LYNN — Derek Silveira may have come from humble beginnings but the Salem native hasn’t allowed that to limit his success in the boxing ring.
“My boxing career started because somebody had a gym that was non-profit and I could go there for free,” Silveira said. “It stopped me from hanging out in the streets and doing drugs. I ended up winning my first fight at 11 (years old) at the Silver Mittens. Then I won the Junior Olympics and I just kept winning. I was staying in the gym and it’s all because somebody gave back to me and the community.”
Silveira, 33, is currently the New England Welterweight Champion and has found a chance to give back to the community himself after working with Alex Sepulveda at Private Jewels Fitness in Lynn.
“I’ve been coming down here and just doing some sparring,” Silveira said. “I needed the extra help and Alex offered to help me. He’s great. I can definitely feel it and he’s helping me push it.
“We got to talking and he was asking me about giving back to the kids,” Silveira said. “I came from a tough life. I just want to tell these kids how boxing has changed my life for the better. I want to show them what hard work and dedication can do to help you.”
Silveira spoke to a group of young boxers Tuesday at Private Jewels and was happy to offer words of wisdom to those who are looking to follow in his footsteps.
“It means everything to me,” Silveira said. “To experience boxing and to build confidence, it turned me into the person that I am today. I’m humble but I’m very outgoing and confident. It means a lot to me to be able to give back to the kids and talk to them. I do the Big Brother programs and try to do anything I can. It comes full-circle. It feels good.”
In front of a room full of young boxers, Silveira stressed the importance of conditioning to improve skills and how boxing helped mold him as a person.
“Boxing was something I would turn to to get my stress out,” Silveira said to the group. “I still love it. The hardest part about training is getting that running in. Conditioning’s the hardest part. No matter how good of shape you’re in you can always get in better shape.
“I came from nothing,” Silveira said. “I was homeless for a while. Boxing changed my entire life. Today I have two beautiful kids, I own a house, have a great job, cars, money and can go on vacations. That’s because boxing gave me the structure to be able to do all that. Every time I go to work I’m the hardest worker there because work is nothing compared to working as hard as you can in the gym. If you can get punched in the face willingly and smile there’s nothing in this world you guys can’t do. But you have to focus and have that determination.”
The group at Private Jewels will be treated to a similar pep talk from Lynn native Rashida Ellis Wednesday. Ellis is currently training to compete in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, which she qualified for last year.
Sepulveda appreciates the two accomplished boxers for sharing their experiences with Lynn’s youth.
“Rashida and Derek are a huge example for these kids,” Sepulveda said. “They’re an example of what hard work is. To come up from nothing and to be able to build on hard work and dedication,that’s huge for all the kids and everyone in here to follow and learn from that example.”