Woodley raised in Ferguson, MO returns to give back
Tyron Woodley: “People think that fighting is your life. But really talking to kids, mentoring, giving back, that’s my passion. That’s going to be my last job.”
Ferguson, Missouri has recently been in the news following the shooting on Aug. 9 of an unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown, by a white police officer. Ferguson is where UFC welterweight Tyron Woodley grew up.
The eleventh of thirteen children born to Sylvester and Deborah Woodley, Tyron’s father left when he was young. Despite being raised by a single mother far from wealth, Tyron excelled, making honor roll in high school every semester, and was 48-0 his final season of wrestling, winning states.
He attended the University of Missouri on a wrestling scholarship, graduating with a degree in Agricultural Economics in 2005. Woodley is currently the #3 welterweight in the UFC.
He recently ventured back to St. Louis, and motivated others to overcome disadvantage.
“Looking around at these buildings, at these beat up houses, it makes kids think this is all they can expect,” explained Woodley. “And they need to know it’s not. There’s other things out there. You can make a way for yourself. You can make your own path. You might not get a ton of opportunities, but you will get some.
“And just really not to get discouraged, and not think that you can’t be successful in life and you can’t have a good career and a family and a wife and be something that’s positive.”
“People think that fighting is your life. But really talking to kids, mentoring, giving back, that’s my passion. That’s going to be my last job. And I use the positive publicity we get from mixed martial arts to inspire, to encourage, to motivate these kids – use the lessons you learn in wrestling, or any sport, to really get you ready for life.”