Entrepreneur Emeritus

In early 2022 the Edward Lowe Foundation launched a new initiative — Entrepreneur Emeritus (E2). The idea is to collaborate directly with highly experienced entrepreneurs as we strive to enhance existing programs and explore new opportunities.

Entrepreneur Emeritus

Helping others reach the summit

Our founder, Ed Lowe, was a huge fan of peer learning, which is integrated into nearly all of our programs. “E2 elevates peer learning to a new level — it’s about delivering programs for entrepreneurs by entrepreneurs,” says Colleen Killen-Roberts, the foundation’s vice president of entrepreneurship.“We like to compare our portfolio of services to climbing a mountain, because each program builds off another. An E2 has already reached the summit of the mountain and wants to help guide others to the top.”

E2 participants can engage in a variety of roles (see sidebar story). Good candidates are second-stage entrepreneurs who:

Have exited their businesses or are contemplating an exit.
Understand the role of nonprofits and government-support programs within the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Have participated in a variety of Edward Lowe Foundation programs and have values that align with the foundation.
Have a strong desire to positively impact the trajectory of the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Just as Ed Lowe believed that successful entrepreneurs are innately wired to pursue opportunities for their businesses, he also believed they share a desire to help fellow business owners grow and make a difference in the world. “Entrepreneurs of a championship calibre,” he wrote, “without exception, are prone to give back their achieved surpluses so that their legacy carries on.”

A quick look at E2 in action: Dave Galbenski

In 1993 Dave Galbenski founded Lumen Legal, a legal staffing company based in Michigan. Together with his wife, Lynn, Dave scaled Lumen Legal to a national presence before selling it in 2020 to a company backed by a global private equity fund. He is a former global chairman of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization and currently co-founder of the Living Liver Foundation.

As our inaugural Entrepreneur Emeritus (E2), Dave has served in a variety of roles:

After completing PeerSpectives® facilitator training, he led a six-month roundtable for the Missouri SBDC.
Dave participated in other roundtables and retreats as a “guest entrepreneur.” The goal was to share his perspective and experience with the foundation’s services.
He led a retreat module on how to successfully sell a business.
He spearheaded the E2 Fund as a vehicle for individuals who wish to contribute to the foundation’s endowment and perpetuate Ed Lowe’s vision of the foundation having resources to go on forever.

“For more than 20 years, the programs of the Edward Lowe Foundation and the beauty of Big Rock Valley have transformed me personally and professionally,” says Dave. “The role of E2 allows me to pay that gift forward through sharing my experiences while having fun along the way.”