Ainsworth to be featured speaker at C3 event

GUIN — The 14th Annual “State of the Region” Meeting of C3 of Northwest Alabama Economic Development Alliance, Inc. will be held on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. This event will be at the Vernon City Hall at 44425 State Highway 17 in Vernon. Registration and brunch will be from 9-10 a.m., with the program and awards presentation to follow. This year’s featured speaker will be Lieutenant Governor of the State of Alabama, Will Ainsworth. Ainsworth, husband to Kendall and father to Hunter, Hays and Addie, is a small business owner and farmer from Marshall County. Prior to entering public service, he worked as a youth pastor at Albertville’s Grace Fellowship Church. A co-founder of Dream Ranch Hunting Lodge and the Tennessee Valley Hunting and Fishing Expo, he currently owns Ainsworth Real Estate and Ainsworth Homes, which specialize in residential real estate construction and development. Ainsworth also operates a commercial cattle operation in Guntersville.
After feeling the call to serve his community through elected office, Ainsworth won a seat in the Alabama House of Representatives in 2014. While serving in the House, he was a champion for pre-K, K-12 and higher education, passed election integrity legislation and emphasized issues relating to business, agriculture and family values.
Keeping a self-imposed legislative term limit promise, Ainsworth declared his candidacy for lieutenant governor in 2018 and received the most votes of any candidate for constitutional office on the general election ballot. He was elected to a second term without major party opposition in 2022.
In addition to Ainsworth’s presentation, awards will be presented to the 2024 Champion of the Year and 2024 Industry of the Year. The meeting’s agenda will also include the gavel being passed from the outgoing chairman, Heath Reed of Northwest Alabama Gas District, to the incoming chairman, Kelli Foster of Alabama Credit Union.
The following sponsors are helping to support this event: Tombigbee Electric Cooperative, Alabama Power, Northwest Alabama Gas District, Alabama Technology Network and Warrior Investment Group.
C3 of Northwest Alabama Economic Development Alliance, Inc. represents Marion, Lamar and Fayette counties with a primary focus of marketing the three-county region to new and existing businesses for the creation and retention of jobs for area residents.
There is no charge to attend the meeting, but please RSVP by calling the C3 office at 205-468-3213 or emailing jchristian@northwestalabamaeda.org. The public is invited to attend.