Editors note: We would like to thank Midwest female superstar The Great Cheyenne for sending in this great story of her time with the The Union League Boys and Girls Club in Pilsen,Illinois. MWR fans have seen her wrestle for Harley Race’s World League Wrestling, IHW and will be in action this weekend once again for All American Pro Wrestling.

The GREAT CHEYENNE & THE GREAT MALAKI with some of the summer staff from the Union League Boys & Girls Club- Photo courtesy of the Great Cheyenne

When I was asked by Carlos Gallardo – a Juvenile Probation Officer and a volunteer for The Union League Boys and Girls Club in Pilsen, Illinois if I would be interested in visiting the kids, I immediately said, of course. There are plenty of reasons why it would be a GREAT idea to go back to my hometown neighborhood and spend some time with these young people, as long as they were also interested in seeing me too. I mean I just wasn’t sure if they were going to be interested in what I do ….wrestle.

This was a great opportunity to try and show these inner city kids that there is some positive energy and encouragement out there. I would be letting them know that there is a healthy way of just being yourself and doing something you enjoy without getting into trouble.

Life coming from Pilsen wasn’t easy and it wasn’t a simple stroll in the park without something dangerous always going down. I mean if I sat down to recount incidents, I can’t tell you how many people I watched get killed right in front of me, how many gang fights I saw, or shootings just started while I was simply walking to buy some gummy fish at the neighborhood store. I am not even recounting the fights I had to avoid or the ones I had to fight to protect myself. Who better to tell them that it will be ok, than someone who came from the same beginnings as them. They seemed very interested and captivated when I shared stories about me growing up in Pilsen. I told them where I had lived and what schools I went to. I understand the hardships growing up there and what they might be going through. I had to avoid the trouble, the fights, the gangs, the drugs, and the bully’s just like them. We know times change but some things always stay the same. I avoided as much as could be avoided when you’re not looking for trouble. I told them I hoped they were doing the same- staying out of trouble, staying smart, safe and healthy. All these issues we find ourselves forced to overcome growing up in the violent, gang infested neighborhoods inevitably does affect us and who we become. If we let it, it can render us criminal, negative, angry, and completely non-productive to ourselves and society. My message to them is, “Life is a choice, it is your choice, there are no excuses, choose well”. Say no to the gangs, the drugs, the trouble, smoking, bullying, and anything else illicit and no good. I too could have chosen any one of those things but I DID NOT. My choice was to be smart and live a better life than a lot of my peers. I studied martial arts for 4 years before I found myself wrestling.

This was something I found that I truly enjoyed.

They especially had fun with a guessing game we played, where they had to guess my age and weight and the winners would get MWR #73 Hellfire Symphony trading card.

That seemed to go over really well with this young crowd. I even popped the crowd when I teased a show of strength and got them chanting “DO IT”! so I picked up Malaki as if to power slam him. (AS ALWAYS THANKS MALAKI FOR ALWAYS BEING THERE) This left them shocked, amazed and chanting “Do it again!” Most likely these kids haven’t seen anything like this within eyeshot.

The Great Cheyenne brings smiles to a young girl during the trip to the Boys and Girls club- Photo courtesy of the Great Cheyenne

This was my intro to nutrition and exercise. A show of strength has to be a great sell to eating right and exercise. Martial arts and Wrestling motivated me to eat healthy and exercise but wrestling stole my heart and keeps me going strong. The visual of me picking up a man in front of them must have been impressionable because all I saw was wide-bug eyed faces and opened mouths. I think this helped them connect because I kept them interested much to my disbelief….they still wanted to hear what I had to say. #HUGE SMILES

For kicks – We played a little nutrition trivia, I had them guess how many times I eat broccoli and veggies a day. As surprised as some might be, these kids were attentive the whole time.

