AUSTIN (KXAN) — Seventy-eight percent of former NFL players experience joblessness, financial burdens and health problems following retirement. Pro Athlete Community (PAC) is in Austin providing resources and education to these individuals.
PAC is an organization built with the goal of guiding retired pro athletes toward success.
“Our job is to help them get exposure to new opportunities. Basically put a chip down in places where they might pursue a new career whether it be in sales, real estate or franchising,” said co-founder of PAC Chip Paucek.
Most retired athletes experience joblessness, divorce, health problems and/or financial distress within two years of retirement.
“When you get out of the game you realize that you have this new challenge, and you have to find a way to create a new career to develop new practices, to find a new identity after you spent most of your life doing that sport that you played and nothing else,” said Julius Thomas, a former NFL player.
This week, PAC is hosting a conference for retired NBA, NFL and MLB players. The conference is a safe space for these individuals, and PAC is connecting the athletes with resources in finance, health, educational opportunities and business.
“We are up to 350 professional athletes, and we are here in Austin this week with 76 new members,” said Paucek.
The six-day empowerment program helps each athlete build skills, network and listen in to panels with industry leaders.
“When you leave your professional sport atmosphere especially when you are a team sport athlete it can be disorienting to be alone for the first time in your life,” said Thomas.
KXAN Live Anchor Esmeralda Zamora sat down with Paucek and Thomas. You can watch that interview live at 2 p.m. on KXAN Live.