Zach Allen and Burena Edens are Milligan College’s athletic trainers who work behind the scenes every day so injured athletes can get back to their sports as soon as possible. They offer free emergency care, medical diagnoses and physical therapy in collaboration with off-site physicians for athletes at Milligan.
Allen and Edens are well known for their profession of sports medicine on campus, but many may not know how they got there.
Allen has been the head athletic trainer at Milligan since 2014. Before taking his current position, Allen was the assistant athletic trainer at Union College for two and a half years.
He grew up in Somerville, a small town in North Alabama, and chose his career path in high school after sustaining a sports-related injury of his own and receiving treatment from an athletic trainer. Allen had always been intrigued by the medical field. That, combined with his love for sports, is what he said made his decision to become an athletic trainer an easy choice.
Allen said the best part about being an athletic trainer is getting to interact with diverse groups of people.
Regarding his work at Milligan he said, “This is by far the greatest set of athletes and coaches I have ever worked with.”
Edens is the assistant athletic trainer. She took up the position at Milligan alongside Allen in 2014 after working as the head athletic trainer at Virginia Intermont College until it closed its doors.
“It was a blessing that came my way when a door was closing,” she said. “I enjoy being able to express my spirituality freely and being able to stay in this area with part of my family.”
Edens grew up in Germany as part of a military family and described her experience as being completely “unique.”
“I literally grew up in a melting pot of cultures and people,” she said.
Edens made her decision to be an athletic trainer in high school when her human anatomy teacher recommended it. She considered how much she loved the atmosphere of sports and the fact that she wanted a career path where she could take care of people.
Thanks to Allen and Edens, Milligan athletes are able to compete to the best of their abilities and recover from injuries as quickly as possible.