The children were able to see the softer side of the Great Cheyenne. In 2012, she has challenged for the WLW Women’s title and been a star for AAPW TV show as well as many other parts of the country. – Photo courtesy of the Great Cheyenne

All in all this was a great time! I finished off letting them in on some of my wrestling accomplishments and pulled out one of my Championship titles. ADC Men’s Championship Title. Again they were wide eyed, curious and excited. They all wanted to touch the GOLD and to furthermore reinforce my message with conviction and heart, they did! In order for one to accomplish goals in life it is important to be able to visualize yourself in that light. So they took turns holding my belt, asking questions, and taking pictures with it as well. It was GREAT to see the smiles on their faces. I feel this was especially important because in a child’s world where chances are you may be seeing more bad examples everyday than good ones, visualizing yourself in a positive situation or accomplishing some awesome things becomes a real challenge to overcome. Statistics don’t favor this demographic. I want them to know anything is possible, if they work hard for it. I just want them to be able to visualize themselves enough so they may pursue what they chose despite their circumstances and what others may say.

Photo courtesy of the Great Cheyenne

From here I shared stories of my travels and how I have fans and have made friends all over the world as they passed the belt around with big smiles and taking pics. I hope they realize it is possible for them to see the world through a profession they love if they work hard, stay strong and “fight “ for what they want. Chances are lot of these kids might not ever leave this neighborhood, I know people that never did.

Finally – I autographed pictures for those that wanted one. I was glad I brought enough because I got mobbed! Hahaha *smiles again

They were a great bunch of kids, who gave me a warm welcome and appreciated my having come to spend some time with them. I was also struck by the interest that the older teens and adults had in speaking more with me after the autographs. There were sincere thanks and they said it was really cool that I cared enough to come back and spend time with them. This I wasn’t expecting, I was pleasantly surprised and the feeling was mutual. I was grateful that they took interest in my wrestling and welcomed me in.

I can see my visit had a positive effect; it was in their faces and smiles. I just hope others in a position to share good energy and some platform of success will also take a lead and volunteer a few moments to show some encouragement and a mentoring moment for our youth. Our youth needs it. Suicide statistics are higher than ever, kids drop out of school, violent crimes have always existed but somehow it seems things are worse than ever, with all these random shootings in schools, movie theatres and churches. Need I say times are different than when times were simpler and we enjoyed things that were so much fun like jacks, fishing, jumping rope, swizzle sticks and board games with family and friends? A lot of our youth is depressed and knows too much too early on that they don’t need to know. I think technology as great as it is often times leads us to be disconnected. I think we need to reconnect, simply so. So don’t wait for a group or your fed to organize a gathering at your local youth group, just do it yourself. The kids will be happy to see you and eager to hear your stories, like they were to see Malaki and me.

If you have doubts and don’t think volunteering a moment to these kids is a good idea give it a second thought. Chris Gallardo, the Juvenile probation officer said “She made a huge impact on our kids that day, 7/16/2012! I have to say this, in the jobs I had before, I had the opportunity to meet Pro Athletes, some were nice some weren’t, people say that wrestling is fake, ok, but the punishment that these athletes put on their bodies is not, God speed to them. Cheyenne did 8 wrestling matches over the weekend. She flew in from Florida, where she was at Slammin Ladies and wrestled leilani Kai, didn’t even get any sleep and came to the Boys & Girls Club to visit our kids for a couple of hours. These two athletes, truly care about their fans, I’m very happy to say THANK YOU VERY MUCH FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEAR. I’m only a volunteer at the Club, but I am proud of the way the kids welcomed you both and the way they were acting towards you and Malaki. Again Great Cheyenne & Malaki, you are always welcome back to The Union League Boys & Girls Club. You are #1.”

Kevin Sullivan would be proud of the Great Cheyenne as Serenity feels the pain in the tree of woe- Photo Credit Brian Kelley

-The Great Cheyenne

NEW MATCH THIS SATURDAY AT AAPW: The women’s division in AAPW has been picking up steam in recent months, and that will continue at this Saturday’s “Collision” taping. The Great Cheyenne defeated Serenity at “Summer Chaos,” while Rebecca Raze was last seen at “Main Event” in a losing effort against Stacey O’Brien. Now, these two women will collide in the ring, and only one will be able to emerge victorious. Can Cheyenne continue to establish a reign of dominance, or will Raze avenge the loss she suffered in January? Be there Saturday to find out. — at Black Diamond Harley-Davidson.