WAKE FOREST – Even in death, the late Larry Steffann, a well-known fixture on the Triangle startup scene, is helping other entrepreneurs chase their dreams.
That’s because the Wireless Research Center (WRC), where Steffman served as general manager from 2013 until his passing from illness last July, is supporting two Wake Forest mentorship launch programs in his name.
They include the Rotary Club’s new Launch Rolesville and the Launch Wake Forest programs.
“Larry would be very pleased with this honor and support for entrepreneurs,” his wife Barbara Steffann said in a statement. “He loved working with the people and saw it as an opportunity to share his experience to help others and give back to our community.”
Upon rocks such as Larry Steffann today’s tech Triangle was built
Steffan was a serial entrepreneur, including working with two companies with successful “exits” through an initial public offering (IPO) and a corporate acquisition. He was a co-founder of NC RIoT, the WRC’s economic development initiative to establish partnerships and collaboration for the Internet of Things (IoT) that has grown to include more than 6,000 members and 80 company sponsors throughout the nation.
Staffann also launched the first startup incubator, Joystick Labs, in the American Underground in Durham and served as the Entrepreneur in Residence at the NC State Poole College of Management.
The WRC also launched a RIoT scholarship fund in his honor.
