I'm still processing this one.
I was honored to receive the 2026 John F. Bell, Sr. Vanguard Award from the Minority Business Alliance of the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce. It's a prestigious award, and I'm so grateful.
Honoring Legacy and Community Connection
The award is named for John F. Bell, Sr., who founded J.F. Bell Funeral Home, the oldest operating Black-owned business in Charlottesville. Having my name connected to a legacy of Black entrepreneurship and leadership in this town is something I don't take lightly. I'm also receiving it behind a lot of incredible people who've been honored before me, many of them friends of mine. Antwon Brinson, Khalilah Jones, Sabrina Feggans, Will Jones, Kaye Monroe and Hollie Lee, to name a few. What company to be in!
I also want to congratulate Jen Solomon of 29 News, who received the award as well. Jen does an incredible job telling intentional stories about this community, the kind that reflect the people who actually live here. I spent a lot of my own years at 29, so sharing this with someone from my old stomping grounds made it even sweeter! There must be something about that building.
The Power of Storytelling
Storytelling is huge to me. It always has been. This year's Vanguard Award theme was all about using your platform to help others be seen. For me, that platform is storytelling. That hit home!
In our culture, storytelling has always been how things get passed down. It's how we learned where we came from, who our people were, what they went through and what they built. A lot of what I know about my own family came from sitting and listening to the older folks talk. That tradition is still alive. We just do it in our modern way now, with a phone camera, a caption, a video.
At the heart of what I do at 4Z Digital is storytelling. I spent more than 15 years in broadcast before going out on my own, and the job really hasn't changed. I find the people, businesses and nonprofits doing good work in this community and I make sure folks hear about them. So being on the other side of the spotlight for this award felt a little strange. I'm usually the one pointing the camera.
The Feeling of Being Seen
The part I keep coming back to is that it feels amazing to be seen. You show up, you do what you do, and you're never really sure if anybody's noticing. To have the MBA and so many people around me say they see it? That's special.
It's important to me to honor other people. To see them and acknowledge them. Now that I know how good it feels to be seen, I want to keep doing that for others even more.
Deep Roots in Albemarle County
At my core, I'm a country boy from Esmont, Virginia. My family's roots run deep in southern Albemarle County, and a lot of that goes back to my grandparents. They aren't with us anymore, but I think about how proud they'd be to see this honor. These days I live in Scottsville and work in and around Charlottesville every day. This community raised me, from a kid all the way into adult life, and it still lifts me up all the time.
Leadership and Community Support
Leadership has always been important to me, even if I didn't realize it or wouldn't have called it that. It probably started with being a big brother. Before I started my business, I went through Leadership Charlottesville through the Chamber. Andrea Copeland led the program then, and she's now the Chamber's President and CEO! I'm from here, and that program still showed me sides of this community I'd never seen. It opened my eyes. Since then I've been fortunate to serve with the United Way of Greater Charlottesville, Discover Black Cville and more. A lot of that I never would have imagined!
I was getting great advice from other entrepreneurs before I ever launched 4Z Digital, and that hasn't stopped. When I finally did launch in 2020, right as COVID hit, I didn't expect to get so much support and love from this community. Folks became clients. Folks checked in. The business community, and the minority business community especially, had my back from day one, and they still do. I wouldn't be where I am without the people around me.
Empowering the Next Generation
Being a Black entrepreneur in Charlottesville is something I'm proud of. I get to run my own business in the place I grew up, and I don't take that for granted. I look at every disadvantage as something to overcome and then something to build on. Whenever I can, I talk with aspiring entrepreneurs about their goals and give advice where I can. I tell them the same thing every time. Start. Do it! Start small on the side if you need to. Get out there and meet people. You'll find folks who'll support you. I know because I did.
Inspirations and Family Legacy
My mother is one of my biggest inspirations. She raised four of us boys, and we came from humble beginnings. Whatever needed to happen, she made it happen, and she did it with an unyielding positivity she still has to this day. No time for complaining! I carry that with me every day.
My wife, Shelly, inspires me every day. She started her entrepreneurial journey with Counting Shells Bookkeeping before I started mine, and watching her showed me what was out there and what was possible.
Our two daughters are a big reason I started a business in the first place. For one, I wanted control of my time and control of my destiny, and I wanted more time with my family. I also wanted our girls to see up close that they can create their own path. Everything I'm building is for them.
I'm here because of the people who came before me. My ancestors, my grandparents, my mom. I'm building on their legacy, and one day our daughters will build on ours.
Looking Ahead
All of this has been added motivation. Fuel to keep going, do more and keep building. Thank you to the Minority Business Alliance and to everyone who has supported me along the way. I've still got a long way to go. Honestly, it feels like I'm just getting started, and I can't wait to see what the future brings!
