“Notre Dame educates both your mind and heart.”
Liam Redmond’s journey to Notre Dame started with his grandfathers, who would tune in every Saturday to cheer on their favorite football team. Driven by the promise to grow through community and a love of the Fighting Irish, Liam made his way to campus as a pre-medical student. He will soon graduate as a nationally recognized entrepreneur.
The spirited path to Notre Dame
“To watch someone who didn’t go to Notre Dame but who is so passionate about this school—that’s what makes Notre Dame so amazing. That, to me, feels like a legacy.”
Liam’s grandfathers inspired an appreciation for Notre Dame that transcended generations. Recalling one of his grandfather’s traditions, Liam said, “He was a diehard Notre Dame fan. He would watch every Saturday, rooting on the Irish as a Catholic guy from Long Island. What I came to love was his passion, not just for football, but for the faith aspect of the University.” Liam credits his grandfathers and his mother, a Notre Dame alumna, with motivating him each week to keep his sights set on becoming a Domer.
With the medical profession in his sights, Liam chose Notre Dame as the university to explore his interest in health sciences. He switched his major to neuroscience after his sophomore year. However, Liam soon realized medicine wasn’t the route for him. Rather, he had a keen interest in understanding consumer behavior. “I had a passion for entrepreneurship, which I didn’t realize until I got to Notre Dame. I give Notre Dame a ton of credit for helping me to discover that.”
Liam started down a new path at Our Lady’s University with the help of his alumni mentors, who have been pivotal in his growth and understanding that startups uniquely can effect positive change in the world. Of his mentors, Liam said, “They taught me the lesson that you can do well while doing good.” He was in an exceptional position to explore his new interests as a student. “To move things and shake things—that’s acceptable at Notre Dame; I haven’t found that to be true anywhere else,” he explained.
The transformative conversation
“I went from wanting to be a doctor during my freshman year to realizing I could ideate and build a company—to now actually doing it and taking it on as my full-time job.”
A chance meeting in the stir-fry line at South Dining Hall set Liam’s future in motion. While waiting for his meal, Liam met Zachary Brown, a classmate who shared Liam’s passion for serving others through technology. They struck up a conversation about the cost and safety of rideshares that would later turn into their blossoming business venture, Yelo, which they built in their dorm rooms.
“The Notre Dame mentors in entrepreneurship and business teach you how you can apply the skill set you’re learning to serve the most underserved and marginalized individuals in our world and society.”
Liam and Zach looked to the Mendoza College of Business motto, Grow the Good in BusinessTM and the University's mission to guide their ambitions along a path of servant leadership.
“We built a company called Yelo, which is connecting students together for safe, affordable rides around town—with the inside track of where and when to be,” Liam explained. The platform exclusively employs students from universities to drive their peers around town, employing a subscription model for drivers that differs from other rideshare companies.
“What we came to realize was that our product was actually safer for college communities. We could’ve built a product focused on maximizing returns and revenue, but we ended up building a company that we feel and believe is actively making a difference in our world.”
Zach and Liam were recognized on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list this year in the Transportation & Mobility category for their work with Yelo. The company not only drums up business for local hotspots, it also builds a community that’s safer for its users.
Leaning into connections
“This network and community will serve you for the rest of your life.”
The Notre Dame Family has supported Liam throughout his undergraduate career. He recalls a network of alumni mentors who helped shape his entrepreneurship and business acumen, offering all kinds of support as Yelo raised funds. Of the community, he said, “These alumni are so eager to help you skyrocket your career into whatever field it is. That’s so unique and something that does speak volumes.”
The IDEA Center on campus has also helped Liam and Zach find investors and kickstart their efforts with a $4,000 grant. The community surrounding Liam as a Notre Dame student, both professionally and personally, is something he describes as incredibly unique and empowering. “What I had always been told but didn’t understand until I went was that you’re getting so many amazing things out of the classes at Notre Dame, but the community and alumni network are parallel to none,” he said.
A distinct Notre Dame student experience
Liam’s trajectory at Notre Dame demonstrates the value of the University's interdisciplinary nature. From studying health sciences to running a startup, his journey has been sustained by his community of fellow Domers, alumni, faculty, and external partners. As he prepares to graduate this year, Liam reflected on the Notre Dame Family, “The depth I’ve found in the community has created closer bonds that I have never experienced anywhere else in my life.”
Thank you for your invaluable investment in Notre Dame students, who arrive at the University with the ability to explore their passions and develop new interests that, like Liam, set them on the path For Good.
Thank you for your loyalty to For Good and the students of Notre Dame. Because of your generosity, alumni and students like Liam continue to shape Notre Dame and the world for good. To read, listen to, or watch more stories, visit givemonthly.nd.edu.