From the May 2010 issue of Our Moment, the UConn Foundation's e-newsletter.
Justin M. Murphy ’89 was good at blocking defenders when he played UConn football in the 1980s. He has found those same skills useful surviving hard hits to the financial markets as a managing director for financial services giant JP Morgan. It was only natural, then, that he support UConn football with annual donations to the program.
“I manage a fund and I have managed people, and a lot of the lessons I apply tie back to the lessons I learned in sports,” he says.
But he took an extra step this year to help his alma mater when he and his wife, Carmen, also gave $25,000 to establish the Justin and Carmen Murphy Scholarship Fund in the School of Business. Why?
For one, he wanted to say thank you to UConn. He met his wife, Carmen Giannitti ’88, when they lived in the same residence hall. He landed jobs by networking with fellow UConn alumni. And as an undergraduate, he was paid special attention by Judy Paesani, assistant director at the Center for Real Estate and Urban Economic Studies.
“I had many memorable teachers and lessons at UConn, but if I had to pick one person I’m most indebted to, it would have to be Judy,” he says. “She got me nominated for scholarships, and was a huge help and influence to me.”
Students often remember one or two faculty and staff members who had a significant impact on their lives. For Murphy, that person was Paesani, an avid UConn football and basketball fan and knowledgeable staff member who retired in 1991. She had coordinated the center’s internships, run its scholarship program, helped students with resumes that she then compiled and sent out to potential employers, and assisted scores of students in establishing their careers.
“It was the best part of my job,” she remembers. “And my father was a football coach, so I had a soft spot in my heart for football players.”
Murphy, who now lives in Darien with Carmen and their two children, Kyle and Sarah, graduated with a B.S. in Real Estate/Urban Economics.
“I’ve been in the same industry since graduation,” he says. “That’s certainly a credit to my experience at UConn.”
For more information about supporting the School of Business, please contact the UConn Foundation’s development department.
