18 February 2024
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — A Wichita youth boxing club, fighting to keep their doors open. Tracey Mason Sr. started CHD Boxing as a way to give at-risk kids He trains, a safe space to stay out of trouble. He has been able to offer sessions for free to parents for five years, but he said, it is to the point where they need help from the community.
“Paying bills when it’s free and you’re not receiving the funds on a consistent basis, sooner or later the doors are going to close,” said Mason Senior.
Coach Mason Sr. has kept the boxing sessions free, but offering life lessons comes at a cost.
“To have a safe space for the young people, it’s a struggle to do it by yourself yourself, I’ve sold my car and my truck, I’ve worked three and four jobs,” said Mason Senior.
Steering the youth in a positive direction is his goal.
“To be better than me, to not go down the same roads that I went down, so I went down some roads that I did not have to go down, because I made some bad choices and bad decisions, so mine is to have them make great choices and great decisions,” said Mason Senior.
A unique outlet for children who may have nowhere else to turn.
“Hopefully they’ll come here and leave all their aggression, their stress, and their pain, and everything like that here, and then they won’t take it outside,” said Mason Senior.
For the kids, they find passion behind the gloves.
“When I come in here I get excited,” said Deshawn Wheaton Jr.
Not wanting their gym to close.
“Awh man, I wouldn’t know what to do man,” said Elijah Davis.
Parent Deshawn Wheaton Sr. said losing the boxing gym would be devastating for his community.
“Bags are taped up, gloves busted up and ripped up, what made me gravitate to it is the mentality that I see that coach Tracey is putting into the kids, as a positive role model, said Wheaton Senior.
Coach Mason Senior said he wants to make an everlasting difference to the kids in his program.
“Say, because of coach Tracey, I became, a CEO, because of coach Tracey, I became a captain or a general, because of coach Tracey, I own some land,” said Mason Senior.
He said he young people, and it takes meeting them, where they’re at, to help. He said the money raised will go toward paying for the facility, through the summer, and purchasing new equipment.
You can help donate to CHD Boxing’s Gofundme here.