March 29, 2025 • 22 mins
Emmanuel Rivera's path from troubled teen to youth mentor reveals the transformative power of martial arts and positive guidance. As Executive Director of the Come Up Foundation, Rivera now shapes the futures of over 200 children across Oklahoma City through free martial arts training that builds discipline, confidence, and leadership skills.
Moving out at just 16 and lacking male role models, Rivera's early life was marked by poor decisions and legal troubles. After his house was raided, he knew change was essential. His journey took him through several cities, including a stint with a fraudulent magazine sales crew, before he found stability and eventually became a professional MMA fighter. When health issues abruptly ended his fighting career, Rivera channeled his passion into helping youth avoid the struggles he faced.
The Come Up Foundation operates through an innovative outreach model, partnering with schools, churches, and other organizations rather than maintaining a central facility. This strategic approach eliminates transportation barriers and allows them to reach more children where they already gather. They currently offer over 20 free classes weekly, including PE classes and after-school programs, and have even been recognized by Oklahoma City Public Schools as an elective course option for credit.
What begins as martial arts training quickly evolves into comprehensive character development. Rivera explains that while physical training attracts the kids, the program's true purpose is building future leaders who possess emotional intelligence and resilience. The foundation particularly focuses on providing positive male role models in communities where they're often absent.
Rivera's vision extends beyond their current operations. He dreams of dedicated transportation bringing students to a central location after school, where they would receive meals, homework support, and martial arts training in a structured environment. This expanded vision would require growing their annual budget from $150,000 to approximately $500,000, allowing them to provide additional services like counseling and medical support.
Want to support this transformative work? The Come Up Foundation's next fundraiser is April 21st. Follow their journey on Facebook (The Come Up Inc) or Instagram (the_comeup_foundation) to see firsthand how martial arts is building Oklahoma's next generation of leaders.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Welcome to the Rotary Spark Podcast.
I'm your host, brian Treiger,and with me today is Emmanuel
Rivera, the Executive Directorof the Come Up Foundation.
How are you doing today,emmanuel?
Good good Brian.
How are you?
I'm doing pretty good.
Just enjoyed some sushi withyou and Scott over at Sushi Moto
in Oklahoma City.
So tell us a little bit moreabout the Come Up Foundation.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Man, you know the Come Up Foundation is really
made to get kids involved.
You know, being able to justfind themselves, being able to
get confidence, discipline, theimportant things that make you
successful in life.
So the come up is really, youknow, the martial arts part is
to kind of get the kids onto theprogram and then from there
(01:20):
we're training them to beleaders, to find the the good
things in life, to just keepmoving forward and evolving.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
So how many kids are involved in your program right
now, right?
Speaker 2 (01:31):
now we have over 200 kids.
You know we're teaching over 20classes free classes a week, so
that includes in the schools,that includes PE classes,
after-school programs.
You know we're partnering upwith churches other nonprofit
organizations as well, so wehave many locations all over
(01:51):
Oklahoma City.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
Can you tell us some of the things that maybe
happened in your life, either inthe past or recently, that
inspired you to go in thisdirection?
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Yeah.
So you know, when I was young,I was rebellious.
I was a kid that lived.
You know, I moved out when Iwas about 16.
And so I was living on my ownwhen I was 16.
I was trying to beself-sufficient, trying to be
independent.
My mom was doing everything shecould to be able to, you know,
(02:22):
provide for us, but at somepoint I took it upon myself to
move out and just be independent.
So, you know, I found a lot ofstruggles in between that.
I didn't know what I wanted todo, I didn't know what direction
.
I didn't know what I wanted tobe.
I didn't have those male rolemodels in my life.
I was also lazy, you know.
(02:43):
I wasn't really trying to lookfor those for that help, for
those male role models.
So, you know, one thing led toanother got in trouble.
There was a lot of a lot oftrouble in a short span in my
life when I was young.
So my house got raided.
I got in trouble the week afteras well and at that point, you
(03:03):
know a very low part of my life.
I was like I got to dosomething, I got to get out of
this town and really, you know,figure something out, because
this isn't it.
And I moved from Chicago to, youknow, from Chicago to this
small town where I got introuble.
So trouble just followed me andyeah, so I ended up going on a
(03:24):
magazine crew, door-to-doorselling magazines.
It was all a scam.
They ditched us in Seattle.
We took, you know, all the kidsthat were working with each
other.
We all got together and went toOregon, portland, oregon.
Lived in a hotel, you know, didwhat we had to do to survive,
essentially, so it wasn't thelifestyle in a hotel.
You know, did what we had to doto survive, essentially so it
(03:46):
wasn't the lifestyle.
