When I was a kid, I was very over weight. I use to always get picked on.

I grew up in the lower east side of Manhattan. Very bad area.

It was called alphabet city.

A stand for Ok, B for Beware, C for caution, D for death. 

I lived on Ave D!

One day, I was just so tired of getting picked on, so I walked in to a Boys club. (Pitt Street boys club) I signed up, because it was only $25 for the entire year. We grew up poor, so that was something I could afford.

I walked in and went straight to the weight room, and I heard someone say to me, hey come here.  It was Coach Milton.

He said, why don’t I try boxing instead of just weight training. 

So I did. From that day, I fell in love with the sport.

I trained for a few years, then started hanging with the wrong people. 12 st Ave D was a very bad place to grow up in the 80s and 90s..

My brother got shot 3 times, once in the head and twice in the back. The crazy thing was, he was not the person they were looking for. Wrong place, wrong time. 

Then when I was about 17 years old, I saw Milton on 14th street. He asked if I wanted to train, I told him I couldn’t afford it. So he let me train for free, in return, I helped him out at the gym..

I was given a second chance, and now today, I’m the owner of Supreme Team Boxing in NY.

The same team I started training on when I was 12 years old. 

I was given a chance, with no money. That’s why I give back and give underprivileged individuals a fighting chance!

We give them an alternative to being on the streets.