(chains rattling) (blows landing on punching bags) - [Narrator] When you enter the gym at Crown Boxing, initially, it looks like your typical fighting hub.

- Y'all better keep goin'.

- [Narrator] Young athletes scattered about, trying to perfect the jab.

(punches landing) - There we go.

- [Narrator] Deliver a clean hook.

(punches landing) But if you look closer, you'll realize that there's more than just the sweet science being taught within these walls.

- [Ali] Ready?

1, 2, 3.

There you go, doin' 10.

- [Narrator] Pittsburgh native, Ali Easley, is the lead trainer here.

He's better known by his nickname, Hawk, which actually has no ties to the sport of boxing.

- I was playing a little, uh, basketball and I dunked on somebody and there was a little clip in a paper that said, "Easley soared like a Hawk."

And, uh, kids got a big charge out of it and it never went away.

- [Narrator] Easley, A former amateur boxer, took a job at Michigan State University in the early nineties.

Still having a passion for the sport, he eventually discovered the Crown Boxing Club and became a coach.

It was then that a passion for helping young men and women was birthed.

- Quite honestly, as a young kid in Pittsburgh, whenever I was in a boxing facility, there were a lot of things that I didn't maybe know how to talk to my parents about, and having a coach, some older mentors in the gyms there, really was helpful for me, uh, to be able to talk and express those things that kind of born the, the idea of doing something where kids could then maybe come to me.

It just evolved over time to be able to address some other issues that they may have, that we could fulfill that need for them.

- [Narrator] That evolution led to the founding of the "Help A Willing Kid" or H.A.W.K.

foundation.

Founded 25 years ago, Hawk has taken literally thousands of kids and provided them with food, clothing, shelter, and mentorship.

- It means the world to me to see these kids that come in, maybe don't have a parent or a consistent home life, provide them some guidance, help build their self-esteem, uh, give them an outlet in the sport.

And then I was able to parlay all my resources at the university, uh, to have students that want to get involved in tutoring or food drives or clothing drives or mentorship, bring them in, uh, to have them help, and they get something out of it.

And then it all just grew and grew.

- [Marco] Kind of like you're throwing a football or a baseball.

So just, just, when you step, step and turn at the same time.

- [Narrator] If there's an ideal poster child for H.A.W.K., it's Marco Schimizzi.

- It's a 1, 2.

There we go.

- [Marco] The hard work that you do down here, there's no shortcuts.

And I think that translates into academics.

I noticed my grades really went up.

I mean, if you look at like my middle school grades before I started to come down here, we're talking C minus, C's.

You know, in high school, I was in National Honor Society.

You know, I really stepped it up and I attribute that to being down here and doing hard work and, and, you know, not taking shortcuts.

- [Narrator] Marco was a former H.A.W.K.

pupil who began the program at the age of 14 and is now a trainer at Crown Boxing.

And Ali's right-hand man.

- 1, 2, hook, 2.

Hook.

Bang bang.

- Various fundraisers that I kind of saw happening down here when I first started really made me notice like, "Wow, he's involved in the community and he's giving back."

And then he was able to get tutors from Michigan State to help, help me when I was in high school.

Providing clothes, food.

I used to get fed here in high school.

And so did my teammates and just kind of watching that is like, I don't know, it just makes an impression on you.

- [Ali] Marco came in here as a young kid.

He wanted to be an athlete.

He wanted to get involved in a sport.

And was kind of a skinny, awkward kid, but put in the time and dedication.

And he's somebody I watched grow amazingly over the years.

From being that little awkward kid, to getting a degree from MSU, to getting a job at Michigan State, working in the nursing department, to coming back and helping as a coach.

And now he is doing some of the things that I did with him as a young kid.

And to see that whole transformation over 15 years has been incredible.

- [Narrator] On the outside, Marco looks like your typical, healthy young athlete.

But a few years ago, while in college, the vision in his left eye was hazy.

He went to his doctor.

And tests revealed a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis.

It was tough revealing the news to his mentor.

(grunting) - I actually got the call that I had MS while I was down here coaching, and I just went straight into his office and kind of was, like, hysterical, and I told him about it and he just kind of calmed me down.

He's always good at calming me down and just kind of laid out a, a good roadmap and how to be positive about the diagnosis.

- He's got to be one of the ideal representatives of what your program is all about.

- Yes, he is, And to see him relate in a different way to the kids that I do, is important.

- Good job, David.

Get yourself back in and let's go.

- My favorite boxers are Ryan García and Mike Tyson.

- Or Gervonta Davis.

- Oh yeah, Gervonta Davis too, yeah.

- [Narrator] Young boxing talents, David and Zayyir, have been directly impacted by coach Marco.

- Oh, good shot, Zayyir.

- He's like one of the main coaches like, like, he's those, like, he's just tiring.

- When he tires you out?

Or when he pushes you?

- It's like, really good working with them, especially with like, the handbags and, like, the mitts.

Cause like, he'd do, like, a lot of different combinations.

- [Narrator] It's hard to fully grasp the impact that the program has had on so many throughout the years.

Crown Boxing is clearly more than just boxing.

- Part of the reason I come down here is to stay in shape and slow the MS down.

It was part of who I was before I had MS, And it'll continue to be a part of me, even with MS.

Anyone who knows me knows that this place is like my second home.

You know, this is it.

You know, I was born to be here.

I really do think that.

- [Narrator] And the lessons learned at Crown continue to impact future generations.

- What's the most important lesson you guys have learned being in this gym?

- Number one would probably be discipline.

- I feel like it helped me be like, conditioned and in a shape and like, being prepared and like, pacing myself.

- Over the last 20 years, we've had more stories about kids that have graduated from high school, you know, became productive members of society, maybe changed the direction of their family trajectory.

And I can come back and give to the gym and that's, to me, that's success.

- That means more than a belt, right?

- Absolutely.

A lot of ways, I feel like it's my life's work.

(chains rattling) (timer going off) - [Ali] All right, time.

Let's get it.

One, let's go, two, three, four, five.