NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Startup Fund has announced that entrepreneurs Damon Burns and Courtney Williams and attorneys G.F. Gay LeBreton and Sharonda Williams have joined its board of directors.
“These new members joining the Startup Fund have distinguished careers across sectors and broad expertise on issues related to entrepreneurship, business growth, and economic development,” said NOSF Chair Matt Wisdom. “The evergreen fund, local companies, and our regional economy will benefit greatly from their leadership.”
As a nonprofit evergreen fund, NOSF re-invests its returns to expand the number of successful, growing businesses in its portfolio. In the decade since its founding, it has invested in some 60 companies that, together, have raised more than $194.5 million in venture capital and created more than 680 full-time and 122 part-time jobs.
The NOSF board provides oversight of investments, interacts with prospective and current fund recipients, and monitors the overall health of the fund.
“For every dollar we invested in our portfolio companies, in aggregate, they were able to raise $60 in follow-on capital. And as our fund continues to grow, so does our portfolio of companies and their impact on our regional economy,” said NOSF CEO Jimmy Roussel. “With the counsel of our new board members, we will continue supporting more venture-ready companies and creating prosperity across greater New Orleans.”
In addition to Wisdom and the four new members, the NOSF Board includes Michael Hecht, president and CEO of Greater New Orleans Inc. and A. Peyton Bush IV, chief investment officer at Bollinger Enterprises, LLC. They recognized the outstanding service of departing founding members Ben Allen, George Wilson, Leslie Jacobs and Allen Square.
