Huntington, W.Va. – WV Secretary of State Kris Warner was the keynote speaker Tuesday evening in Huntington for a special dinner to welcome individual, corporate, and philanthropic investors to the 2026 Appalachia Funders Network Gathering. More than 120 individuals attended the dinner hosted by Coalfield Development at the West Edge Factory in Huntington.
Since 2010, the Appalachia Funders Network (AFN) has brought together public, private, and philanthropic funders with other investors to create transformational impacts in the Appalachian Region. The AFN's unique blend of leadership, capacity building, and highly collaborative work is a formula to enact transition for the region.
Below are the comments made by Secretary Warner during his dinner presentation:
Bill, thank you for that introduction.To each of our visitors: welcome to West Virginia! It’s almost heaven for a reason. I hope you'll get to see why.And "thank you" to the West Virginians in the room who've brought this year's conference to Huntington. This city embodies the history, resilience, and resolve that have brought us all here today.
It is a privilege to be here with you this evening as we acknowledge the important work of the Appalachia Funders Network. After all, this is an organization based on location.
Our presence here matters.Where you choose to gather matters. And where you choose to invest matters even more.
I come to you today not only as West Virginia's Secretary of State....I come with a lifetime of Appalachian economic development experience.....successes and failures.
The Appalachian region has long contributed to the economic, cultural, and civic life of our nation. Rather, the Appalachian people have contributed…our people have powered industries, defended democracy, and built communities grounded in faith, family, and hard work.
But we have also faced persistent challenges, economic disinvestment, population loss, public health crises.....on top of a landscape that has inherently resisted development.
Despite all this, the story of Appalachia today is not one of charity......it is one of engagement with opportunity.And that is where this organization plays such a vital role.
Philanthropic funders like those in this room are uniquely positioned to do what markets and government often cannot: take the long view. You can invest where risk is real, but so is possibility.You can seed innovation, build local leadership, and support community solutions that do not always fit neatly into an annual budget cycle or a quarterly report.
Long-term economic recovery in Appalachia especially in West Virginia and Kentucky is not about quick wins. It is about patient capital and persistent partnership.It is about investing in people as much as in programs.It is about trusting local communities to define success and giving them the tools to achieve it.The transformative investments necessary in Appalachia are not measured solely in an annual-percentage rate. Their returns are far greater.
They are measured in children who stay because opportunity is finally local.In workers who can retrain and retool for a changing economy.In entrepreneurs who build community-based enterprises and businesses rooted in location.In healthier communities, stronger civic institutions, and renewed hope.You see these returns in development initiatives that support and align with regional strengths.In internet connectivity investments that open doors to education, telemedicine, and entrepreneurship.In support of substance use recovery, mental health care, and community health systems that restore dignity and save lives.In arts and cultural investments that reassert Appalachian identity not as a stereotype, but as a source of pride.
What makes the Appalachia Funders Network so powerful is not only the capital you deploy, but the collaboration you encourage, and the hopes you bring to fruition.This organization… and particularly, this gathering is essential to Appalachian growth and success.
As you convene, you collaborate and learn from one another. You understand that no single funder, state, or organization can solve complex regional challenges alone.
Progress happens when individual missions align and partnerships endure through the lean times to see the plenty.
Your continued engagement in Appalachia sends an important message: that Appalachia is not a forgotten backwater from an older day; that its people and communities are worth investing in; that its future is not predetermined - but rather supported by - its past.
There is no greater example of the resilience and resolve necessary to build on our history than in the story of Coalfield Development. This is an organization worth supporting: one that builds up from the ground up, and in all sectors at once! In that very vein, I am also proud to announce the creation of the WV Office of Entrepreneurship! One of only eight in the nation and the very first office to be the direct responsibility of a statewide elected official.
The office of entrepreneurship will be focused on:
1. Coordinating public and private resources.
2. Streamlining, governmental processes and services.
3. Making referrals to specific individuals at appropriate agencies.
4. Working directly with entrepreneurs and small businesses to identify red tape and areas of improvement.
5. And then recommending policy changes to agencies and the state legislature to create a better business environment for that critical majority of businesses in the state.
All in an effort to support organizations like Coalfield Development.But that partnership only works if it has met with equal effort. Government cannot build the future alone. And it should not try to.It requires the men and women in this room, the funders, business owners, investors, innovators, and community leaders – to bring that same level of commitment to the table.
So when you see a need - fill it.
When you see an opportunity- pursue it.
When your community lacks something- and someone is willing to build it—fund it!
I am excited by the future of the WV Entrepreneurship Ecosystem! I’m sure it will build a resilient environment for entrepreneurs and small business owners throughout West Virginia.
{By the way, I'd be remiss if I didn't recognize the leadership of Bill Woodrum, who served as one of the original co-directors of WV Entrepreneurship Ecosystem that started back in 2017.
Bill, thank you for your continued leadership and support.}
As you continue to meet here over the next couple of days may you see not just challenges, but opportunity - not just needs, but capacity, not just projects, but people ready to build a future worthy of this remarkable effort.
We are grateful for your partnership, your vision, and your continued investment in Appalachia. The returns measured in resilience, opportunity, and shared prosperity are already taking shape.
Thank you for having me here this evening.
