Letter from the
Photo by Liv Hefner Photography .
Fall in West Virginia is second to none . Our gorgeous landscape gets painted with vibrant oranges , yellows and reds that draw in visitors from miles around and encourage the locals to get out and enjoy some of what West Virginia has to offer before winter sets in . Fall ushers in not only the changing of the leaves but also football , giant sunflowers , cool mornings , all things pumpkin at the West Virginia Pumpkin Festival , an exciting new school year and , at West Virginia Executive ( WVE ), a new class of Young Guns . I , like many others , love fall in West Virginia .
Our annual Young Guns issue is both a challenge and a joy each year . It is no small feat to organize 10 separate photo shoots , sometimes in multiple locations across the state , in such a short window . A special thank you goes out to Silling Architects for being this year ’ s Young Guns photo sponsor as well as to Tracy Toler , photographer extraordinaire , who works tirelessly with me on this project each year . Our Young Guns award program is the longestrunning program to be featured in WVE and began in 1999 . It is an awesome opportunity to meet and make new friends as well as a chance to reconnect with old ones .
The 2023 class includes two friends I made while participating in Leadership West Virginia in 2015 . It is not unusual for past Leadership West Virginia graduates to be featured in our award programs , but this was the first time two members of my graduating class were selected at the same time . It was wonderful to catch up with them , and I am excited to welcome all of the recipients to this class .
As you ’ re reading this issue and someone comes to mind that you think would make an outstanding Young Gun , please don ’ t hesitate to nominate them . We take nominations year-round and look forward to seeing who will be nominated for the 2024 class . •
Kensie Hamilton Fauber Publisher
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WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE