Executive Director, Greater Bridgeport Convention & Visitors Bureau
by Jennifer Jett
HIS FONDEST childhood memories are those that involve his mother and their Friday night trip to Hills Department Store. Every week, she took him to the toy department and let him pick out a new Star Wars action figure. Darth Vader, C-3PO, Han Solo—these are the figures that shaped young Tim Brady’s childhood. And the force has been strong with this one ever since.
Of where this Clarksburg native is today as a professional, he says, “I’ve had a very circuitous path to where I am—I don’t even remember all of the twists and turns at times.” The boy who dreamed of being a professional baseball player held his first job at an early age when he worked for his best friend’s family’s catering business. Setting up rooms for events, serving food, bussing tables and bartending gave Brady his first taste of employment. After college, he went on to broadcast news, sports and weather for West Virginia Radio Corporation in Clarksburg.
From radio personality to executive director of the Greater Bridgeport CVB, Brady has been blessed to have numerous mentors in his life. “Early on, my mother and grandmother were strong influences on me,” he says. “My mom was a single mom until I was eight. I learned hard work and dedication from her. In my professional life, my radio mentor was Travis Jones, my first boss and someone who became one of my best friends. He taught me a lot about being a broadcaster and about professionalism. As a CVB director, Marianne Moran of the Marion County CVB has become my mentor.”
Along the way, Brady, who says his greatest motivation is his fear of failure, learned the importance of giving back to his community. Today, he serves in multiple capacities in the Clarksburg area. He is the immediate past president of the local Kiwanis Club, a member of the Fort New Salem Foundation board of directors, a member of the Harrison County Chamber of Commerce board of directors, the chairperson of the Bridgeport Benedum Festival Committee, the vice president of the Bridgeport Farmers Market Association, the chairperson of the Committee to Support the Harrison County Schools’ Levy for 2010, the 2010 and 2011 chairperson of the Harrison County Start Heart Walk for the American Heart Association and a volunteer staff member for the Bridgeport High School radio network which broadcasts high school basketball and football games. Brady was chosen as one of only two representatives for the board of directors of the Southeast Tourism Society. “It is important that West Virginia have a voice in discussions concerning regional tourism initiatives,” he says of his position. “It’s beneficial to my bureau, as well as to the state CVB association, in that I have the opportunity to network with—and exchange ideas with—tourism professionals from around the country.”
“I was raised to understand the importance of community service,” he says of his many volunteer positions. “I was around it all the time and was always aware of the need in our community.” Brady says that recognition he received through his time on the air waves has been a great asset for accomplishing things for his community. “If I can use that to help groups and organizations further their cause, I’m happy to do it.” Of his time spent broadcasting high school games, he says, “I don’t make a dime for the hours I devote to it, but I couldn’t give it up if I had to.”
Brady chooses to live and work in West Virginia because, quite simply, this is his home. “As early as I can remember, I loved this state and all of the things about it. Like most teenagers, I went through the ‘I can’t wait to get out of here’ phase. Now, I can’t imagine living or working anywhere else. These mountains and these people create an environment like nowhere else on earth, which is why I love my job—I get to promote travel to this amazing place.
Photography by Tracy Toler
