My Carolina Experience: Dave Werry
December 17, 2014 | Men's Lacrosse, Women's Soccer
My Carolina Experience: Dave Werry
By Zoya Johnson, GoHeels.com
Editor's Note: My Carolina Experience is proud to feature Dave Werry, UNC men's lacrosse (2003-06). He and his wife Heather O'Reilly, 2006 women's soccer national player of the year and 12-year member of the U.S. Women's National Team, become the first Tar Heel husband and wife team to have been featured in the My Carolina Experience series. You can read O'Reilly's story here.
Were it not for the Morehead Cain Scholarship program, Dave Werry may have had a completely different collegiate experience, and most likely a completely different life. If he had not known about it, Werry would have likely stayed in Canada and pursued his dream of playing in the National Hockey League, but the opportunity to attend UNC on the Morehead Cain scholarship and play lacrosse changed everything.
“My brother came before me to UNC from Canada on the Morehead Scholarship and was a senior my freshman year, so that was really special and it was great to be able to overlap for a year. Also, the chance to play at a school with such a rich history was really appealing. I knew from visiting UNC the passion and loyalty Tar Heels have and it was really inspiring to become a part of that,” said Werry.
Growing up on a dairy farm prepared Werry early on to have a strong work ethic. His parents always encouraged him and his brother to pursue many different activities, so the Carolina student and student-athlete dynamic was one in which he thrived.
While Werry maintained a Morehead Cain Scholarship he was not only a leader on the lacrosse team and in the community, he was also a part of the UNC honors program, a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee member and a Student Advisor to the Chancellor.
“My time at Carolina was hugely impactful and influential on my life. First, it's a diverse place with people from all kinds of backgrounds and interests. Being engaged in that type of environment and learning from people with different perspectives was a big part of my learning and development.
“I was also around a lot of talented and passionate people, whether on the field, in the honors program, the Morehead Cain program or through other campus activities. I really appreciated the quality of people at Carolina, the passion for the school and the friendships I made. I am still close to a lot of my teammates, as well as a lot of other friends I met at Carolina.”
Besides meeting his wife of three years, Heather O'Reilly, at Carolina, Werry has also left a legacy that extends well beyond the field and into the Carolina community. As the founder of Carolina Dreams, he sought to develop a program that made it easy for student athletes to give back to the community around them.
“Student-athletes have a lot on their plates and it's hard for them to find the time to give back during the school year. I met Dr. Jake Lohr from the UNC Children's Hospital and we began brainstorming various ideas, ultimately coming up with Carolina Dreams. I made the time to work on it because I had a strong vision of what the program could offer student-athletes and most importantly, patients and their families from the Children's Hospital.
“I had incredible support from the athletic department to launch Carolina Dreams and the vision was to create a sustainable program which would continue to grow long after I graduated. (Athletic Director) Dick Baddour and many others were big advocates and they ensured we had the resources to make it happen.
“To look at the program now and to be able to interact with the student-athlete leaders that make it better each year, is really fun and rewarding.”
Carolina Dreams invites patients at the North Carolina Children's Hospital in Chapel Hill ages eight through 18 to attend Tar Heel athletic events with Carolina varsity athletes. Participation in the program is something the patients and their families always walk away from feeling encouraged and appreciative. The student-athletes themselves seem to gain a better understanding of how impactful they can be on the lives of those around them and almost always make time to do more in the community and with Carolina Dreams because of that realization.
Werry began working on the program shortly after he arrived on campus in the fall of 2002 and the program formally debuted in the fall of 2004.
“Carolina is a unique place, with a ton of resources and people around you who care about your development and path forward. My advice to other student-athletes would be to take advantage of your time at UNC and to not take the opportunity for granted. Make some great friendships, push yourself and try to impact others along the way. And leave everything you have on the field,” Werry continues.
“It's always been amazing to me the loyalty and pride of Tar Heels. It's something that happens naturally to almost everyone that attends Carolina. I think to be a part of that is incredibly unique. Not only for your time at Carolina, but forever afterwards. I can't count the number of times I have made connections or been helped along the way by fellow Tar Heels. It's a lifelong community and extremely special.”
After leaving it all on the field as a player and making sure that Tar Heels would be able to show their gratitude to their community for years to come through Carolina Dreams, Werry and his wife have found yet another way to stay connected to Carolina. Years after getting their degrees they have made Chapel Hill their home once again, taking the time to support the teams and be a part of the community because they feel it is an added bonus in their lives to be close to a place that helped make them who they are now.