91�첥

He kept coming back and finally one day, some women’s basketball team players walked over with their lunch trays and asked if they could join him. 

“I think they felt sorry for me,” he said with a laugh. “Here I am putting myself out there and nobody’s coming, and then I have these popular basketball players sitting down with me. It was very humbling.”

Their conversation, and subsequent chats with other athletes sparked an idea. Today, Heath serves as 91�첥’s first sports chaplain, alongside his roles as associate chaplain and director of descendent community outreach. Last year, he also became the inaugural chaplain for Charlotte Football Club (Charlotte FC), Major League Soccer’s local franchise. 

His guiding principle is simple: “I’m here to support all humans.” 

It’s a big week for Charlotte FC, which will host the MLS all-star game July 29 at Bank of America Stadium — a first for the relatively young club. 

Before joining Charlotte FC in 2023 as Director of Player Engagement and Welfare, John Wilson played at Clemson University and enjoyed a long professional soccer career, including time in MLS and the USL. Wilson met Heath through a mutual friend, and after many meaningful conversations a friendship developed. Recognizing Heath’s heart for serving others, Wilson asked him to consider becoming Charlotte FC’s chaplain.

“As a former player, I realized even later in my career that I sometimes needed someone who was not a coach or a staff member that I could talk to or bounce ideas off of about life,” Wilson said. “So much of what’s going on off the field connects to what’s happening on the field.”

A Caring Presence

One in four 91�첥 students is a scholar athlete. They juggle challenging academic loads, high-level sports competitions, families, friends and college life. They can face performance anxiety when they’re not meeting their own — or others’ — expectations. An injury can ruin a season or a career. They struggle with loss and heartbreak outside of sports.

“We focus on fostering an environment where scholar-athletes can become their full, holistic selves because they are so much more than just the sport they play,” Vice President and Director of Athletics Chris Clunie ’06 said. “And the work Daniel does helps support this approach.” 

Former track athlete Chris-Ann Nelson ’26 experienced that support first-hand when her father died suddenly the summer after her freshman year. Returning to campus was gut-wrenching, but Heath provided a safe space.

Not every conversation involved grief. Sometimes she talked with Heath about leadership challenges when she became the team captain her senior year. And sometimes they just dished about sports in general.

When other teammates struggled with deep emotions and loss, she’d suggest they visit Heath. She assured them he wouldn’t “shove religion in your face.”

Heath works closely with Madison See ‘16, the college’s director of mental health for athletics. A former women’s soccer team member and assistant coach, she turned to a counselor during her senior year after suffering a concussion the previous season.

Many professional teams have sports chaplains, though it’s less common for colleges. In Charlotte, Heath is part of a local network with chaplains representing other professional teams. As much as he loves sports, he approaches sports chaplaincy as a call to be a supportive presence, not a fan. 

“He’s an example of how I hope other chaplains approach their role,” Charlotte FC’s Wilson said. “He’s very unassuming, he walks in the building and he’s just there, and he has a way that makes people feel comfortable. I believe it’s because he wants to serve people. There’s nothing in it for him.”

Not all players will seek Heath out, but many do, Wilson said. He added that he sometimes turns to Heath to get a different perspective on challenges he’s facing on and off the job. 

“It takes a special, experienced individual like Daniel who can navigate all that,” Wilson said. “It starts with being someone who’s trustworthy, someone who listens, someone who cares, no matter what faith you are.”

Nelson, who currently works with children on the autism spectrum, said she draws inspiration from how Heath interacts with people. She plans to pursue a master’s degree in psychology and someday have her own practice as an adolescent psychologist.

She hopes to carry his example into her future practice.

“He emphasizes the importance of presence,” she said. “It’s having people know that you’re there, that they can come to you, that they can talk to you about anything, and that you’ll listen.”