A member of the AFS Family Moves on.
If you’re reading this, chances are you know that at AFS, we’re pretty joyful creatures. We laugh, we dance, we make fun of ourselves, and we try to share as much of it as we can with you, our clients and friends. Today I want to tip my cap to an unsung hero of this process. He’s the guy behind the camera in the funny instagram photo you just liked, the guy who’s up at 3am setting up our tent at water stations, the guy who’s not afraid to don the legendary banana suit on fruit fridays and to change into a business suit the same day to attend a workshop with Mike. This is also the only employee at AFS who can claim he’s had a hand in changing every client’s life who has come through AFS Ann Arbor’s doors in the past 3 years. Since we’re in the business of change, that’s a big deal.
If you don’t know who I’m referring to yet, chances are you just clicked on this post while scrolling through facebook because you like baby photos (Can’t blame you, that’s a cute baby!) Still though, stick around and read about how much Corbin Kuceyeski has meant to our organization since he started in 2014.
When Corbin started he was fresh out of school and moved to Ann Arbor from southern Ohio because he wanted to work at a place where he felt like his work had a direct impact on the well being of others. I hired him as an assistant. He was brought in to lighten the load with our intake meetings and help me do some monthly tracking and event planning.
Mere months into his new gig with us, plans changed for Corbin. In the summer of 2014 we acquired the building and property for our second location in Plymouth. Soon I would be leaving AFS Ann Arbor (my home for the previous 3 years) to take on the challenge of launching the new facility. My move meant Corbin was going to be left on his own to manage all incoming client inquiries, plan client appreciation events, manage our social media accounts, feed our blog with new content, and 1,000 other things us marketing nerds have our hands in. Needless to say it was a stressful time! Luckily, he was up for the challenge.
In a time of great need for our company Corbin became a leader. The sales and marketing role for AFS can sometimes feel isolated due to the unique responsibilities, but Corbin never once complained he wasn’t getting enough support. He learned new skills, he pushed through frustrating setbacks, and stepped in wherever he could to support the fitness staff in elevating the AFS experience. In all honesty I think Corbin has surprised himself in the past 3 years. He’s grown so much as a person and even carries himself with a different confidence..Some now refer to him as “The Marvelous Corbin” haha! The cherry on top is that (in typical AFS fashion) Corbin has also completely transformed physically losing over 30lbs of fat and packing on enough muscle to even make Sawyer jealous! It’s been a crazy eventful few years for my once skittish assistant and I’m incredibly proud of not only the employee, but the man he’s become.
I’m sharing Corbin’s story now, because up to this point he’s been part of the team that’s tasked with telling the stories-and he’d rather stay behind the scenes than be front and center. Things changed though when Corbin informed me last week he would be leaving AFS to be closer to his family back home. His sister recently had a beautiful baby boy named Maddox (the one pictured) and named Corbin the godfather. Corbin and his Fiance Zach (also an awesome person) will be making the move back to southern Ohio this summer to allow Corbin to be a part of Maddox’s childhood and to hopefully influence the little guy to be a Michigan fan (Mike Stack insisted I add this). Considering how close Corbin is with our clients in Ann Arbor, I thought it was important everyone know why he’s leaving and have ample time to say their goodbyes in the next few weeks. (Corbin, sorry in advance for how many times you’re going to cry this next month!)
We love you, we’re going to miss you every day, and we are forever grateful for everything you’ve done for AFS. You will always be an agent of change and I can’t wait to see what you do next.
-Nate & Team