So eventually, you know, Ididn't want to go back to that
small town where I got introuble.
So I went to Las Vegas and, uh,was able to find a job down
there, get off the drugs and uh,yeah, in in vegas, I really did
a lot of soul searching andeventually ended up moving back
to oklahoma to help my mom.
(04:06):
Um, so that's, you know, thecome up was something that just,
uh, I, I needed something tofulfill me and being a
professional fighter, um, it wasfulfilling me.
But unfortunately my healthwent south.
I started passing out randomlyand at the peak of my career, I
(04:29):
had to stop fighting.
So that's kind of where thisled me.
I said you know, what else canI do?
What else can I do to fulfillme, like mixed martial arts did?
And you know, this came about.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
It's interesting that you mentioned the impact of not
having a male role model andyou know that cycle is spoken
about kind of frequently and Ilove the fact that you broke
that pattern right.
You know we get these guys inour lives that most likely
(05:06):
didn't have positive male rolemodels for themselves and then
they introduce themselves tokids and whether it's creating
those kids or being step parents, etc.
And they're inevitablyperpetuating that cycle to some
extent.
But we get people like you, orreally anyone who maybe
recognizes those patterns, andwe are creating just more
(05:32):
opportunities to participate inthe community in order to be
somewhat compassionate as towhere those where those holes
were or are and kind of fillingup those gaps.
So I love, I love what you'redoing and I can definitely
connect on that level when youknow I definitely experienced
(05:53):
some times in my life where, youknow, not having a male role
model and not being one myself,uh just really required a period
of life to do some soulsearching prior to, you know,
working to something that wasworking for something greater
than myself.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
Yeah, I think that you know a lot of people are are
kind of complacent in whatthey're doing and don't know
where.
Are kind of complacent in whatthey're doing and don't know
where to go to find thatstrength right, whether to find
a male role model or just a rolemodel in general or be one.
There's a lot of great peopleout there that need to challenge
themselves to just do better,be better than the person you
(06:32):
were yesterday, and a lot ofpeople will find happiness in
that.
But it's a struggle.
It's easier said than done,right.
People get complacent andthey're stuck where they're at.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Definitely.
Yeah, I see that all the time.
So tell us a little bit aboutyour initial exposure to Rotary.
I've seen you in a few of themeetings.
That's when I was inspired toreach out to you directly
because I really enjoy thecontent that you provide and the
overall message andparticipation that you have in
(07:03):
the community that I can see.
So tell us a little bit moreabout how you got exposed to
Rotary for the first time.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
Yeah, you know we were talking and you know I'm
new to this Rotary world and I'mnew to a lot of this.
I'm new to the non-profit world, so there's been a lot of
learning experiences.
So I've to a lot of this.
I'm new to the nonprofit world,so there's been a lot of
learning experiences.
So I've had a lot of greatpeople that have led me to
organizations that want to helpa lot rotaries that want to help
lodges, things like that.
So it's it.
(07:29):
Rick Farmer was a huge part ofthat.
Rick Farmer's a guy that somepeople may or may not know
around here, but he's.
He's helped a lot of people.
He's part of the same churchthat I'm part of, me and my
family are part of, and it's oneof those things that got led
and it just started happening.
I started going to do speeches.
I've never done speeches infront of people, so I had to
(07:51):
learn a lot of things along theway.
Yeah, but it's been amazing tosee, see unbeknownst to me how
many groups out there aregetting together to see what
they can do to help thecommunity, and to me that's just
amazing.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
One of the ideas that pops into my head right now
that I'd like to maybe spotlightis, if you haven't already
communicated with the chair andor the individuals tied to the
committees for Wings of Rotary,as well as RILA, which is the
Rotary Youth Leadership Awards,if I'm not mistaken, and then
(08:30):
also Interact and Rotaractchairs tied to all of the
Rotaract and Interact programs.
Rotaract chair is tied to allof the Rotaract and Interact
programs.
Long story short, Rotaract isfor colleges.
Essentially, just imagine anintegrated Rotary club within a
college, and same goes for theInteract within high school as
(08:54):
well.
Not having a specific agenda onmy end or seeing where you can
or can't collaborate, but Ithink that as you get to know
the people that are helpingyouth in different ways, younger
people in different ways, sinceyou guys are all making such
great strides with having apositive impact on youth, I
(09:17):
think that the moreopportunities that all of you
guys have to get together willhelp strengthen all of your
causes.
So this is just kind of a quickyou know seed plant.
Also, just a shout out to allof the Interact and or Rotaract,
Ryla, Wings Chairs, anyone elseinvolved in any type of youth
(09:38):
activities.
