Business is a sustainable and uniquely powerful channel of cultural influence that enables individuals and communities to flourish financially, emotionally, and spiritually.
Ambassadors Impact Network grew out of the common interests of our founders, who have been investing in faith-driven companies and venture funds for a while. As it turns out, many others share our passion for financing and partnering with faith-driven entrepreneurs.
As a result, we combined our expertise and resources to form an angel investing network with the goal of benefitting entrepreneurs who are growing great companies — that shape culture, generate competitive financial returns, and have social and spiritual impact on all stakeholders. Since our founding in 2018, members have invested nearly $20 million into more than 40 gospel-advancing enterprises. View our portfolio here.
kevin ainsworth
Kevin Ainsworth serves as Director of Ambassadors Impact Network. He is the Founder of GuideCap Partners, an investment bank that provides sell-side M&A advisory services for companies in technology, healthcare, and business services. Prior to GuideCap Kevin worked in technology investment banking in Silicon Valley. Other career experience includes leading M&A strategy for a technology company and serving in the Entrepreneurial Services group at Ernst & Young. He received degrees in finance and accounting from the University of Texas at Austin. In the past decade, Kevin has been an active private equity investor, which further led to impact investing as God has expanded his view beyond the traditional thinking of business and mission being separate. Kevin and his wife Kristen are both Colson Fellows with the Colson Center for Christian Worldview and are actively engaged in various efforts to bring cultural renewal.
J.J. BARTO
J.J. serves as Director and Founder of Ambassadors Impact Network. He is a Partner at Broadwing Capital and also serves as a private equity independent sponsor and consultant to private family office clients. He has been making investments in privately held companies for 20 years. Mr. Barto has served as CEO of Cabe Long Properties since 2002, where he oversees all operational and investment activities related to the real estate firm. Active in the Dallas philanthropic community, he has served in various capacities as a member of the Conference of Southwest Foundations and as a board member for private foundations. Additional service includes former chairman of the board of the Covenant School and founding the Heritage School of Texas, and various other advisory board roles. Formerly an adjunct professor at SMU’s Cox School of Business, J.J. holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Oklahoma in Letters, a Classics-focused Liberal Arts degree, a Masters in Business Administration from Southern Methodist University, and has completed post graduate work at Texas A&M. J.J. and his wife are the proud parents of three boys and members of Watermark Community Church.
aaron cho
Aaron Cho serves as Director of Ambassadors Impact Network. He is CFO of a venture-backed mission driven HealthTech company. Over the past decade, Aaron has served in strategic finance & ops executive roles at multiple private equity sponsored companies in the healthcare industry. Prior to joining the healthcare industry, Aaron was a Principal at Capco, a management consulting firm focused on the financial services industry, and Senior Associate at EY where he worked in both the audit and transaction advisory (M&A) service lines. He serves on multiple for-profit and non-profit boards and is a member of the Christian Economic Forum. Aaron holds an M.B.A. from the Johnson School at Cornell University and B.B.A. in Accounting with honors from the University of Washington. He is a Certified Public Accountant, licensed with the California Board of Accountancy. Aaron and his wife have two awesome boys and attend Gateway Church in Southlake, TX.
ELIOT KERLIN
Eliot serves as Director and Founder of Ambassadors Impact Network. He is the Co-founder and Managing Partner at Broadwing Capital, where he directs investment strategy and leads acquisitions, recapitalizations, financings, and operational improvement initiatives for portfolio companies. Previously, Mr. Kerlin served as Managing Partner at Insight Equity, Turnaround Manager for Bay State Paper Company, Investment Banker in the Global Communications Group at Merrill Lynch in New York, and Senior Associate at Jupiter Partners. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth, the DFW Private Equity Forum, Casa Del Lago, and was formerly a Director of BraveLove and the Prison Entrepreneurship Program. Eliot holds an M.B.A. with distinction from Harvard Business School and a B.B.A. in Finance with honors from Texas A&M University. Eliot and his wife have four children and attend Park Cities Presbyterian Church.
WILL THOMAS
Will serves as Managing Director and Founder of Ambassadors Impact Network and has been investing in organizations that demonstrate social and spiritual impact since 2013. He also serves on the board of two publicly-traded companies and previously on the board of eleven private companies and as Chairman of the board of Marketplace Chaplains. Formerly, he spent six years making investments with a private equity firm and served eleven years as a pilot and in various leadership positions in the United States Air Force. He graduated from the United States Air Force Academy and has an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. Will and his wife are blessed by their three exciting children and attend Providence Presbyterian Church.