Fort Wayne event, new hire moves Boilermaker Alliance collective forward

It's been a busy time for Jeff McKean. And that is an understatement for the co-founder of the new collective Boilermaker Alliance.

Yet, things are moving forward at a fast pace.

"It never moves as fast as you want it to, but we are making progress," said McKean, whose full-time job is as principal attorney for the McKean Law Firm in Indianapolis.

Part of the progress is hiring its first full-time employee Jared Thomas as director of operations & engagement in an announcement made public Tuesday.

"Jared has a very impressive resumé: he’s a lifelong Boiler fan, a graduate of West Point, an attorney, and has worked in the Purdue Athletic Department. We are very fortunate to have Jared on board.” McKean said.

The next phase will activate and focus on a social media presence while identifying eight to 10 executive board members, which should transpire in the next week to 10 days.

McKean says a big part of the thrust is still to work on educating Purdue fans about what to expect. He admits that he is pleased with the progress but that there is work to be done.

"We know we have passionate fans that want Purdue always to put its best foot forward," said McKean, who graduated from Purdue in the mid-1980s and is a fraternity brother of Jim Everett. "But we believe with the connections we are making that this collective will not only help Purdue athletes but will also be a lynchpin for showing how we can all make a difference to a lot of people and organizations that can use our help."

The next phase of the website BoilermakerAlliance.com will be operational in the next few days and some of its charity partners will be identified. Part of the site upgrade includes being able to accept online donations.

Speaking of charities and the desire to make a difference, 2014-15 Big Ten defensive player-of-the-year and current BTN analyst Rapheal Davis is making final preparations for the August 3rd "Bigger than Basketball" fundraising event that supports scholarships for Fort Wayne Youth in various basketball camps and team opportunities. Davis, a native of the Summit City, appreciates the opportunity to work with the Boilermaker Alliance and current NIL athlete Caleb Furst to help move his initiative forward.

"It's great what the Boilermaker Alliance is doing for guys in my hometown like Caleb Furst and I appreciate that the guys are going to have to do meaningful work to earn money, " Davis said. "This experience for guys like Caleb will not only help him financially in the short term, but more importantly, it will provide him with real-life work experience. And, if the athletes make the most of their experiences, it will help them get a real-world job after college and that is a difference maker in itself."

Davis said the Crew Life Foundation (Crew stands for Community, Responsibility, Education, Will) is also working on ideas to best celebrate the legacy of fellow Fort Wayne native Caleb "Biggie" Swanigan, who passed away last month at age 25. Davis is joined by fellow Boilermakers Lewis Jackson and Anthony Brown as a driving force in helping kids have a basketball life while growing up and the Swanigan story is part of it. P.J. Thompson will pay tribute to his fallen teammate at the August 3 event, and Davis knows that Swanigan's triumph and tribulation story can impact his town’s youth.

The common thread of the Boilermaker Alliance and the Crew Life Foundation goes deeper than just dollars and cents.

"We want our area kids to know that if they love the game, they don't have to become an NBA player to make a life in it," Davis said. "There are roles that you can play that don't demand you have superior talent, but they do demand that you have a strong work ethic and are creative about how you go about things."

For McKean, Davis's initiative and the sweat he puts into his project is all the more reason why the Boilermaker Alliance can be a positive venture in helping do good things for society.

"We look forward to working to help put this all together and we know things are going to change before it is all settled," McKean said. "It is a challenge, but one we look forward to."

More:

Bigger than Basketball Fundraiser information

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