From:TheBahamasWeekly.com

Community
The Gift of Boxing & Community Building
By Kandice Eldon
Dec 28, 2018 - 12:26:31 PM

MajorandThompson_1_.jpg
From left: Meacher Major, Bahamian Boxing Champion and Howard Thompson, Major Pain Youth Foundation Business Partner.

Meacher Major’s Winning Combination

Nassau, THE BAHAMAS - “Growing up in Kemp Road and at school all you use to see was fights, so I use to like to fight. I would get to school and get in fights, then come home to end the fight. I never picked on anybody, I tried to defend others but if you bothered with me then I would bother with you. I was the smallest of all the guys around but I was not going to be beat,“ recalled Major with a grin.

Unlike many kids in his neighbourhood in Kemp Road, young Meacher Major had an active and involved father in the home. He was able to beat the odds, dodging criminal activity which unfortunately swirled around him. He did not become a statistic.

“At the age of 8 and 9, I see kids who have seen so much violence in their young life. They’ve already seen murders and have become hard, they are now fearless, unafraid and aimless. Many of these kids have no role models or their parents are on the blocks not checking for them,” he explained.

However, for Major as a youth, a chance encounter with a Bahamian boxing legend would change the trajectory of his life.

“One day I was home with my parents, I was watching the news and saw Ray Minus, Jr. He had just started his boxing programme and I said to my dad that I wanted to try that. I went for fun and within two weeks, I got my first fight in Inagua. Mr. Minus saw I advanced quickly, I lost my first fight but it didn’t dampen my spirit. I went back in the gym and went on a winning spree after that.”

Major attributes much of his success over the years to God. His roots in Kemp Road grounded him and through boxing he was able to see the world. With growth there were inevitable growing pains but Major was determined to adapt to his new environment, learn and become better at the sport he loved.

“Because of boxing I was allowed to travel places internationally I’d never seen except on TV or even dreamed of seeing. I met people from other countries and my perception of life changed. I became an ambassador for the country, I was the youngest from The Bahamas and I had to adjust…it was tough at times but I chose to calm myself down and not get myself into problems,” he said.

For over two decades, Major gained exceptional prowess in the field of boxing locally and internationally becoming a Super Featherweight Champion for The Bahamas and a World Boxing Association (WBA) Caribbean Boxing Federation (CABOFE) Lightweight King. Under his belt Major celebrates 23 wins, six defeats and one no-contest.

Additionally, he is a sports ambassador for the country and the Pan American Caribbean Boxing Organization (PACBO) Regional Director.

Still healthy and driven, Major decided to hang up his boxing gloves in October yet remains deeply committed to community the through Major Pain Boxing Club and several community outreach projects.

“Seeing the condition of my community and the condition of my people with all these murders and crimes I realized I could give myself time back to help out.  I know how boxing changed my life and many of the guys who got involved with it did as well. I realized this was a tool I can use to help kids in the community through the boxing club. From the ages of 7 to 17, free of charge kids can learn how to box.”

He passion for young adults and giving back is infectious as other male role models in the community have joined forces for these endevours. The Major Pain Movie Fight Night was successfully held in November in Kemp Road through the support of other community builders.

“We are out in the community to give our youth inspiration. We are rebuilding our community. I want to say thanks to God and those who are supporting this venture Thomas Robinson, Howard Thompson my business partner and part of the Major Pain Youth Foundation. We want to make sure our youth have a future and the future is not tomorrow it is today. We looking forward to doing more to give these young people something to look forward to keep boxing alive we want kids to also play basketball and have exposure to other sports as we build a better Bahamas,” he stated. 

2019 looks bright for Major and his community partners with several professional and amateur bouts to be staged in Nassau and Grand Bahama. 

For Major, boxing was a gift which saved his life, he is a firm believer in the transformative power of the sport.

“Boxing makes a difference, I tell young men all the time all that anger and aggression could be channeled in the ring. It is like therapy to me, all that frustration can be taken out on the bag,” says Major. “Boxing brings discipline, through boxing at risk youth can be saved.”



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