give a better picture of how to succeed in the process.
John Dower expressed “thanks to the staff and committee.” He added that “there’s lots and lots of time . . . tirelessly spent putting this together” and shred that many changes came directly from feedback.
“I’m excited for West Virginia,” he shared and said “I hope we get a lot of applicants.”
The brief meeting had one more major bit of business. Matt Harvey resigned as President of the Board. The former Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney was awaiting news of confirmation of his appointment as United States Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia by President Donald Trump.
Harvey has served with the Foundation since its opening days. He offered his resignation and the Board selected one of its own, Greg Duckworth, to fill the leadership role.
“This has been one of the greatest honors of my life,” noted Harvey “alongside people who share that mission with passion and heart. I’m proud of what we accomplished as a team and continue to support this mission.”
Duckworth responded that “it’s been an honor serving with you. Thank you for your leadership.”
The West Virginia First Foundation was established by then-Attorney General Patrick Morrisey to administer funds from opioid lawsuit settlements. Its work has helped communities and other entities to roll back the scourge of the opioid crisis through numerous initiatives.
