University of North Carolina Athletics
Football Honored At Uplifting Athletes Leadership Development Conference
February 19, 2026 | Football, Student-Athlete Development
North Carolina's Timir Hickman-Collins and Christo Kelly recently attended the 2026 Uplifting Athletes Leadership Development Conference in Philadelphia, which featured 155 student-athletes from 55 division I programs in seven different sports.
Uplifting Athletes in a nonprofit organization founded in 2007 with the mission to harness the power of sport to build a community that invests in the lives of people impacted by rare diseases.Â
The UNC Football Chapter was recognized at the conference with the prestigious "Game Changers" Award, honoring the program for setting a new standard of support for the rare disease community. With the leadership of Kelly and the chapter, Carolina raised more than $10,000 for their annual Lift for Life event to earn the award.
"At Uplifting Athletes, we challenge our student-athletes to lead, serve, and make a real difference for the rare disease community," said Andrea Pierson, Chapter Success Manager at Uplifting Athletes. "UNC Football has continued to set the standard for what that looks like in action. They've hosted impactful Uplifting Experiences, even virtual experiences to further their reach."
Kelly, who was recently granted a sixth year of eligibility to return to the program this fall, helped launch a chapter of Uplifting Athletes at Holy Cross in 2023, organizing numerous fundraisers and community engagement initiatives. Since arriving in Chapel Hill, he has continued that commitment, building upon the foundation established by Conner Harrell and Will Hardy within the North Carolina program.
"I'm proud to represent both Carolina Football and the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School in this mission," Kelly said. "I'm incredibly grateful to Coach [Bill] Belichick, Briana Singleton (Assistant Director of Student-Athlete Development) and the entire North Carolina community for the unwavering support."
Hickman-Collins, who just completed his first season in Carolina Blue, appeared in nine games for the Tar Heels last fall and has made an instant impact with the Uplifting Athletes organization.Â
"Attending the Uplifting Athletes Convention was a very cool experience for me," said Hickman-Collins. "It showed me that there's so much more to what we're doing each and every day. Seeing the kids and hearing about the rare diseases that are out there, opened my eyes to so much more and made me want to work even harder for the people that are less fortunate and don't have the ability to compete like we do."
This year's event marked a major milestone, as $200,000 was raised through fundraising efforts across the country to support innovative research initiatives. To date, Uplifting Athletes has invested $1.4 million in research grants supporting 75 researchers nationwide.
With more than three dozen chapters at universities nationwide, the athletes who run Uplifting Athletes chapters drive home the organization's mission and vision through signature events such as Lift For Life and Touch Down Pledge Drive.
"We're committed to igniting change and making a difference on and off the field," Kelly added.
That commitment from Kelly, Hickman-Collins and the Carolina chapter has not gone unnoticed.
"I couldn't be prouder of the heart they put into everything they do with our organization," Pierson said. "Christo even opened our conference this year with a speech to set the tone and challenge others to step up, which is the kind of leadership that moves the mission forward. We can't wait to see the impact that Christo, Timir, and the rest of the team have in 2026."
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Uplifting Athletes in a nonprofit organization founded in 2007 with the mission to harness the power of sport to build a community that invests in the lives of people impacted by rare diseases.Â
The UNC Football Chapter was recognized at the conference with the prestigious "Game Changers" Award, honoring the program for setting a new standard of support for the rare disease community. With the leadership of Kelly and the chapter, Carolina raised more than $10,000 for their annual Lift for Life event to earn the award.
"At Uplifting Athletes, we challenge our student-athletes to lead, serve, and make a real difference for the rare disease community," said Andrea Pierson, Chapter Success Manager at Uplifting Athletes. "UNC Football has continued to set the standard for what that looks like in action. They've hosted impactful Uplifting Experiences, even virtual experiences to further their reach."
Kelly, who was recently granted a sixth year of eligibility to return to the program this fall, helped launch a chapter of Uplifting Athletes at Holy Cross in 2023, organizing numerous fundraisers and community engagement initiatives. Since arriving in Chapel Hill, he has continued that commitment, building upon the foundation established by Conner Harrell and Will Hardy within the North Carolina program.
"I'm proud to represent both Carolina Football and the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School in this mission," Kelly said. "I'm incredibly grateful to Coach [Bill] Belichick, Briana Singleton (Assistant Director of Student-Athlete Development) and the entire North Carolina community for the unwavering support."
Hickman-Collins, who just completed his first season in Carolina Blue, appeared in nine games for the Tar Heels last fall and has made an instant impact with the Uplifting Athletes organization.Â
"Attending the Uplifting Athletes Convention was a very cool experience for me," said Hickman-Collins. "It showed me that there's so much more to what we're doing each and every day. Seeing the kids and hearing about the rare diseases that are out there, opened my eyes to so much more and made me want to work even harder for the people that are less fortunate and don't have the ability to compete like we do."
This year's event marked a major milestone, as $200,000 was raised through fundraising efforts across the country to support innovative research initiatives. To date, Uplifting Athletes has invested $1.4 million in research grants supporting 75 researchers nationwide.
With more than three dozen chapters at universities nationwide, the athletes who run Uplifting Athletes chapters drive home the organization's mission and vision through signature events such as Lift For Life and Touch Down Pledge Drive.
"We're committed to igniting change and making a difference on and off the field," Kelly added.
That commitment from Kelly, Hickman-Collins and the Carolina chapter has not gone unnoticed.
"I couldn't be prouder of the heart they put into everything they do with our organization," Pierson said. "Christo even opened our conference this year with a speech to set the tone and challenge others to step up, which is the kind of leadership that moves the mission forward. We can't wait to see the impact that Christo, Timir, and the rest of the team have in 2026."
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Players Mentioned
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