We were lucky to catch up with Morris Ellington recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Morris, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Our mission: A to Z Collective Group is a trusted advocate for collegiate athletes, and we strive to not only help student athletes manage their Name, Image, and Likeness, but guide them on ways in which they can make a difference in their communities through mentorship. We saw that there’s a need for student-athletes to build their brand by not only mentoring other kids, but to also work with other charities in their communities to help change lives in a positive way. Our foundation is also helping student-athletes change lives through our strategic partnership, AbundaBox. AbundaBox stands committed to removing barriers to ensure that all Americans have easier access to healthcare and resources to battle food insecurity, while addressing health inequality through support, education, and connectivity. It ardently believes in prioritizing its members’ health needs and is continually striving to guarantee access to critical resources month after month, one box at a time. Guided by integrity and transparency, AbundaBox’s dedication extends beyond saving lives to improving everyday wellness and preparing students for a successful future by providing comprehensive health and wellness support. It tirelessly strives to make both healthcare and nutrition food resources more accessible and affordable for all.

So, as you can see, our partnership with AbundaBox supports our mission by helping our student-athletes build their Name, Image, and Likeness through AbundaBox’s HealthPack program, which allows them to give back to their communities. I have worked over a decade in healthcare, and when I saw the opportunity to partner with AbundaBox, we jumped at it. Also, as an ex-student-athlete, I look back and wish I had the opportunity and the support like what A to Z is currently providing for student-athletes, because I always understood the importance of giving back to those that are in need!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Morris Ellington, and I was born and raised in Orlando, FL. Up until I was about 12 years old, my mom raised me with the help of some family members, and my Godmother. As a single parent living paycheck to paycheck, times were hard, but somehow my mom managed to always provide. She always kept God first and demonstrated integrity, strength, courage, and determination during the most challenging situations, and that is why I work so hard. My mom is the reason why I have discipline, and why I won’t give up on my dreams! I have always been a giver. When I became an adult, I wanted to start a foundation so that I can give back to kids (those that are in need) and single parents to hopefully help them ease the burden of going through tough times like my mom and I did when I was growing up.

As a kid, I was into sports (football, track, and basketball) which earned me a full football scholarship to the University of Akron where I graduated with my BA degree in Art Studio (Graphic Design). When the recent announcement came out that student-athletes can now profit off of their Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL), I saw the opportunity to create a foundation to not only help collegiate student-athletes manage their NIL, but also help them give back to their communities through mentorship and charity work. As we continue to grow, we see other opportunities to extend our reach from just helping student-athletes, but also help the entire college student body by giving away scholarships,

By working with our strategic partners, Lakeshore Eagle Solutions, Skyward Rx and AbundaBox, we are able to raise money for our foundation, which will allow us to create scholarships for our student-athletes and students. We are proud to have orchestrated the agreement between our strategic partner, AbundaBox and the Ohio School Boards Association (OSBA) to provide HealthPacks to all of their member students across the state of Ohio. This has opened the doors to have conversations with other School Board Associations across the nation. Please refer back to my previous response for more information about AbundaBox.

Our goal as a foundation is to be one of the top organizations that help provide tangible resources for not only collegiate student-athletes and college students, but also, we want to be known for the work we’re doing in the community. Our plan is to obtain this goal within the next 5 years. People can support our cause by helping us identify the needs in the community, identify extraordinary collegiate students, and through donations, which can be given through the link on our website at www.atozcollectivefoundation.org.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Life is so unpredictable, so you have to be resilient! As I was working on securing funds for our foundation, my previous job terminated my employment. This came about 6 months after we received our 501(c)3 status, and about 3 months after my wife’s job laid off hundreds of employees including her position. My original plan was to work until the foundation raised enough money to support me financially, and then go full time working for the foundation, but obviously that wasn’t the plan God had for me/us. So, after speaking with my wife, I decided to go full time into working on the foundation. Thankfully we had an emergency fund established which has gotten us through, but that’s not an endless amount of money so something had to break for us sooner rather than later!

There have been many doors slammed in our faces whether it was my wife getting rejection letters from potential employers, or me as I reached out to companies trying to stir up interest for a partnership with our foundation. Thankfully, I learned resilience through my upbringing and how my mom consistently showed me, by example, on what it looks like when life knocks you down that you must continue to fight. That’s what I did (and continue to do) until we closed our first major contract, that is projected to bring in a significant amount of money to our foundation.

I could go on and on about how I had to be resilient to get me to where I am today, but those are the two most recent incidents that we are working through.

Do you have multiple revenue streams – if so, can you talk to us about those streams and how your developed them?

Our foundation has taken a different approach on how we raise money. Instead of only knocking on doors asking companies/people to support the foundation financially, we decided to work with strategic partners to bring them warm leads, and in return, they will donate an agreed amount to the foundation. Currently we have partnered with AbundaBox, Skyward Rx, and Lakeshore Eagle Solutions.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.atozcollectivefoundation.org
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/morris-ellington-a5003923/
• Other: www.bmamanagementinc.com www.atozcollectivegroupinc.com