Boxing helping to build community for those with special needs

A concert was held in Kitchener Saturday night to raise money for an organization that’s creating a supportive community for those with special needs.

The Charity Concert for Champions, held at the Royal Canadian Legion on Wellington, is aiming to raise $30,000 for Fierce N Fit Boxing.

The organization says its mission is to “improve the physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual lives of those with special needs.” That includes people with Down syndrome, Asperger’s, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD), Tourette’s, cerebral palsy, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and other learning and cognitive disorders.

Fierce N Fit Boxing was started by former Kitchener boxer Taveena Kum.

The two-time national champion was supposed to go to the 2020 Olympic Games in Toyko, but her plans changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I ended up starting to train some of my friends who have Down syndrome, and we decided, ‘Hey, you know what? Let’s just keep training online,’” she said. “It just exploded, it got huge. So that’s how the program was born.”

Since then the organization has found a permanent home, although they still do online programming.

While participants learn about non-contact boxing, the real focus is on empowering members and creating community.

“It unites us as a team, it gives them confidence, and power, and courage,” Kum said. “That’s what our program is supposed to do.”

Also at Saturday night’s concert, Kum and her team announced they recently received full charitable status.