The 27260 ZIP code in high point is one
of the poorest areas in North Carolina.
That's according to unitedstateszipcodes.org.
Poverty often creates a breeding
ground for crime and violence.
Now, a professional boxer is taking
his talents to this community to
help put youth on a positive path,
I want to see how coach
Stephen Matthews changes lives.
One jab at a time. And
ain't no walking, going on, son,
let's go developing today's
youth into tomorrow's leaders.
21 billion 3 billion knees
come up slowly is a challenge.
Coach Stephen Matthews is prepared to take on
in this sport is a high level of
intangibles such as discipline,
focus, Critical thinking,
composure, emotional intelligence,
the US Combat veteran,
and professional Boxer
founded PUNCH for Pound Kids.
The program provides youth mentorship
through the art of boxing.
It is look at your feet,
though I want you to look at it.
That's the angle 45 degree angle since
2014 he's worked with youth in Greensboro.
While he's stepping into a new ring,
helping students in the high point area,
this particular ZIP code suffers in many
areas from educational disparity gaps,
gang and gang violence,
lack of employment and economic chokeholds,
and so ideally we want to begin
empowering the community.
Starting with our most important
component of our Youth,
Matthews partnered with greater New Hope
Baptist Church in High Point to offer
a summer enrichment program for kids.
Participants won't just learn
how to jab and uppercut.
There's an academic component as well.
Point of rival, they're gonna come in.
We're gonna have an empowerment our
we're gonna do some strength and
conditioning we're going to do some
motivating then that's going to lead
into our mentoring and our stem.
We actually had a great opportunity
to partner with the agency that's
provided us with STEM curriculum and
all the activities and resources.
Pastor Lavelle McMichael hopes the summer
camp will allow his church to continue to
be a lighthouse for the community because
so many of our youth just don't have
anything to do throughout the day and
so opening up our doors and allowing
the opportunity for these young people
to have a place to come to get off
the streets and to really have some
services that impact their lives.
Help them with their conflict
resolution skills, their coping skills,
parents and participants agree.
I used to get in fights a lot.
And I wanna watch out
the anger for next year.
What makes you so passionate about this?
Well so I come from a community where
you see where imbalance creates.
I just wanted to be a part of
the solution as a combat vet.
I always say I fought for the country.
I'm obligated to fight for the community.
This summer camp at greater New Hope
Baptist Church runs through August 11th
with the hopes of expanding into an after
school enrichment program in the fall.
To learn more about punch for pound
kids and how you can get involved,
just look for this story up on our website.
What a great thing to do,
especially because right
now in the past few months,
even the past couple of years we
have heard about so much youth
violence in our area.
Specific, you know, usually it's
the bigger cities that we see it in,
but I mean something has got to be
done and this is a good step forward.
A great step forward and
coach Steven Matthews.
He's done so much work
in the Greensboro area.
He's put on career fairs.
He's put on job fairs not only for you,
but also adults as well.
So to see him expand over the
last few years and heading into
high point is excited to see the
the work that he's doing there.
One of the things that the pastor
was saying that that area where that
church is around is a dead end.
It's a desert.
There's really not much for
the kids to do there,
and a lot of them their parents might be
at work so they don't have transportation.
He said a lot of the kids involved,
they're just able to walk.
Across the street and they're just
so excited to see the influence
that is having on the community.
There a lot of seniors do
programs there as well,
so they're seeing these young
people getting involved.
And they're even inspired in other
ways to get healthy and fit.
And it's just so many
positive things happening
with this program and it's
incredible what a mentor can do.
Yes, I mean, it seems simple enough as
an adult to be a mentor to somebody,
but I mean just the influence that you can
have on one child or several children.
I mean, just to have an
adult figure in your life.
A lot of kids don't have that adult figure,
and that's what he talked about,
Coach Matthews.
Said he's a fatherless father,
and so he said, the lack of a male
presence in a lot of these youth,
it really can impact what
path that they go on.
So he really hopes that him
working with these kids.
Will you know,
just give them something to
look up to and let them know
what they can be and that their
environment doesn't have to define
who they are. Yeah, such a
great story. Good luck with.