Business group provides support for ex-pro jocks.

• Author: Roush, Chris
• Position: SPORTS SECTION

Toby Kearney thought he had left professional sports behind in 1994 when he retired rather than accept a trade from East Coast Hockey League's South Carolina Stingrays to its Hampton Roads, Va., Admirals. Though he had been selected in the fifth round of the National Hockey League draft five years earlier by the Calgary Flames, he played only a handful of NHL preseason games--not even enough to be listed on the team's all-time roster--and he was ready to start a new career.

Kearney, who had a bachelor's in agricultural economics from the University of Vermont, wound up going from the penalty box to the executive suite. He went to work for B&D Marine and Industrial Boilers, a Charleston, S.C.-based company that sells and services pressure systems, rising to vice president and a seat on the board in 1996. Six years later, he left the company to go back to school, earning his MBA from Babson College in Wellesley, Mass.

He took a job in Charlotte as a financial adviser for Merrill Lynch. A few months later, he met Warren Shinn, who runs a commercial realestate and lending business, at a meeting of the Business and Innovation Growth Council, a nonprofit for entrepreneurs in Charlotte. Shinn--neither a relative of New Orleans Hornets owner George Shinn nor a former pro athlete--was putting together a group of retired athletes turned businessmen.

Kearney signed up, becoming a board member of the National Business Association when the nonprofit was unveiled in January. Designed to help former pro athletes with their business careers, it meets once a month in Charlotte but wants to expand to other cities in North Carolina and the U.S.

So far, a dozen athletes have paid $100-a-year dues to join. About 10 businessmen also have joined, buying $1,000 exclusive sponsorships and paying $100 quarterly dues to attend meetings. The nonathlete memberships, however, are limited by profession. For example, Shinn says, "There can only be one nonpro-athlete attorney or CPA."

At the meetings, the athletes and other members trade business advice, offer potential leads for deals and swap referrals. Kearney, now 35, has added accounts to his brokerage business from the contacts he has made. "And I'm talking to some people right now about some potential real-estate deals in the Raleigh area. You just make the connection and follow up."

Such interaction might seem like basic blocking and tackling for most business executives, but it's a whole new ballgame for most...