John Michael Pierce Entrepreneurial Fund

The John Michael Pierce Entrepreneurial Fund has been established by Duane Donner and Founders Advisors to honor and continue John Michael's legacy as a fun loving, entrepreneurial and impactful person.

The purpose of the fund is to invest in aspiring entrepreneurs, like John Michael, who are chasing their dreams.

Every year, an entrepreneur with the best business idea will be chosen to receive up to $100,000 in funding. Selection criteria will be based on quantitative analysis of the entrepreneur's plan as well as how the entrepreneur matches the personality and enthusiasm of John Michael.

To donate online, please select an amount above. If you prefer to mail your donation, send to:

John Michael Pierce Entrepreneurial Fund
c/o Founders Advisors  2400 5th Avenue South, Suite 200
Birmingham AL 35233

John Michael would love knowing that this fund for entrepreneurs was created in his honor and that it will help someone's dreams come true!

The 2023 winner of the John Michael Pierce Entrepreneurial Award

Daniel Walsh is the founder of VeroSkills, an educational platform that offers training and mentoring opportunities, specifically focused on coding and software development. 

It aims to support underprivileged students by providing access to training, mentoring by top software developers, and fostering competitive career opportunities.

"Every aspect of what we do is an impact-based platform. The companies that are engaged to make a greater impact — to move the needle. The students — they are being taken out of poverty and trained and put into this great opportunity. The tutors are some of the most skilled software engineers in the world — they're making great money already but they join our platform not to make more money, but to make a difference." - Daniel Walsh

Congratulations Daniel for winning the Second Annual JMP Entrepreneurial Award!

The 2022 winner of the John Michael Pierce Entrepreneurial Award

Barrett Merrill is the founder of Storyline, a mental health care app. Storyline is a first-of-its-kind narrative engagement mobile app with a vision to help people better connect to their stories so they can heal and thrive.

Its purpose is to make "doing the work" of mental health more convenient and adventurous by creating powerful tools and journaling exercises so that you can experience life to the full. Congratulations Barrett for winning the first annual JMP Entrepreneurial Award!

(L to R) Chad Merrill, Patti Pierce, Jeff Pierce, Barrett Merrill, Duane Donner, Chris Jenkins