Last Thanksgiving, Travis McDonough聽(BScK鈥�94) invited a man living in a tent to dinner. After the meal, McDonough and his wife moved him into the home they share with their three kids. He stayed for three months while they helped him find work and affordable housing.
"Now he鈥檚 a tax-paying citizen with two jobs. He even volunteers. The story ends well,鈥� says McDonough.
Calculated risk-taking, service to community, and ending well seem to be McDonough鈥檚 modus operandi.
A kinesiology grad and licensed chiropractor, McDonough says he fell in love with the science of movement and the human body while at Dal. He鈥檚 channeled that into several businesses. The latest is . 鈥淚t鈥檚 a digital platform that builds community wellness,鈥� explains McDonough.
McDonough says he lives by the adage that you don鈥檛 choose your future, you choose your habits, which determine your future.
鈥淵ou can鈥檛 get people off their phones, so I figured let鈥檚 use them to create positive change,鈥� he says.
Recognizing the popularity of video games and apps like TikTok, McDonough and his business partners鈥� many coming from Kinduct, the performance-based tracking software for athletes he founded, nurtured, then sold鈥攆ound a way to harness screen addictiveness for good.
鈥淲e originally imagined it for young athletes, but realized we also needed to help sedentary kids get healthier,鈥� McDonough says, from Wellnify.ai headquarters鈥攁 half basketball court plus workout / office space in his backyard.
鈥淭he greatest gift a parent can give their children is a love of exercise,鈥� McDonough says, adding when that doesn鈥檛 happen, Wellnify.ai can step in to help cultivate that love for exercise.
黑料吃瓜网is a partner. Residence students use Wellnify.ai to participate in augmented reality challenges. 鈥淚t gives a video game-like experience,鈥� McDonough explains, with students in, say, Shirreff Hall performing and counting squats using Wellnify.ai to compete against friends in Howe Hall.
It鈥檚 not just about fitness. There is the 鈥渂ody鈥� channel, but also channels for 鈥渕ind,鈥� offering information on things like the importance of sleep, and 鈥渟pirit,鈥� focused on mindfulness, meditation and nature. Rewards are built into each channel, such as points earned for spending time in nature, that are collected and redeemed within the app or outside it for prizes.
After selling Kinduct in 2020 to a Silicon Valley tech company that took it global, McDonough paused to consider what was next. His parents died within two months of one another in 2021 and 2022, impacting his momentum and perspective.
His father was Dal alum Peter McDonough (LLB鈥�67). 鈥淗e would come to Kinduct every day in the early days. His belief in it was my power source.鈥�
His late mother, Alexa McDonough (BA鈥�65, MSW鈥�67, LLD鈥�09), taught him that service is the price you pay for living.
鈥淭his chapter in my life is much more about the impact we can have rather than a share price,鈥� McDonough says.
鈥淭his chapter in my life is much more about the impact we can have rather than a share price,鈥� McDonough says.
This story appeared in the聽DAL Magazine Spring/Summer 2024聽issue. Flip through the rest of the issue using the links below.