Hector Camacho Jr. will use his next boxing match as a stage to honor his father and raise money for a foundation that "will provide academic and sports resources to schools in Puerto Rico," according to a report from ESPN.com on Thursday.
According to the interview with ESPNDeportes.com, Camacho Jr. will donate one dollar from every ticket sold for the April 20 fight to an unnamed foundation set to honor his late father, Hector Camacho Sr., who was shot along with a friend inside a car last November in Puerto Rico.
Camacho, who was a world champion in three different divisions, died days later at the age of 50 after being taken off of life support.
The 34-year-old Camacho Jr., who has been boxing professionally since the mid-1990s, is determined to change lives in the wake of his father's death (via ESPN.com):
I want to eliminate firearms from the streets. I want to take children off the streets. If I can save 10 lives, that is something good. A bullet took my father's life. Guns down, gloves up. I will help the children of Puerto Rico so that they may have a better future. Young people deserve something better in Puerto Rico.
Camacho Jr. (54-5-1, 29 KOs) has yet to determine an opponent for this spring's bout, but regardless of whom he faces, it will be his first fight in Puerto Rico in 15 years.
He lost his most recent fight last July, falling via knockout to Luis Grajeda. Camacho Jr. has lost two of his last four fights overall, both knockout defeats.
In addition to helping assist schools in Puerto Rico, Camacho Jr. discussed a potential program in which he would "offer money to people who voluntarily surrender their firearms," according to the ESPN.com report.
Win or lose, Camacho Jr.'s heart is in the right place, and he deserves to be commended for his effort to do good in his community and change lives in the wake of tragedy.
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