‘I call it the Rocky mentality. You never give up. Even when you get knocked down, you get back up.’

Woodbury

“From a very young age, I struggled pretty badly with a learning disability. I think that’s what really drove me to become a high school physical education and health and sports medicine teacher, because I wanted students to have an experience that I never got, especially a student that struggled. My parents were extremely supportive.

“There weren’t services like there are now for kids when I was young. My parents did the best they could, and in a last-ditch effort they showed me the film ‘Rocky’ when I was about 8. They wanted to show me a film that really inspired them, and they told me we hope that it has the same effect on you. It changed my life forever. From that moment moving forward, it’s like a switch went on, and everything that I’ve done from that moment on has been different from how I was handling things prior.

“My struggles definitely continued, but I learned how to handle it. I learned how to fight through it. I call it the Rocky mentality. You never give up. Even when you get knocked down, you get back up. And things start to come a little bit easier for you the more you push. That’s the main takeaway that I got from the movie. I’ve adapted that into everything that I do.

“I’m 45 years old, the father of two wonderful daughters and [have] a beautiful wife, and I continue to take that same approach. But about eight years ago, my father, who was my hero, got cancer, and it was very difficult watching him struggle and become decimated with such a terrible disease. He asked me to do him one favor, to run the ‘Rocky’ steps for him. It was always something we wanted to do together as father-son, but we never had the opportunity. About 48 hours after that conversation, he passed away.

“About six months later, my mom also got diagnosed with stage four brain cancer. It was a really tough double whammy. I wound up losing her about a year after my dad. It was really difficult. There were a few months where I really struggled. But I woke up one morning, and it was as if the switch went back on. I remembered the promise that I made to my dad to run those steps. I drove to Philadelphia and got there at 11 p.m. in the middle of February. It was freezing.”

A lot of times people go through tough times in life, and it’s very important to realize that there is light at the end of the tunnel, but it does take a lot of work and effort to get there.

“It was just me and the 72 stone steps leading up to the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. I made this emotional climb all by myself, and when I got to the top, I got very emotional thinking back to everything I just went through with my mom and my dad. And literally within minutes, I get hit, like as if by a bolt of lightning, with the idea to come up with a series called ‘Fight Story.’

“Everyone that’s been impacted by these ‘Rocky’ movies. There’s millions of people worldwide like me that have been impacted by these films. And I wanted to make a series that highlights individuals that overcame tremendous adversity because they were inspired by Sylvester Stallone’s legendary films.

“All of the stories are super inspiring, with powerful positive messaging. We’ve filmed all three episodes. The first one is streaming now, currently on seven different platforms worldwide, including Amazon. I’m doing a premiere in July in Bellmore, and I’ll probably have the third one the following summer.

“It’s been an amazing process telling incredible stories of hope and determination. I think that the world really needs something like this right now. In addition to the film, I have a full ‘Fight Story’ merchandise line, with 100 percent of the profits going towards children with autism because of the issues I faced, and I work with these children every day. When you see those kids look up to you and smile, it’s a life changer. It’s worth more than any dollar amount in the world.

“My number-one goal is to honor my family. Goal number two would be to eventually get all of my messages out there that I’ve done with ‘Fight Story.’ I would love for Mr. Stallone, at some point. to be able to hear, you know, what we’ve accomplished. I think back on my 8-year-old self and would want to tell him that there’s hope.

“A lot of times people go through tough times in life, and it’s very important to realize that there is light at the end of the tunnel, but it does take a lot of work and effort to get there. That’s the key. You can’t just roll over and give up. You have to keep going.”

Interviewed by Liza Burby