Building a Legacy Through Mentorship
Within Bioventus, Apollos Abercrombie is a Territory Manager 2 – SW Georgia Rt. But, in the South Atlanta Metro Area, Mr. Abercrombie is known for giving his time and talents as a mentor.
In May Mr. Abercrombie was inducted into the Emerging 100 Black Men of South Metro Atlanta, a subsidiary of 100 Black Men of America, that seeks to improve the quality of life throughout the community. Members use their talents and experiences to help create environments where children are motivated to achieve more.
“Finding good mentors is so important because it opens doors both professionally and personally,” he said. “With that in mind, I actually found out about this organization 6 years from a mentor and at first, I was turned down because I didn’t have the body of work – at 23 years old – needed to join an organization like this. I took that feedback, kept this goal in mind over the years, and just continued to do good work to the point where I got noticed and they reached out to me.”
Since graduating from Auburn University in 2016, Mr. Abercrombie has served on the Auburn University Young Alumni Council, ATL Leaders, Florida State University C.A.R.E.S. Mentor Program, Auburn’s Harbert College of Business Advisory Board, and served as a member of the United States Air Force Reserves.
Mr. Abercrombie has been a member of Emerging 100 Black Men of South Metro Atlanta since 2021, but his motivation to give back to others has deeper roots.
“My main man Isaac Newton said, ‘I have seen so far because I stood on the shoulders of giants.’” He said. “Coming from humble beginnings in rural Alabama and being the first person in my immediate family to graduate college, I love giving a shoutout to the people who take the time invest in me because I’m just so thankful and appreciative. So, hopefully we can be that shining light for someone else to chase their dreams, too.”
He was so driven by this belief that in 2021, Mr. Abercrombie founded The Apollo’s B.O.W. Foundation. B.O.W. stands for Bridging Opportunities Worldwide, an acronym that was inspired by Apollo of Greek mythology and his special bow, and as a bit of encouragement for students to shoot for the stars.
“I started Apollo’s B.O.W. Foundation to change lives,” said Mr. Abercrombie. “People don’t realize how powerful an impact they can have on others sometimes, so if I can help just 10 people with this nonprofit and those 10 people go on to help another 10, multiply that over a lifetime and that’s how you build a legacy.
“According to statistics from the NY Times, your zip code can determine your success, but our nonprofit is looking to find those hungry, driven students who just need a good mentor to show them that no matter where they come from, they can do it too,” he continued.
Currently, Apollo’s B.O.W. awards student scholarships at Auburn University and Maplesville High School as well as mentor first generation college students at Florida State University through their C.A.R.E.S. Program.
With all of his efforts outside of the company, Mr. Abercrombie wants to share a message with all of his colleagues here at bioventus.
“I was so humbled by the warm welcome I received when I joined this company and to see my teammates here at Bioventus shooting for the stars, that inspires me, so hopefully this small article inspires you too.”