CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Eleven West Virginians with extensive backgrounds in business, law and education have agreed to serve on the WV Game Changers Inc. Board of Directors beginning Sept. 1, 2021.
The WV Game Changer Board will include Clarksburg businessman David B. Alvarez, member of the West Virginia University Board of Governors; Joe Boczek, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Game Changer; Meredith Dailer, Wheeling Park High School Principal; John Ebert, President, JW Ebert Corporation and owner of 41 McDonald’s, including 36 in West Virginia; Karen Farmer, statewide community volunteer; Charleston Attorney Angel Moore, member of the Marshall University Board of Governors; Bailey and Glasser Attorney Rebecca Pomeroy; Founding member Larry Puccio, President of Larry Puccio LLC; Leah Summers, Head of Community Outreach and Engagement, Viatris, Inc.; Harrison County Superintendent of Schools Dora Stutler, and Brian Waugh, President of Par Mar Oil Company which operates 180 ParMar Stores and Mountaineer Marts, including 100 throughout West Virginia.
West Virginia Governor Jim Justice, who serves as Head Coach of West Virginia Game Changer, says this is just another example of West Virginians coming together to address the opioid and substance misuse epidemic.
“This an absolutely impressive list of people from around our state who have offered to give their time and talents to such an excellent initiative. I want to be the first to thank each and every one of them. Their backgrounds are extensive in their fields, and I know their heart is in eradicating this terrible epidemic.”
Boczek, who has directed the West Virginia Game Changer initiative since its inception says he is excited to serve and work for and with such an impressive list of West Virginians.
“I am excited individuals of this caliber have such a strong belief in West Virginia Game Changer that they have volunteered to serve on the Board of Directors. Most importantly I am gratified I will have a chance to work with such an outstanding group of individuals.”
West Virginia Game Changer is a student-powered prevention program created to address the opioid and substance misuse epidemic in West Virginia. The WV Game Changer model is a multi-faceted approach with engagement tools, prevention programming and collaborations with the public and private sector to bring the best prevention education programs to elementary, middle and high school students in the Mountain State. Prevention Solutions, part of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation, delivers key, research-informed, best practices programming for WV Game Changer, providing students with the knowledge, understanding, and skills needed to make intelligent, healthy choices about alcohol and other drug use.
Through collaboration with the Governor’s Office, the West Virginia Secondary Schools Athletic Commission, the West Virginia Department of Education, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, the West Virginia Office of Drug Control Policy, the West Virginia Drug Intervention Institute, Prevention First West Virginia, and the state’s six Prevention Lead Organizations, WV Game Changer incorporates existing infrastructure to implement and support its prevention efforts.