I think it's fantastic, uh, afantastic opportunity for
everyone to develop, you know,even a stronger community, to uh
impact young people, and I justlove the fact that you guys are
so dedicated to youth.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
Yeah, you know it's.
That's one amazing thing.
I've had businesses in the past, you know, some successful,
some failed, you know.
So I've had a lot of experienceand the experience in the
nonprofit world has been amazingbecause it's not a competitive
world, from my experience atleast.
You know everyone's been openarms, everyone's been open arms,
(10:14):
everyone's willing to give uptheir connections and introduce
people that they know to help,even if it's someone that has
another nonprofit.
It's just amazing to see thatin the world where people are
supposed to have good hearts doMost people do in this world or
in this arena, rather nonprofitarena, that's been amazing to
(10:39):
see just how good people are andand how much they want to help
yeah, it's.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Uh, I think when I first got exposed to it it was a
little bit bizarre.
Yeah, I didn't, I didn't trustit and I still don't in some
ways, and you know that's alittle bit controversial to say
while I'm doing this podcast orbeing in rotary.
But at the end of the day, Ithink, you know, we all, we're
all human, yeah, and nonprofitsraise money, so there's still, I
(11:08):
would say, some competition,and they're packaged differently
, the narrative's different, for, you know, sometimes authentic
reasons and sometimes just foradvertising purposes.
So, you know, I think that, uh,the caution is still necessary,
but I would say that thenon-profit world has opened me
(11:28):
up to that fact.
But an extension of that isthat, not only in the non-profit
world, but whether it's in thepolitical, religious, corporate
and the interconnection betweenall of the different
classifications of groups,there's a lot more good than I
was originally aware of.
I had much more of a scarcitymentality prior to diving into
(11:55):
the nonprofit world.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Yeah, no, the business world is a lot
different.
It's a lot different, sure, andthis is I'm so glad that I've
made that switch over.
And I want to make somethingclear too is a lot of people
think that we have a gym.
We don't have a gym.
We are currently looking for apossible space.
But, right, you know, when wefirst started this program, we
(12:23):
were asking ourselves what isthe most effective way to
outreach as many kids aspossible?
And if we had a start off witha location, then you're only
servicing a certain area becauseyou know, getting rides,
transportation, transportationall these things are a challenge
for the kids that we're serving.
So we ended up going with thestructure of partnering up with
(12:44):
organizations that already havethese kids, like non-profits, uh
, other churches, etc.
And then we finally got, youknow, accepted by Oklahoma City
Public Schools, which is thebest outreach structure or
strategy.
Rather, to do so, we'recurrently in in schools teaching
PE class, taking over PEclasses.
(13:04):
You know, john Marshall justnamed us as a, as an elective
option for a kid to take.
As for MMA, take a MMA classfor a credit.
I mean just the milestones havebeen amazing and it's a
testament to the nonprofit arena, because so many people have
helped me get there.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
That's amazing, and let's look if we're doing kind
of an audio, audible visionboard right now, let's talk
about this building right.
So, whether it's, you know, a,a rental space or commercial
property or a kind of a sharedpartnership tied to another
organization, do you like, Iguess, behind the scenes, tied
(13:46):
to operations, do you guys havea general idea of what type of
funding that's going to require?
Like, is there a target goal of, hey, you know, if we got X
amount of funds, we would be setfor the next one to five years
at least, with whatever our nextstep is.
Do you have that in place?
Speaker 2 (14:02):
So right now, as far as the building, not necessarily
we're kind of new, it's kind ofa new idea, you know, in
bringing in this year, but youknow we're operating around
$150,000 a year is what we'reoperating right now.
Okay, so that's.
You know, every year I'm tryingto exceed that, sure, and um.
That that you know obviouslytakes care of some of the
(14:24):
instructors, the gear, the time,the.
You know everything that comeswith the accountants and you
know there's a lot of uh.
People might hear that numberand think that they're set, but
there's a lot of things that gowith, you know, having a program
running and you know you'rekind of well, if you're smart,
you're fundraising for the yearafter Sure, so you're staying
(14:48):
ahead.
So it's been amazing right now.
But we are at the point where weneed to find a location,
location, um, and you know we'relooking at probably half a
million a year just to be ableto do exactly what we want.
Okay, because we want to be ableto provide um, not only the,
(15:08):
the space, but, you know, the.
We want to be able to provideuh, therapy, counseling, you
know, a medical uh, things likethat, to be able to, you know,
be able to provide just oneall-in-one kind of building the
kids.
