Where Are They Now?

Now that Tim Willis (’94) has accomplished so many of his personal and professional life goals, he wants to make sure other people receive the same chance to live their dreams and experience the satisfaction of attaining goals that sometimes feel just out of reach.

Although Willis lost his eyesight at age 10, he gradually gained a quiet confidence that helped him excel at cross country and track and field. “When I got involved in cross country and track and field, I continued to improve,” Willis said. “That gave me the motivation and drive to continue down those roads with those two sports.”

And down those roads he ran, winning five Paralympic medals, as well as setting 12 national and two world records during his career as a competitive runner. But before reaching such lofty heights, Willis was the first blind athlete to compete in NCAA Division I cross country, and he did it all here at Georgia Southern. In addition, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Political Science in 1994.

Since graduating, Willis has helped aid others across several different career tracks. Since he was 8 or 9 years old, he’d always wanted to be an attorney. So Willis enrolled in law school at Mercer University, while he continued to train for the 2000 Paralympics. Willis won the bronze medal in the 10,000 meters and later found out that he had passed the Georgia Bar Exam on his first try. “Being a runner in cross country and track and field takes a lot of self discipline,” he said. “It’s the same for law school.”

Law degree in hand, Willis started his own law practice that focused on four branches of law: personal injury cases, disability work rights, wills and estates, and small business litigation. Being a relatively new attorney, Willis relished in the opportunity to gain advice and ideas from his peers. In addition to managing the time and rigors of running his own private practice, Willis served as a contract attorney for Disability Law and Policy Center of Georgia, Inc., where he would eventually become interim director.

Meanwhile, Willis maintained his tie to athletics even after he had retired as a competitive runner. He represented athletes’ interests as a member of the United States Olympic Committee’s (USOC) Athletic Technical Committee and a journey to Colorado provided Willis with the opportunity to help athletes achieve the goals he had attained. Willis moved to Colorado six years ago to take a position as a U.S. Olympic Committee management development trainee. It was starting at square one, Willis admitted, as an administrator instead of an athlete. “It was great to be a part of the Olympic and Paralympic movement in that way,” he said. “I have been an athlete, which I enjoyed, but it was great to have an opportunity as an administrator.” Willis’ path to becoming an administrator included time as a trainee before he became a manager of grants and contracts for the USOC in 2009. “I was in charge of managing grants that the USOC gave to other organizations,” Willis said. “I was in charge of those grantees. It was rewarding because I knew the work we did was important to athletes around the country. We got a lot of thank you notes and emails and that kind of stuff.”

Before the records and medals, Willis was a high school student in Tucker, Georgia, who took a stab at cross country, track and field and wrestling. One of his guide tethers was put on display at Planet Hollywood. He even had the opportunity to jog with President Bill Clinton and appear in advertisements for a handful of various corporations. His 1996 Paralympic medals and racing spikes are in the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame, and the Georgia Southern University Athletics Hall of Fame inducted Willis as a member in 2006. Willis also served as the athlete ombudsman for the 2008 U.S. Paralympic Team.

Today, he lives in Colorado Springs and still runs regularly, just for fun and to stay in shape. A big part of Willis’ journey from Georgia to Colorado took shape in Statesboro, where Willis was a Southern Conference All-Academic athlete, and won the Georgia Southern Outstanding Political Science Student Award and received the University President’s Award. In addition to the efforts of his family and friends, Georgia Southern has played a part in helping Willis share his successes with school kids, law clients and up-and-coming athletes. “My academic and athletic background from GSU … those opportunities have helped me throughout my life and career,” he said. Willis says the communication skills he learned at Georgia Southern have served him well when he’s been invited to speak at school graduations, conferences and other events.  – Brian Hudgins