First Responders Unite for "Do Good and Never Forget" Fight Night Coming to Ferry Hawks Ballpark, Staten Island New York, on September 10, 2022

Featuring NYPD Boxing, FDNY Boxing, National Grid and other first responders, fighting to raise money for NYC Cops and Kids, along with Tunnel to Towers Foundation.

NEW YORK, Aug. 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Have you ever wondered who is tougher, a cop or a firefighter? This may be your chance to find out! New York City Cops and Kids Boxing along with the Tunnel to Towers Foundation announced today they will be co-hosting a 6pm boxing event on Saturday, September 10th at the Ferry Hawks Ballpark in Staten Island NY. The event commemorates all first responders and the sacrifices made during 9/11.

Over the past five years, NYC Cops & Kids has served over 3,000 inner city teens, offering free fitness, mentorship, tutoring and coaching. In 2021, the program collaborated with the UFC to offer brand new equipment in their three separate gym locations. With a completely new fourth location in Jamaica Queens set to open this September 1st, 2022, many more teens are sure to be reached. These free gyms and tutoring locations are a safe haven for kids aged 12-21 after school and over the weekends, offering an attractive alternative to hanging out on the streets. "Cops and kids boxing is the best policing because real policing happens in partnership with the community" notes retired Lieutenant Dave Siev, Coach and Trainer of NYPD Boxing. Kids in this program are more likely to stay in school, graduate and become engaging, productive citizens of the city. "We get to the kids that no one else can get to. That school can't get to, cops in the streets can't get to. We can get to them through boxing," adds Founder and Executive Director Russo. The program has also produced Olympic and professional boxing champions, "If it wasn't for this gym, I would have never experienced the Olympics or signed my deal with Floyd Mayweather," noted program participant Richardson "Africa" Hitchins.

Started as a crime fighting initiative in 1987, the NYC Cops & Kids gyms provide positive opportunities for young people and police officers to work with each other, improving academic outcomes as well as mutual respect. This program builds and strengthens bonds of community understanding. "NYC Cops & Kids is the real deal. Kids are motivated to become better people, cops learn to understand and empathize with current problems these kids face, and the outcomes speak for themselves. What other program creates Olympians, outstanding citizens, and professional money making athletes, that is so low cost, servicing hundreds of kids per year with their annual budget of $150,000? It's incredible." says Julia Etra, NYC Cops & Kids Board member and donor. As this program continues to expand, its ultimate goal is to have a free gym, along with an internal tutoring center per location, in every borough of NYC.

Having touched the lives of so many people, it is time to come out and celebrate the hard work of these boxing teams. Endlessly entertaining and at the same time challenging, boxing has a hook no other sport can offer. Sponsored by and in collaboration with Ford, The United States Marine Corps, the NY Giants and USA Boxing Metro, this large scale boxing event is sure to be a crowd pleaser. Tickets for the 6pm September 10th event are available online through the website https://www.copsandkidsboxing.com/our-work or directly https://bit.ly/3boDe3x, the QR code in this release, as well as in person on the day of the event at the stadium. Premium Fight Night Experience Box Suites along with sponsorship packages are also available by emailing NYPD's Fighting Finest, [email protected].   

For more than 30 years, New York City Cops and Kids Boxing, a nonprofit organization, has been providing inner city teens with an alternative to the street by offering free access to fitness, mentorship, tutoring and coaching at three training locations, two in Staten Island and one in Brooklyn. Started as a crime fighting initiative in 1987, NYC Cops and Kids has grown through leaps and bounds. In 2010 former NYPD Sergeant Pat Russo from Staten Island took charge of the program, leading the NYPD Boxing Team, NYPD Fighting Finest 501 C3, to reopen the Cops and Kids Boxing program in Staten Island and Brooklyn. The program's gyms serve youth ages 12-21, and are run on a day to day basis by certified USA Boxing coaches. Learn more at CopsandKidsBoxing.org, NYPDBoxing.com as well as connect with us on Instagram: NYCCopsAndKids.

SOURCE New York City Cops and Kids Boxing