My vision, my ultimate vision,is having the come-up buses
(15:30):
parking behind the regular busesat schools, you know, and
picking up the kids that are onthe come up or you know, however
we figure that out and takingthem to this location, where
they get off, they eat, they'reable to do their homework.
You know, they're there from 4to 5 30 and at 6, mixed martial
art class starts.
By the time 7 30, you're done,you're able to go home.
(15:53):
Well, the rest of yourhomework's done, everything's
good, right.
So that's the ultimate vision.
Okay, to be able to have abuilding like that and you guys
are getting there.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
So like let's, uh, you know, without getting too,
uh, you know, crossing the linetoo much.
It's an extra, you know, 350000 a year.
Yeah, maybe 30k a month, right,uh, close to about 972 dollars
a day.
Okay, yeah.
Yeah.
So at the end of the day, it'sjust uh I don't know a challenge
(16:24):
to any of our listeners orreally anyone out there who's
interested in the cause, to helpeveryone involved getting to
that point.
So I think it's really good andI try to challenge myself to do
this right.
You know the wholemanifestation doing the vision
board of okay, I have this goal.
You know, whether it'ssomething small like my car, put
a picture of the car up, itcomes into existence, right, um.
(16:47):
So, uh, I guess to get to thatpoint, are there any, uh any
fundraising projects uh comingup that we can kind of pass the
message on, whether it's throughthis podcast or, you know, an
email blast.
Speaker 2 (17:03):
Yeah, you know, and I can certainly send you the
poster, but we do have a.
You know we've had in the pastwe've had roasts comedy roasts
for our fundraising events.
So the very first year weroasted a political consultant
and it was an amazing roast.
We did it at the Will RogersTheater.
(17:24):
The year after, which was lastyear, we did it at the Will
Rogers Theater as well and weroasted the mourning animals
from the sports animal.
And then this year we have oursmaller fundraiser event coming
up April 21st, which will be,you know, politicians reach out
and they want to bring light toour organization and it's a very
(17:45):
bipartisan event.
Joy Hoffmeister, former statesuperintendent, is going to be
presenting Our speaker, markWayne Mullen, to just talk to
these kids, bring light, bringhope, and that'll be April 21st.
You can check out theinformation on social media At
(18:06):
Facebook is the Come Up Inc andthen Instagram is the Come Up
Underscore Foundation and youcan check out all the videos we
have on there.
I mean, it's just a great place.
As you know, social media is agreat place to see kind of what
your organization is about andwhat they do behind the scenes.
Speaker 1 (18:23):
I'm really excited.
This is a need that we have.
Just with what we see everysingle day, we could look at
just one stat tied to whereverwe're ranked, tied to health
we're number what 49 in thenation yeah, very high.
And we need to be doing morethings like what you and your
organization is doing in orderto get Oklahoma in a position
(18:49):
where it provides more hope forour young people.
I think we owe it to them togive them a state and an
environment that not only givesthem more health opportunities
but educational opportunities,instead of being surrounded by
an oppressive statistic thatleads.
(19:13):
I just love everything thatyou're doing.
I look forward to you, know,getting a little, a little bit
more involved, even if it's justkind of tapping into your
socials and stuff like that.
Uh, what's, if any um advicewould you be giving to kids, uh,
young adults really anyonelistening that kind of want to
(19:35):
take, that want to take theirlives to the next step, that
want to create more of anindependent lifestyle for
themselves?
Speaker 2 (19:42):
you know, you know I would tell, first of all is find
your challenges.
Find your challenges.
What is your?
What is stopping you from doingthat right and then trying to
find a solution?
Now, if you can't find asolution on your own, don't be
afraid to ask for help.
And that's that goes for kids,that goes for adults.
A lot of times, and you know mebeing a, you know a professional
(20:02):
fighter, and they think thatthese, you know, we're all about
being tough and you know I canbe an emotional guy, I can be
many other things opposite oftough, and I have to tell myself
as well that I can ask for help.
I have people that care aboutme, that ask, and that I can ask
(20:23):
for help.
So don't be afraid, don't beafraid to ask for help, don't be
afraid to face your challenges.
You know you can't just put aband-aid over them and that
would.
That will not last.
The cards will eventually fall.
You have to face the challenges,deal with the anxiety,
challenge that anxiety and thencome out winning on the other
side.
I mean, that's exactly what weteach it to come up is being
able to get these kids in theprogram to teach them how to be
(20:46):
dangerous but in the meantimethere's learning.
So much discipline and theycontrol that danger.
They're able to control thatday.
It takes it takes discipline tobe good, right, it takes
discipline to be good and and.
And it takes discipline to begood.
And you have to be able to knowhow to control your mind, know
how to be emotional intelligent.
