Darren was a serious athlete who excelled in basketball. He was a junior college Honorable Mention All-American and received a two-year scholarship to St. Bonaventure University. While at school, he quickly found himself at neighboring elementary schools and community centers, working with kids. Upon graduation, with a sociology degree, Darren was recruited to play professional basketball in England. Guess what he found time to do with his spare time? That's right, he worked with young kids teaching at basketball clinics. After returning to the states, he played in the USBL basketball league and also was drafted and played for the Syracuse Shooting Starts of the International Basketball League.

      When Darren's playing days were over, he accepted a job with the Elwood Public School District (Huntington, NY) as a teacher's aid at the elementary school. He also coached basketball, football and lacrosse at the high school (John H. Glenn). As a teachers aid he quickly developed a district wide reputation for being a disciplinarian and being able to work with the "hard to reach kids". He also initiated a mentoring and Biddy Basketball program. During his tenure as basketball coach, he was part of five championship titles. The team was ranked as high as #2 in the state. Also in 1989 he was an assistant coach on the league championship varsity football team.

      To further build on his career aspirations, Darren interviewed with the New York Urban Coalition, Manhattan, NY. This opportunity would open the door for his 10 year employment at Pius XII Youth and Family Service Center, Bronx, NY. While there, he began as an at risk counselor and finished as the Athletic Director. Darren pioneered many unique programs at Pius. He development the athletic department from scratch that catered to 535 children from three sites. Another program was counseling kids through a "Drama" project and the development of the Warrior basketball program. The Warrior boys basketball program has made tremendous strides in becoming one of the best teams in NYC. He also created the summer Olympics, which still occurs each summer and has grown to over 800 participants.