KHALI SWEENEY
KHALI SWEENEY RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS
QUESTION 1: You have deep commitment to helping people in need. It is interesting that in life we all have the opportunity to walk away from helping others, and it is equally interesting that some people don’t take those steps away from others in need. What were the main factors in your life that encouraged you to walk toward people in need and devote a significant part of your life to helping others? Please elaborate some about each factor.
RESPONSE: For me, the answer is simple – doing the right thing is second nature. I help people because it’s the right thing to do. There’s an inner drive inside of me that wants to help others in need. At the end of the day, I want to look in the mirror and like what I see. When you choose to walk away from somebody in need and you could have helped that person, that’s not a good feeling. I want to do the right thing in that moment.
Several factors drove me to specifically do what I’m doing now which is serve as founder and CEO of the Downtown Boxing Gym (DBG). DBG is a free after-school academic and athletic program that serves students ages 8-18 and into their first years of college and careers. We provide tutoring, mentorship, college and career readiness, meals, transportation, enrichment programs, athletics, internships, social-emotional skills building, and so much more. Those factors include:
*There’s a need for it. I saw a need in my community to provide young people with the tools and resources they need to succeed. I saw this firsthand through my own experience. I went to school and was passed from grade to grade all the way to 11th grade without ever learning to read or write. I saw that our educational system is failing many young people like myself and I wanted to step in and provide a place that gives students the individualized attention, intensive literacy and math intervention, academic support and resources, and whatever else is needed for them to be successful in life and achieve their dreams. Every student deserves the opportunity to reach their full potential and we are here to serve as a launching pad for their success.
*The streets have no waiting list. I know from my own life experience that without a program like DBG, and without the right role models and mentors, it’s easy for young people to go down the wrong path. I have seen so many friends end up dead or in jail and I’ve seen a line a mile long of other young people about to fall into that same hole. What kind of man would I be if I didn’t step in and try to stop them?
*Your zip code should not determine your destiny. The environment a child is raised in, their parents’ circumstances, the neighborhood around them, the resources available in their school, is not something they can control – but it often determines their future success. Unfortunately, our system is broken. We live in a world where your zip code can even determine how long you might live. I have crime stats for Detroit and the surrounding areas. What separates the high crime neighborhoods from the low crime areas is education. We have brilliant, talented, remarkable students in our program who deserve the same shot to succeed as students in neighboring communities with different zip codes.
*I believe in living life with purpose. A man without purpose is a man lost. I believe in living life with purpose. I walked away from a good-paying construction job to start the Downtown Boxing Gym because that job wasn’t fulfilling my purpose. It wasn’t what I was meant to do. What I’m doing now – nurturing and supporting the students and families in my community and helping to make the world a better place – is my true purpose.
QUESTION 2: When you started your nonprofit, what were the main challenges? Please explain the main challenges and how you overcame them.
RESPONSE: When I first started the Downtown Boxing Gym in 2007, just keeping the lights on was one in a long list of challenges. I started the program with money out of my own pocket and I ended up homeless and sleeping in the gym just to keep it running and to be there for our students. Eventually we overcame this by bringing on our executive director, Jessica Hauser, becoming a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, building our team, and developing partnerships with corporations, foundations, and private donors. It has been a long process that continues to this day.
Other challenges included:
*An appropriate and comfortable facility. For the first 8 years, our program was housed in an abandoned car wash. It was cold in the winter. Students had to wear winter coats indoors at all times. The space was also too small to serve the number of students who need our program. We needed a comfortable and functional facility for our students. Over time and through partnerships, private donations, and fundraising, we were able to move into our current 27,500 square foot facility with classrooms, a lecture hall, music studio, STEAM Lab, library, gym space, and outdoor learning space. Even then, the roof leaked (buckets of rain would fall inside of our building), and it has taken a great deal of work, time, effort and funding to fix the roof and make our building environmentally friendly and sustainable. Administrative offices, locker rooms, and a permanent learning kitchen are all still in development or under construction.
*Staffing. Without the money to afford a professional staff, I’d provide boxing training to people in exchange for tutoring. Over many years and with funding, we have grown our staff to 17 full-time and 18 part-time team members including athletic coaches and academic professionals.
*Transportation. When we started DBG, I would pick students up in my own vehicle, which would often break down. Many of our students/families don’t have reliable transportation to get to and from the program. We overcame this by developing a partnership with GM Fleet which resulted in a van, then several vans. Today we have a fleet of 8 vans and a full-sized bus to safely transport students to/from DBG.
*Food. I discovered that many of our students were hungry and didn’t have the food they needed to learn, grow, thrive and perform at the highest levels. We overcame this by developing a partnership with Forgotten Harvest and others who donate/deliver fresh food for our students on a weekly basis. We serve meals daily. We also developed partnerships with local restaurants and others and a distribution system to package and deliver emergency food to our students and entire families throughout COVID-19.
*Resources. We needed help to get books, academic materials, computers, athletic equipment, musical instruments, desks/furniture and so much more for our students. Over many years through partnerships, private donations and fundraising we’ve been able to get much of this equipment in place, but we are still working and still growing. Generous donors have helped us provide back to school supplies, winter coats, boots and more so our students have the clothing and supplies they need. This is an ongoing effort.
*Making others see the importance of our work. This has been one of our biggest challenges and it’s something we’re still working on every single day. After-school programs were once seen as a “nice thing” to have for students. What they are in reality is an absolute MUST. COVID-19 helped to highlight this need because of the disparities in our educational system and so many other things. For example, many of our parents are essential workers who could not stay home or be home to help their students with online school. Our students did not have computers or internet access to even log into online school. Our facility became the one place they could go to log in for school every day and get the academic help needed to ensure our students didn’t fall behind. Our program was the one place that delivered food, cleaning supplies, and PPE to families. People are beginning to see the need for programs like ours and the importance of our work, but it has taken many years to get people to understand how great the needs really are.
QUESTION 3: What suggestions would you give to university students who are committed to helping others in need and are considering starting a nonprofit?
RESPONSE: For university students who are considering starting a nonprofit – understand that you have to be in this line of work for the right reasons. You don’t get into nonprofit work to get rich. You don’t get into nonprofit work to get famous. You have to be 100 percent committed and passionate about your cause. Be prepared to press forward despite great odds. Be prepared to pursue your mission even if everyone else doesn’t understand. Be prepared to do this work because you know in your heart it’s the right thing to do. Be open to collaborating and forming partnerships and letting others join your effort. It will take years of hard work, time, effort, commitment, dedication and consistency – but you will succeed if you keep moving forward and you never give up.