You have to be able to pick andchoose.
(21:08):
You know when let thoseemotions out and when to harness
them and being able to put themin something else positively.
Speaker 1 (21:18):
Yeah, that's great advice and, yeah, I think this
won't be our last conversation,so thank you for coming out.
I want to take this opportunityto thank everyone in Rotary
District 5750 that's involved inthis project, whether you're a
(21:39):
listener, supporter, whetheryou've donated really any
capacity.
Just thank you to RotaryInternational, to IT Spark as
well, and to our intern, hannahHarkrow, that's out of Arkansas
right now working as aneditorial intern, and anyone
else who I haven't mentioned.
(22:00):
I really appreciate.
Again, I'm going to emphasizemy gratitude towards our
listeners.
I hope everyone has a wonderfulweekend and we'll see you next
week.
Thank you.
Welcome to the Rotary Spark Podcast.
I'm your host, brian Treiger,and with me today is Emmanuel
Rivera, the Executive Directorof the Come Up Foundation.
How are you doing today,emmanuel?
Good good Brian.
How are you?
I'm doing pretty good.
Just enjoyed some sushi withyou and Scott over at Sushi Moto
in Oklahoma City.
So tell us a little bit moreabout the Come Up Foundation.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
Man, you know the Come Up Foundation is really
made to get kids involved.
You know, being able to justfind themselves, being able to
get confidence, discipline, theimportant things that make you
successful in life.
So the come up is really, youknow, the martial arts part is
to kind of get the kids onto theprogram and then from there
(01:20):
we're training them to beleaders, to find the the good
things in life, to just keepmoving forward and evolving.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
So how many kids are involved in your program right
now, right?
Speaker 2 (01:31):
now we have over 200 kids.
You know we're teaching over 20classes free classes a week, so
that includes in the schools,that includes PE classes,
after-school programs.
You know we're partnering upwith churches other nonprofit
organizations as well, so wehave many locations all over
(01:51):
Oklahoma City.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
Can you tell us some of the things that maybe
happened in your life, either inthe past or recently, that
inspired you to go in thisdirection?
Speaker 2 (02:01):
Yeah.
So you know, when I was young,I was rebellious.
I was a kid that lived.
You know, I moved out when Iwas about 16.
And so I was living on my ownwhen I was 16.
I was trying to beself-sufficient, trying to be
independent.
My mom was doing everything shecould to be able to, you know,
(02:22):
provide for us, but at somepoint I took it upon myself to
move out and just be independent.
So, you know, I found a lot ofstruggles in between that.
I didn't know what I wanted todo, I didn't know what direction
.
I didn't know what I wanted tobe.
I didn't have those male rolemodels in my life.
I was also lazy, you know.
(02:43):
I wasn't really trying to lookfor those for that help, for
those male role models.
So, you know, one thing led toanother got in trouble.
There was a lot of a lot oftrouble in a short span in my
life when I was young.
So my house got raided.
I got in trouble the week afteras well and at that point, you
(03:03):
know a very low part of my life.
I was like I got to dosomething, I got to get out of
this town and really, you know,figure something out, because
this isn't it.
And I moved from Chicago to, youknow, from Chicago to this
small town where I got introuble.
So trouble just followed me andyeah, so I ended up going on a
(03:24):
magazine crew, door-to-doorselling magazines.
It was all a scam.
They ditched us in Seattle.
We took, you know, all the kidsthat were working with each
other.
We all got together and went toOregon, portland, oregon.
Lived in a hotel, you know, didwhat we had to do to survive,
essentially, so it wasn't thelifestyle in a hotel.
You know, did what we had to doto survive, essentially so it
(03:46):
wasn't the lifestyle.
So eventually, you know, Ididn't want to go back to that
small town where I got introuble.
So I went to Las Vegas and, uh,was able to find a job down
there, get off the drugs and uh,yeah, in in vegas, I really did
a lot of soul searching andeventually ended up moving back
to oklahoma to help my mom.
(04:06):
Um, so that's, you know, thecome up was something that just,
uh, I, I needed something tofulfill me and being a
professional fighter, um, it wasfulfilling me.
But unfortunately my healthwent south.
I started passing out randomlyand at the peak of my career, I
(04:29):
had to stop fighting.
So that's kind of where thisled me.
I said you know, what else canI do?
What else can I do to fulfillme, like mixed martial arts did?
And you know, this came about.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
It's interesting that you mentioned the impact of not
having a male role model andyou know that cycle is spoken
about kind of frequently and Ilove the fact that you broke
that pattern right.
