By Brian Hand
It’s been four years since the start of the Leaders for Leaders program at UNC Asheville, a mentoring program that pairs student-athletes with community members, but like an undergraduate education from UNC Asheville, the learning and connections last a lifetime, even beyond graduation and national borders. That’s particularly true for two of the inaugural participants in the special program, Galen Broido ’16 of UNC Asheville swimming and diving and Giacomo Zilli ’17 of UNC Asheville men’s basketball, now a world away pursuing careers and graduate school in Italy. They reconnect with mentors, Dick Murray and Dan and Linda Hinchliffe, when in the U.S.
“Leaders for Leaders gave both of us so much,” Broido said. “Our mentors shared many stories from their years of professional work experience. They gave us insights about the hiring process, what working for small and large organizations was like and helped us figure out what kind of company we’d ideally like to be working for.”
She currently works on freelance digital marketing with clients in youth sports and sports safety industries, living half of the year in the United States and the other half of the year in Italy where Zilli is playing professional basketball and pursuing his master’s degree.
UNC Asheville’s Leaders for Leaders program is powered by Elk Mountain Wealth Partners.