MEET THE TEAM

Mission and Purpose
The Southside Slugger’s Boxing Club is committed to the development of young men and women in Cheyenne through the promotion of the core values of sportsmanship, self-esteem, discipline, commitment, and integrity.

Organizational Overview
Over 30 years ago, the Southside Slugger’s Boxing Club was founded by a group of volunteers dedicated to providing Cheyenne youth with the skills to improve their lives.  Through the years, many young men and women have come through the doors to learn the principles of good sportsmanship, discipline, commitment, and integrity.  As time passed the added goal of teaching our youth to lead a productive, substance abuse-free lifestyle has also become important to the volunteers and youth alike.  Supported through the actions of volunteers, the Boxing Club continued to work for our community youth.
In 2017 the Boxing Club received the gracious sponsorship of a local non-profit organization, The Forum 619.  The Forum provided a garage for the club to use as a training location.  The unheated and unfinished garage was remodeled using volunteer labor and supplies donated by many of our community supporters.  Forum 619 allows our youth to train indoors during colder weather since the gym lacks heat, running water, or bathroom facilities.
There are currently seven coaches/trainers who donate their time to the youth.  All of these trainers are required to complete the Level 1 USA Boxing Clinic and pass all required testing and background checks.  In addition, our coaches are required to adhere to a Code of Conduct which clearly stresses the values of the Southside Slugger’s Boxing Club including teamwork, fairness, sportsmanship, safety, and the importance of the interplay between athletics and education.
Our coaches/trainers work closely to collaborate with parents and educators to ensure that our students have better-than-average grades and behavior in school.  In order to be eligible for competition, the youth must demonstrate high moral character, remain substance-free, and have grades in school that are consistently above average.
Once per year, a local boxing match is hosted in Cheyenne.  Out of the 46 boxers who participated this year, four of our youth were able to compete and an additional eight entered and weighted but were not able to get matched with another boxer for reasons of weight, age, or skill level.  In addition, we serve as a pipeline for our youth to participate in various regional and national boxing events which are hosted in Colorado, Kansas, Utah, and Wyoming.  When boxers travel to surrounding communities, the boxing club pays for trip expenses and/or provides transportation
of the youth at the expense of the club and volunteers.

Statement of Need
Youth in Southeast Wyoming, specifically Cheyenne face a variety of challenges that are seemingly unique to rural states.  A lack of appropriate youth activities and guidance leads many of our youth down the path of substance abuse, educational failure, and delinquent behavior.  Through after-school amateur athletics led by a group of trained and committed adults, the youth not only have a place to go, but can learn the skills and values that will carry them forward into adulthood.
As our program has begun to grow with renewed interest from our parents and community members, we need to make several critical changes if we want to continue to enhance the lives of the youth we serve.  Specifically, the program is seeking funding for physical plant improvement projects and direct service monies to the youth and families we serve in Cheyenne.

Program Sustainability
The Southside Slugger’s Boxing Club is seeking assistance to make significant programmatic improvements which will allow it to seek additional funding through a variety of other sources including grants and fundraising activities.  In addition to the various community, governmental, and philanthropic funding alternatives that exist, the Boxing Club was built on the foundation of volunteerism and partnership with other community organizations.  We will continue to work in this manner to ensure that maximum impact is delivered to the community with minimum financial support.

Fundraising
Throughout the year, Southside Slugger’s Boxing Club sponsors and/or takes part in several fundraising events in Laramie County. We host the annual Wyoming State Silver Gloves Tournament, the Wyoming Showdown Tournament, Cinco de Mayo Dinner & Dance, and Boxing & Brunch. Our team utilizes the support of our sponsors, coaches, trainers, parents, boxers, and community volunteers by taking part in ongoing third-party and charitable fundraiser events. Past charitable endeavors include WyoGives, Cars, Cigars and Guitars Under the Stars, a charity classic car show, USA Boxing-sanctioned charity boxing events, an online Facebook fundraising campaign, Network for Good, and GiveGab.