About Steven Ledford

Steven Ledford had an immense dedication to helping children, particularly those with autism. To this end, he founded and ran Mountain Sports Baseball – a travel baseball organization offering low fees for kids playing baseball games.

Tom Hunt interviews Steve Ledford, an expert in payments industry strategy who advises banks, financial services firms, and payment organizations on issues facing this field.

Early Life and Education

He was a member of High Street Baptist Church in Canton, NC as well as North Carolina Music Educators Association and received Pro Tools User Certification with outstanding and superior ratings in state music performance assessments.

He founded and ran Mountain Sports Baseball for 15 years. He brought an innovative approach to travel ball that did not include charging parents for tournament fees, team dues or uniforms.

He was the son of Joseph and Nora Ledford and married Leisa Willett; together they had three children – Josiah, Micah, and Bryce – as well as being an integral member of the Ledford String Band that performed at one-room school houses and radio broadcasts during the 1930s; known for its fiddling skills it featured other popular musicians at that time.

Professional Career

Steve Ledford served CMS for 18 years as both athletic director and basketball coach, prioritizing faith, family, academics and athletics in that order of importance in his life. Unfortunately, on September 2, after falling from a volleyball referee stand he passed away unexpectedly.

Ledford has more than 41 years of experience in the payments industry. During that time he has held leadership roles at several firms such as Novantas Financial Services Consulting Firm; McKinsey Global Payments Practice and Global Concepts Research & Consulting Firm for Payments & Cash Management Research & Consultancy respectively.

At Stevenson, Ledford works closely with Brody Campbell, helping to perfect their game by holding for extra-point attempts and placekicks. It requires precision and teamwork – together, Ledford and Campbell have converted 107 out of 117 extra-point attempts this season!

Achievement and Honors

After finishing his football career at East Carolina University (ECU), Ledford switched over to offensive line during his senior season and helped lead them to an Atlantic Coast Conference title. For his outstanding academic achievements and strength and conditioning performance he received both awards: Jerry T. Brooks award for academic achievement as well as four All-America honors in strength training and conditioning.

Ledford quickly built one of the premier offensive lines at NC State during his three seasons as offensive line coach, including Garrett Bradbury (Rimington Trophy and All-ACC honors this year) and Tyler Jones (drafted by Jaguars in fourth round).

CMS Principal Casey Kruk says Ledford led an enriching life filled with faith, family and academics; his loss has left a hole at CMS.

Personal Life

After hearing of Ledford’s passing, his friends and family were at a loss as to what to do next. To pay tribute to their friend they decided to play in his honor against Mountain Heritage; which led to an impressive win by Black Bears over them.

Personal Life. In his personal life, he was an enthusiastic fiddler who won several regional and national competitions with his string band in Roan Mountain area one-room school houses.

Mountain Sports Baseball was an exceptional travel baseball organization run by him for 15 years, offering non-traditional views on the game that did not charge tournament fees or team dues to parents. A member of High Street Baptist Church in Canton, he leaves behind his wife Leisa Willett Ledford and two sons Josiah and Micah of Canton, NC.

Net Worth

Steven Ledford does not disclose details regarding his net worth; however, he earned recognition by being selected to compete in the Penthouse Pet of the Year Play-Off in 1991 and featured in various films and television series including Baywatch Hawaii as Dawn Masterton as well as Doyle in Andromeda (science fiction series).

As well as his professional career, Mr. Holliday also served as deacon at High Street Baptist Church in Canton, NC and founded Mountain Sports Baseball to make travel ball free for youths while hosting tournaments to support his teams; these saved parents money on travel fees, uniform costs and tournament entry fees. Furthermore, RTP (Real-time Payments Network) was created under his leadership; working closely with payments leaders on strategic issues faced by financial institutions while leading initiatives designed to address them.