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Coach Calvin Shepard Jr. and others of Lionhearted Boxing Academy were recognized at the last Port Arthur city council meeting having Feb.4 as Lionhearted Boxing Academy Day and a key to the city.

The recognitions stem from the Academy’s commitment to service mentorship to the youth in Port Arthur.  Lion Hearted has mentored over 2000 youth and participated in over 200 local, regional, state and nationally sanctioned events throughout the United States.

Over the years the gym changed its name to Lion Hearted Boxing Academy to encompass its other services including teaching nutrition and financial literacy along with boxing. 

In 2019, Lion Hearted was forced to close its doors to its gym in Port Arthur but Coach Calvin Shepard promised to keep the program going. Today the academy is made of an unpaid volunteer staff that continues to help anyone in need. 

“”Our program exists in low-income areas, but are available to all youth regardless of family income,” said Sheppard. “In the effort to offer a reasonable commute for those in critical areas in need, we operate year-round ensuring that the youth in our program have access to mentorship, resources, and services.”

The Academy has also announced the date for its 4th Juneteenth Showdown in Port Town for June 28 and 29 at the Max Bowl Event Center. The event serves as an encore for the 2025 USA Amateur Boxing Junior Olympics held in Las Vegas also held in June.

The Juneteenth event was rescheduled to after the official holiday due to the Olympic competition having priority. The local Juneteenth Showdown will showcase talent from Port Arthur along with visitors from around Texas and Louisiana.

“I tell people we have some of the best kids in the nation,” said Sheppard  “Some of ’em look at me like, are you serious? I said, yeah, you need to come see ’em. We travel, we’d been in Richmond, Virginia, Kansas, Arkansas within a span of three months showcasing our talents. But the one place that was missing was Port Arthur. So I created this event so that our kids could compete for, for the community, for the local parents, friends, and people that know ’em.” The world has seen their talent, and we created this event so the community can see it too, right?”

More details for the event will be announced close to the event.