June 9, 2008
The last time newly appointed men's soccer co-captain Sean Bellomy (Dallas, Texas/Jesuit College Prep) visited Disney World Lake Buena Vista, Florida, he was in elementary school with his parents and the family wore the famed mouse-ear hats and waved to the Disney characters as they strolled by.
Last week, Bellomy again visited Disney World but this time it was more of a "business trip".
Bellomy participated in the NCAA Student-Athlete Development Conference in Florida's Walt Disney World Resort. The annual conference hosts approximately 700 NCAA student-athletes and provides them an opportunity to discuss issues that may effect their classmates on their campuses and in their commuities.
The senior to be and midfielder for the Hoyas took a couple of days away from his investment banking internship at the Houlihan Lokey Dallas offices to meet some of the nation's most talented college athletes in an informal setting.
Early in the Spring '08 semester, Bellomy applied for the chance to attend the conference, forming an essay about what leadership and being a captain means to him. He was finally selected from among other Georgetown Athletics team captains.
He found out in April that he was chosen and knew he was headed to Disney World for the first time since his family traveled to the vacation spot when he was a child.
"There were around 350 kids there from all over the country," said Bellomy. "It was a really diverse crowd and I roomed with a guy from Alabama who was on the football and track teams. We worked in groups of about 20-25 kids doing different exercises to develop our leadership skills and problem solving skills.
"We talked about and listened to different issues that we as student-athletes encounter on a day-to-day basis," Bellomy added. "Time management between school and our team sports, gender equity, race equality, nutrition and community efforts were the topics that seemed to be focused on the most."
Bellomy, who was tied for the team lead in goals last season, filled out a personality assessment before the conference. The results of the assessment were compiled and were waiting for the student-athletes when they arrived in Disney World. The assessment revealed the strengths and weaknesses of each individual's leadership style, and the best ways to utilize those traits to influence and lead others.
"By having the opportunity to listen to what other kids from other schools had to say, I realized how much of an impact Georgetown's Student-Athlete Leadership Advisory Committee (SALAC) can have on the D.C. community," he noted. "Kids from other schools talked about some of the community service outings they took part in. I think I underestimated how much of an influence we can have on younger kids in the community and how excited they get to have the opportunity to interact with college student-athletes. We can really make a positive impact on school-age kids with sports clinics and tutoring programs."
Bellomy and his student-athlete conterparts were given binders with materials highlighting community service programs from around the country, ideas that Bellomy and his Hoya SALAC members can inititate in the D.C. metro area.
"Overall, the trip to the conference was a great experience," Bellomy said. "One that will help me especially while I'm a team captain here at Georgetown but also later in life.
"I was a captain on my club team and I thought I might have a personality to one day be a team captain in college," he added. "I think I now have a better understanding on the many roles a team captain can play.
"Coach (Brian) Wiese talks a lot about being visionaries and not reactionaries," Bellomy said. "That is a great characteristic for a successfule team captain. I've started to take that a lot more to heart."
"Sean has been a joy to coach because he is hard working, responsible, thoughtful and diligent both on and off the field in every aspect of his life," said Wiese. "He has earned a tremendous amount of respect from his teammates and he now has to fine tune his leadership skills as one of our captains. His time down in Florida was a terrific opportunity for him to do this."
With more skills and experiences at his disposal, Bellomy has some more moves to get to the goal - both on the field and in life.
