West Virginia Executive Spring 2018 | Page 104

Eric J. Lewis, CPA Member Ours, Lawyer, Lewis & Company, PLLC KATLIN SWISHER Photo by Taylor Mendzela. BEFORE HE DISCOVERED his passion for numbers, Eric Lewis wanted to be a pilot. He was on his way to fulfilling this dream at the U.S. Air Force Academy when he was ruled too tall to be a pilot or navigator. Over time, his definition of adventure changed from high-altitude flights to the thrilling risk of a new business venture. In 1997 at the age of 24, he quit his job as a staff accountant to join a 10-person internet startup. “I learned so much taking that risk,” he says. “It made me better for the clients I serve today, and the friendships and 102 WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE connections I made then have lasted all these years.” Today, Lewis is a certified public accountant (CPA) and member at Ours, Lawyer, Lewis & Company, PLLC, a com- pany he built with fellow accountants Tom Ours, CPA, and Chad Lawyer, CPA, after combining their three Eastern Pan- handle practices in June 2007. “We saw an opportunity in the Eastern Panhandle to create a larger full-service CPA firm with a focus on hands-on client service,” says Lewis. “I was fortunate to link up with Tom