Wayne Worth was born in Manchester, Connecticut on October 5, 1978. Right from the start, his life had some trials and tribulations, when at six months old his biological father was incarcerated. Wayne would live with his young biological mother until the age of seven, when she was unable to take care of him anymore which resulted in Wayne entering the foster care system for three years and a group home for one year.

​

Wayne's story in West Virginia started when he was 11 years old. A single father in Pocahontas County (named Jud Worth) adopted Wayne and provided him with a stable and loving family. For the next eight years Wayne would be raised in the Pocahontas County Community of Minnehaha Springs, where he would be fully embraced by his neighbors. His adoptive father would later marry Margaret Worth and Wayne and his two other adopted brothers (Michael and Christopher) would now have a new mother and sister added to the family. 

​

After High School School Wayne would attend Marshall University. This would be a rather tough transition for him, due to having some learning challenges in Reading/Comprehension which stemmed prior to his adoption. However, Wayne would persevere through six years of college and graduate with a Social Work Degree. Even through his struggles, both educationally and personally with co-dependency, at the age of 25, he started to recognize how blessed he really was to be adopted by the Worth Family, and for the opportunities that both his family and West Virginia have given him. So, out of sheer curiosity and a new-found pride for his State, Wayne decided to jump in his old 1988 Chevy Corsica and travel to every county seat in West Virginia to learn a little about this place that he now loved and cherished deeply. It took him six months to see every county. Wayne would have so much fun on the first trip, that he decided to take another trip to all 55 Counties to see the places he didn't see the first time. On his third trip to every county, his adopted brother Christopher Worth (who has Cerebral Palsy) also traveled with him. By the fourth trip, Wayne would video interview local historians on their county's history and started a documentary called "Journey into the Wild and Wonderful." In four years, Wayne would interview over 100 historians in 44 counties. Unfortunately the project stalled out (due to many our State's older historians passing away and taking that knowledge with them). However, Journey into the Wild and Wonderful would later inspire Wayne to do a shorter version of each county's history, which he would title, "On the Road in West Virginia: Our 55 Counties." 

​

Wayne's passion for West Virginia and her people goes well beyond his passion for the State's history and culture. Wayne has been a licensed social worker over 10 years, working full-time to help our state's senior citizens and persons with disabilities live independently in the place they love and call home. He also devotes his energy to combating the drug epidemic in his community of Clarksburg. Wayne founded a neighborhood group called "Neighbors in Action: Harrison County," where just about every Saturday, he and a group of volunteers go door to door and hand out literature on where neighbors who have loved ones or friends struggling with drug addition can get immediate help and long-term recovery. Wayne is also very active in the Lions Club, where he is President of the Adamston-Clarksburg Lions Club. Just about every weekend for eight months solid, he joined other Lions and community volunteers to aid in the 2016 flood relief and long-term recovery efforts. Wayne also co-founded the First Friday Arts and Music Series in Fairmont, whose mission is to revitalize Downtown Fairmont through investing in the Arts every First Friday of the month, during the months of May-September. Most importantly though, he's married to the love of his life, Amanda Worth (his Dandy Mandy). When asked why he does all he does, he'll tell you, "I do it to pay forward all the blessings and opportunities that God, my family, and West Virginia have provide to my life. Because I know I'll never be able to pay it back. And I do it because being a true reflection of Christ in your life, means actively loving you neighbors as yourself, and expecting nothing in return except the hope that others will pay forward the blessings and opportunities provided to them."