You know we get these guys inour lives that most likely
(05:06):
didn't have positive male rolemodels for themselves and then
they introduce themselves tokids and whether it's creating
those kids or being step parents, etc.
And they're inevitablyperpetuating that cycle to some
extent.
But we get people like you, orreally anyone who maybe
recognizes those patterns, andwe are creating just more
(05:32):
opportunities to participate inthe community in order to be
somewhat compassionate as towhere those where those holes
were or are and kind of fillingup those gaps.
So I love, I love what you'redoing and I can definitely
connect on that level when youknow I definitely experienced
(05:53):
some times in my life where, youknow, not having a male role
model and not being one myself,uh just really required a period
of life to do some soulsearching prior to, you know,
working to something that wasworking for something greater
than myself.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
Yeah, I think that you know a lot of people are are
kind of complacent in whatthey're doing and don't know
where.
Are kind of complacent in whatthey're doing and don't know
where to go to find thatstrength right, whether to find
a male role model or just a rolemodel in general or be one.
There's a lot of great peopleout there that need to challenge
themselves to just do better,be better than the person you
(06:32):
were yesterday, and a lot ofpeople will find happiness in
that.
But it's a struggle.
It's easier said than done,right.
People get complacent andthey're stuck where they're at.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
Definitely.
Yeah, I see that all the time.
So tell us a little bit aboutyour initial exposure to Rotary.
I've seen you in a few of themeetings.
That's when I was inspired toreach out to you directly
because I really enjoy thecontent that you provide and the
overall message andparticipation that you have in
(07:03):
the community that I can see.
So tell us a little bit moreabout how you got exposed to
Rotary for the first time.
Speaker 2 (07:09):
Yeah, you know we were talking and you know I'm
new to this Rotary world and I'mnew to a lot of this.
I'm new to the non-profit world, so there's been a lot of
learning experiences.
So I've to a lot of this.
I'm new to the nonprofit world,so there's been a lot of
learning experiences.
So I've had a lot of greatpeople that have led me to
organizations that want to helpa lot rotaries that want to help
lodges, things like that.
So it's it.
(07:29):
Rick Farmer was a huge part ofthat.
Rick Farmer's a guy that somepeople may or may not know
around here, but he's.
He's helped a lot of people.
He's part of the same churchthat I'm part of, me and my
family are part of, and it's oneof those things that got led
and it just started happening.
I started going to do speeches.
I've never done speeches infront of people, so I had to
(07:51):
learn a lot of things along theway.
Yeah, but it's been amazing tosee, see unbeknownst to me how
many groups out there aregetting together to see what
they can do to help thecommunity, and to me that's just
amazing.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
One of the ideas that pops into my head right now
that I'd like to maybe spotlightis, if you haven't already
communicated with the chair andor the individuals tied to the
committees for Wings of Rotary,as well as RILA, which is the
Rotary Youth Leadership Awards,if I'm not mistaken, and then
(08:30):
also Interact and Rotaractchairs tied to all of the
Rotaract and Interact programs.
Rotaract chair is tied to allof the Rotaract and Interact
programs.
Long story short, Rotaract isfor colleges.
Essentially, just imagine anintegrated Rotary club within a
college, and same goes for theInteract within high school as
(08:54):
well.
Not having a specific agenda onmy end or seeing where you can
or can't collaborate, but Ithink that as you get to know
the people that are helpingyouth in different ways, younger
people in different ways, sinceyou guys are all making such
great strides with having apositive impact on youth, I
(09:17):
think that the moreopportunities that all of you
guys have to get together willhelp strengthen all of your
causes.
So this is just kind of a quickyou know seed plant.
Also, just a shout out to allof the Interact and or Rotaract,
Ryla, Wings Chairs, anyone elseinvolved in any type of youth
(09:38):
activities.
I think it's fantastic, uh, afantastic opportunity for
everyone to develop, you know,even a stronger community, to uh
impact young people, and I justlove the fact that you guys are
so dedicated to youth.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
Yeah, you know it's.
That's one amazing thing.
I've had businesses in the past, you know, some successful,
some failed, you know.
So I've had a lot of experienceand the experience in the
nonprofit world has been amazingbecause it's not a competitive
world, from my experience atleast.
You know everyone's been openarms, everyone's been open arms,
(10:14):
everyone's willing to give uptheir connections and introduce
people that they know to help,even if it's someone that has
another nonprofit.
It's just amazing to see thatin the world where people are
supposed to have good hearts doMost people do in this world or
in this arena, rather nonprofitarena, that's been amazing to
(10:39):
see just how good people are andand how much they want to help
yeah, it's.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
Uh, I think when I first got exposed to it it was a
little bit bizarre.
