DWIGHT ENSLEY

ENSLEY--Dwight Austin. Dwight Austin Ensley was a noted philanthropist and aviator. He was born June 21, 1957 and died on March 5, 2022. His philanthropy extended across a broad range of charitable endeavors, which he considered to be his best accomplishments. His prowess as a commercial multi-engine instrument pilot led to a commendation from the Governor of Kansas in 2007. Ensley is survived by his beloved wife, Carolyn J. Woodruff, of Greensboro, NC; a daughter, Maggie Ensley Williams of Denver, CO, and three grandchildren - Ethan, Cameron, and Addison Williams. He was predeceased by his mother, Ruth Harding Ensley Becherucci, Orville, OH; his father, Austin Ensley, Cherokee, NC; and his daughter Carly Ensley, North Canton, OH. In furtherance of longterm charitable objectives, Dwight, along with his wife Carolyn J. Woodruff, who serves on the public board of Blue Ridge Bankshares, Inc. (BRBS), set up the Woodruff Ensley Foundation, Inc. in 2020 to help meet the needs of troubled families indefinitely. Serving on the board of Woodruff Ensley Foundation, Inc. are Brian Plum, CEO of Blue Ridge Bank, NA and Blue Ridge Bankshares, Inc. (BRBS); Paul Mengert, Chair of the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority and CEO of Asso- ciation Management Group, Janet Miller of Denver, CO; and wife, Carolyn J. Woodruff. Inspired by the work of Family Service of the Piedmont (FSP) in helping families overcome difficulty, Ensley, along with wife Carolyn, co-chaired FSP's Annual Campaign from 2020-2022. His company ValuePointe.biz has been a major sponsor of the Big Hair Ball, which raises funds to support FSP Greensboro programs. Ensley's philanthropic efforts extended to helping children gain access to the arts. He co-founded "Captain Green Eyes Dance Troupe" for Greensboro's Boys and Girls Club. He provided five summers of complimentary dance lessons with performance opportunities for eight-year-olds. The Troupe was featured with clips on National Dance Day twice on "So You Think You Can Dance." Ensley brought legendary artists Fik-Shun and Comfort from "So You Think You Can Dance" All-Stars to the Troupe to inspire the children. When his beloved daughter Carly Ensley died at age 16 from rare liver cancer, he set up a college scholarship in her name for a high school senior who desired to pursue the arts in college. He donated and presented the annual award at Carly's high school for more than a decade. His lifelong motto can be summed up with the Charles D. Meigs classic hymn "Others." "Lord help me live from day to day, in such a self-forgetful way, that even when I kneel to pray, my prayer shall be for others . . . others, let this my motto be." Ensley was a businessman and an accomplished airplane pilot all his adult years. After high school in North Canton, OH, he graduated from Kent State University in Business Administration with a concentration in aviation in 1979. He was a commercial multi-engine instrument pilot. He regularly flew a B58 Baron twin-engine airplane. As a legendary flight instructor, he gave flying lessons at a flight school belonging to Kenny Little during college. "Eyes outside," Ensley commented to less experienced pilots. He mentored other pilots throughout his career, including his wife Carolyn, a Greensboro based family law attorney, and North Carolina businessman Paul Mengert - both of whom achieved multi-engine instrument pilot certificates with input from Ensley, particularly on the weather. His knowledge of weather and flying safety was second to none. He successfully landed two airplanes that had engine failure. One landing was on a highway, and all the charter passengers walked away unharmed. In 2007, Ensley received a special commendation from former Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius for a heroic landing at midnight in a blizzard in Goodland, KS. In August 2017, during a solar eclipse, he flew an Archer 180 at 13,000 feet into the darkness of the eclipse over Anderson, SC. He had approximately 10,000 hours of flying time in his logbook when the final page closed on March 5. Ensley received his MBA from the University of Steubenville in 1986 and went on to develop and run several environmentally friendly businesses, including a plastics recycling company, a glass recycling plant, and a multi-material recycling company. He sold the companies and became a Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) in 2010, and founded a business valuation firm known as ValuePointe.biz, a specialty consulting firm. From 2008 to 2010, he was business director for Woodruff Family Law Group. Intrigued by the law and his lifelong desire for continuous learning, he decided to pursue a law degree. He excelled at Elon University School of Law and was the oldest graduate of the class of 2013. After passing the North Carolina Bar, he continued his pursuits with ValuePointe.biz with even more knowledge and greater impact for his clients as an expert witness. Ensley was a member of the North Carolina Bar and the following professional associations: American Bar Association, North Carolina Bar Association, Institute of Business Appraisers, and the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts. He was a member of First Presbyterian Church and Starmount Forest Country Club in Greensboro. He was a gifted author of three books. "When the Wrong Person Gets the Money," his first work, concerns the 2009 U.S. Supreme Court case Kennedy v. Plan Administrator for Dupont about divorce and the misdirection of retirement benefits to a new spouse. Next, he wrote "Business Valuations for NC Family Lawyers!" He was a frequent CLE speaker using this book as his text. His third work was co-authored with Carolyn and entitled "Captain Green Eyes and the Seven Nights of Santa." The book concerns children from all kinds of families who share holidays with multiple homes and caregivers. Ensley excelled at creative arts. He was an avid musician with skills in singing and playing many instruments. Among his favorites were his guitars and electric keyboard. He had a lifelong mastery of banjo and trombone. With his marriage to Carolyn on March 27, 2010, he honed his artistic skills in competitive ballroom and contemporary show dance. Ensley and Woodruff were the Fred Astaire national champion show dance Amateur couple three times. Notable national award-winning performances were his work in creating the show dance "Addiction," where he danced and made a cutting edge shadow screen stage prop. His tribute to David Bowie's "Starman" in contemporary dance on a hoverboard contributed to expanding the national thinking about ballroom dance. A funeral service will be Monday, March 14, 2022, at 2pm at First Presbyterian Church, 617 N Elm St, Greensboro, NC. The ceremony will be available on the church website at www.fpcgreensboro.org and streamed at: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=bOdTiFZzebw.