UFC fighter Rashad Evans talks to the underprivileged kids at the Boys Town Nevada center in North Las Vegas.
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2009 | midnight
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans understands as well as anyone that kids don't always get to grow up under the best of circumstances.
Earlier this month, Evans shared his own story of growing up in a single-family home to the underprivileged kids at the Boys Town Nevada center in North Las Vegas.
According to Evans, he rarely shares the details of his past with those around him.
However the chance to use his story to inspire kids like him to follow their dreams is an opportunity he found hard to pass up.
"I really never tell anybody my story, it's kind of something I use for personal motivation," Evans said. "But a lot of those kids may be going through something like I went through and it's good for them to know they're not alone.
"Just because you don't always come from the best circumstances doesn't mean you can't persevere and come out on top."
Evans, one of nine children, grew up in Niagara Falls, N.Y. When he was 3 years old, his parents divorced and all but one of his siblings ended up settling with his mother.
Because his mom worked the night shift and slept mostly during the day, Evans said he was free to do whatever he wanted from a very early age.
He also remembers money was scarce.
"I used to be so poor, I would go to school just to eat lunch," Evans told the kids of Boys Town Nevada. "Other kids made fun of my clothes. I wasn't clean all the time. It was hard for me growing up — I had a lot of anger inside."
As he got older, Evans says that his love for football, wrestling and karate was what saved him from giving into the temptations that could have easily derailed his life.
He also was fortunate enough to receive help from certain mentors along the way.
When karate lessons became too expensive for his family to afford, his instructor Karl Brusino gave him free lessons in exchange for cleaning the dojo from time to time.
"My mom put me in karate when I was in sixth grade, but pretty soon she couldn't afford the lessons," Evans said. "Instead of him saying I had to go, he let me clean up the place to take lessons."
When Evans tried skipping out of the occasional high school wrestling practice, coach Eric Knuutila would leave the practice himself to find Evans and drag him to where he needed to be.
"Back in high school, I used to try to quit wrestling every now and then because it's the hardest sport on earth. I would always try to skip out on wrestling practice but every time my coach would find me and pick me up."
"And this was before cell phones, so he had to call a lot of house phones to track me down."
But Evans also told the kids that for every person that helps and believes in you, there's even more that don't want you to succeed.
Despite his early athletic achievements and a dedication to stay academically eligible in the classroom, Evans said there were still some that never saw him as more than a troublemaker.
"I had friends, that had parents that didn't want me hanging out with their kids," Evans said. "They'd tell me, 'I don't want you hanging out with my son. You're a bad seed and you're going nowhere. You'll end up in prison.
"I used to go to college counselors and they would tell me my best option would be to find a trade and go to trade school because they couldn't foresee me getting a college degree."
As many now know, Evans went on to become a collegiate wrestler at Michigan State University and graduated with a degree in psychology.
The most important thing, he told the kids, is to always believe in themselves and keep sight of what they want in life.
At the end of his speech, Evans and a few other speakers from the UFC, were mobbed for autographs and photos.
Having become such a star in the biggest fighting organization in the world, Evans is used to fans making such requests.
However that night at the Boys Town Nevada center definitely had a different feel to it than usual, as the kids saw Evans more as one of their own, than a UFC celebrity.
"It definitely does," said Evans, when asked if he was inspired by the experience. "It get's you thinking about the things you've been through. It's easy to go through the day-to-day motions and get consumed by a new lifestyle.
"But you can't forget where you came from."
Brett Okamoto can be reached at 948-7817 or [email protected]. Also follow him on twitter: LVSunFighting.