Yeah, I didn't, I didn't trustit and I still don't in some
ways, and you know that's alittle bit controversial to say
while I'm doing this podcast orbeing in rotary.
But at the end of the day, Ithink, you know, we all, we're
all human, yeah, and nonprofitsraise money, so there's still, I
(11:08):
would say, some competition,and they're packaged differently
, the narrative's different, for, you know, sometimes authentic
reasons and sometimes just foradvertising purposes.
So, you know, I think that, uh,the caution is still necessary,
but I would say that thenon-profit world has opened me
(11:28):
up to that fact.
But an extension of that isthat, not only in the non-profit
world, but whether it's in thepolitical, religious, corporate
and the interconnection betweenall of the different
classifications of groups,there's a lot more good than I
was originally aware of.
I had much more of a scarcitymentality prior to diving into
(11:55):
the nonprofit world.
Speaker 2 (11:59):
Yeah, no, the business world is a lot
different.
It's a lot different, sure, andthis is I'm so glad that I've
made that switch over.
And I want to make somethingclear too is a lot of people
think that we have a gym.
We don't have a gym.
We are currently looking for apossible space.
But, right, you know, when wefirst started this program, we
(12:23):
were asking ourselves what isthe most effective way to
outreach as many kids aspossible?
And if we had a start off witha location, then you're only
servicing a certain area becauseyou know, getting rides,
transportation, transportationall these things are a challenge
for the kids that we're serving.
So we ended up going with thestructure of partnering up with
(12:44):
organizations that already havethese kids, like non-profits, uh
, other churches, etc.
And then we finally got, youknow, accepted by Oklahoma City
Public Schools, which is thebest outreach structure or
strategy.
Rather, to do so, we'recurrently in in schools teaching
PE class, taking over PEclasses.
(13:04):
You know, john Marshall justnamed us as a, as an elective
option for a kid to take.
As for MMA, take a MMA classfor a credit.
I mean just the milestones havebeen amazing and it's a
testament to the nonprofit arena, because so many people have
helped me get there.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
That's amazing, and let's look if we're doing kind
of an audio, audible visionboard right now, let's talk
about this building right.
So, whether it's, you know, a,a rental space or commercial
property or a kind of a sharedpartnership tied to another
organization, do you like, Iguess, behind the scenes, tied
(13:46):
to operations, do you guys havea general idea of what type of
funding that's going to require?
Like, is there a target goal of, hey, you know, if we got X
amount of funds, we would be setfor the next one to five years
at least, with whatever our nextstep is.
Do you have that in place?
Speaker 2 (14:02):
So right now, as far as the building, not necessarily
we're kind of new, it's kind ofa new idea, you know, in
bringing in this year, but youknow we're operating around
$150,000 a year is what we'reoperating right now.
Okay, so that's.
You know, every year I'm tryingto exceed that, sure, and um.
That that you know obviouslytakes care of some of the
(14:24):
instructors, the gear, the time,the.
You know everything that comeswith the accountants and you
know there's a lot of uh.
People might hear that numberand think that they're set, but
there's a lot of things that gowith, you know, having a program
running and you know you'rekind of well, if you're smart,
you're fundraising for the yearafter Sure, so you're staying
(14:48):
ahead.
So it's been amazing right now.
But we are at the point where weneed to find a location,
location, um, and you know we'relooking at probably half a
million a year just to be ableto do exactly what we want.
Okay, because we want to be ableto provide um, not only the,
(15:08):
the space, but, you know, the.
We want to be able to provideuh, therapy, counseling, you
know, a medical uh, things likethat, to be able to, you know,
be able to provide just oneall-in-one kind of building the
kids.
My vision, my ultimate vision,is having the come-up buses
(15:30):
parking behind the regular busesat schools, you know, and
picking up the kids that are onthe come up or you know, however
we figure that out and takingthem to this location, where
they get off, they eat, they'reable to do their homework.
You know, they're there from 4to 5 30 and at 6, mixed martial
art class starts.
By the time 7 30, you're done,you're able to go home.
(15:53):
Well, the rest of yourhomework's done, everything's
good, right.
So that's the ultimate vision.
Okay, to be able to have abuilding like that and you guys
are getting there.
Speaker 1 (16:01):
So like let's, uh, you know, without getting too,
uh, you know, crossing the linetoo much.
It's an extra, you know, 350000 a year.
Yeah, maybe 30k a month, right,uh, close to about 972 dollars
a day.
Okay, yeah.
Yeah.
So at the end of the day, it'sjust uh I don't know a challenge
(16:24):
to any of our listeners orreally anyone out there who's
interested in the cause, to helpeveryone involved getting to
that point.
