ROANOKE, Va. – Preventing youth from going the wrong path is the goal behind a boxing program a Roanoke man started.
“My mom thought boxing would be a great place to instill some responsibility,” Isha Hopkins-Gentry, a boxer in the Boxing and Brawling program said.
Hopkins-Gentry or “John Wick” as people in the boxing arena call him because of his quick hands has been in the program for six months after getting in trouble at school.
While Hopkins-Gentry can throw a punch, he’s also learning about self-control.
“It teaches you a lot of discipline, it teaches you how to fight, that’s for sure,” Hopkins-Gentry said.
Hopkins-Gentry is one of about 300 kids who are part of the Boxing and Brawling program.
The teens who participate said not only does it provide great exercise but also a home away from home.
They credit Coach Torie Woodbury.
“He’s like a second father, I’m always under his wing, he got my back no matter what,” JaShawn Law, a youth boxer said.
Coach Woodbury said the goal is to keep teens off the streets and provide an outlet where weapons are not the answer.
Woodbury started the program around 2021 with roughly two dozen kids and he said the program grew so much, that Woodbury coaches about 300 kids yearly.
“We keep them engaged, we keep them out the street, and that’s our goal and that’s one of the things I proud of for what he’s doing,” Lloyd Merchant, RESET volunteer said.
His team uses a facility the city donated at Norwich Playground.
“I love it, I love my job I mean I never work a day in my life, I love the kids,” Coach Woodbury said.
While the kids learn discipline and proper boxing techniques to make, they stay on the right path, and the city said they are seeing efforts too.
“Our Boxing and Brawling program at the Norwich Recreation Center over seven children served per session, over 42 sessions held, a total of 318 children served for the year,” Roanoke Police Chief Scott Booth said.
If you would like to donate to the program, you can do so here.