So I think it's really good andI try to challenge myself to do
this right.
You know the wholemanifestation doing the vision
board of okay, I have this goal.
You know, whether it'ssomething small like my car, put
a picture of the car up, itcomes into existence, right, um.
(16:47):
So, uh, I guess to get to thatpoint, are there any, uh any
fundraising projects uh comingup that we can kind of pass the
message on, whether it's throughthis podcast or, you know, an
email blast.
Speaker 2 (17:03):
Yeah, you know, and I can certainly send you the
poster, but we do have a.
You know we've had in the pastwe've had roasts comedy roasts
for our fundraising events.
So the very first year weroasted a political consultant
and it was an amazing roast.
We did it at the Will RogersTheater.
(17:24):
The year after, which was lastyear, we did it at the Will
Rogers Theater as well and weroasted the mourning animals
from the sports animal.
And then this year we have oursmaller fundraiser event coming
up April 21st, which will be,you know, politicians reach out
and they want to bring light toour organization and it's a very
(17:45):
bipartisan event.
Joy Hoffmeister, former statesuperintendent, is going to be
presenting Our speaker, markWayne Mullen, to just talk to
these kids, bring light, bringhope, and that'll be April 21st.
You can check out theinformation on social media At
(18:06):
Facebook is the Come Up Inc andthen Instagram is the Come Up
Underscore Foundation and youcan check out all the videos we
have on there.
I mean, it's just a great place.
As you know, social media is agreat place to see kind of what
your organization is about andwhat they do behind the scenes.
Speaker 1 (18:23):
I'm really excited.
This is a need that we have.
Just with what we see everysingle day, we could look at
just one stat tied to whereverwe're ranked, tied to health
we're number what 49 in thenation yeah, very high.
And we need to be doing morethings like what you and your
organization is doing in orderto get Oklahoma in a position
(18:49):
where it provides more hope forour young people.
I think we owe it to them togive them a state and an
environment that not only givesthem more health opportunities
but educational opportunities,instead of being surrounded by
an oppressive statistic thatleads.
(19:13):
I just love everything thatyou're doing.
I look forward to you, know,getting a little, a little bit
more involved, even if it's justkind of tapping into your
socials and stuff like that.
Uh, what's, if any um advicewould you be giving to kids, uh,
young adults really anyonelistening that kind of want to
(19:35):
take, that want to take theirlives to the next step, that
want to create more of anindependent lifestyle for
themselves?
Speaker 2 (19:42):
you know, you know I would tell, first of all is find
your challenges.
Find your challenges.
What is your?
What is stopping you from doingthat right and then trying to
find a solution?
Now, if you can't find asolution on your own, don't be
afraid to ask for help.
And that's that goes for kids,that goes for adults.
A lot of times, and you know mebeing a, you know a professional
(20:02):
fighter, and they think thatthese, you know, we're all about
being tough and you know I canbe an emotional guy, I can be
many other things opposite oftough, and I have to tell myself
as well that I can ask for help.
I have people that care aboutme, that ask, and that I can ask
(20:23):
for help.
So don't be afraid, don't beafraid to ask for help, don't be
afraid to face your challenges.
You know you can't just put aband-aid over them and that
would.
That will not last.
The cards will eventually fall.
You have to face the challenges,deal with the anxiety,
challenge that anxiety and thencome out winning on the other
side.
I mean, that's exactly what weteach it to come up is being
able to get these kids in theprogram to teach them how to be
(20:46):
dangerous but in the meantimethere's learning.
So much discipline and theycontrol that danger.
They're able to control thatday.
It takes it takes discipline tobe good, right, it takes
discipline to be good and and.
And it takes discipline to begood.
And you have to be able to knowhow to control your mind, know
how to be emotional intelligent.
You have to be able to pick andchoose.
(21:08):
You know when let thoseemotions out and when to harness
them and being able to put themin something else positively.
Speaker 1 (21:18):
Yeah, that's great advice and, yeah, I think this
won't be our last conversation,so thank you for coming out.
I want to take this opportunityto thank everyone in Rotary
District 5750 that's involved inthis project, whether you're a
(21:39):
listener, supporter, whetheryou've donated really any
capacity.
Just thank you to RotaryInternational, to IT Spark as
well, and to our intern, hannahHarkrow, that's out of Arkansas
right now working as aneditorial intern, and anyone
else who I haven't mentioned.
(22:00):
I really appreciate.
Again, I'm going to emphasizemy gratitude towards our
listeners.
I hope everyone has a wonderfulweekend and we'll see you next
week.
Thank you.
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