At Old School Boxing in Prince George's County, they're sparring, jumping rope and getting in shape. It's a typical night at the gym in Temple Hills, but one thing is missing: the owner.
Buddy Harrison was the soul of Old School, and it's his legacy that keeps many going here two years after he was killed.
Coach Al Mon Wheeler spoke to News4 about what keeps the gym going.
“Love,” he said. “Love for Buddy. Family. Everything is very family-oriented. You have a lot of dedicated people. When Buddy was here, they never left.”
Harrison was shot and killed near his home in the Naylor Gardens neighborhood in Southeast D.C.
Police are still looking for two suspects shown in surveillance video jumping out of a white car, then getting back in and driving away. There's been no arrest.
“For a person, the person with that much heart, for somebody to take him, take his life like that, just it was wrong,” Wheeler said.
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When Harrison died, many feared the gym would shut down, but that didn't happen — it's getting bigger.
Harrison started Old School nearly 30 years ago as a way to help kids stay off the streets.
“He teach me like how to hit the mitts and how to jump rope and how to do abs,” one child at the gym said.
“He had a great heart,” another child said.
They're honoring Harrison by wearing ‘Justice for Buddy’ shirts.
“I just think he just had that spark,” said boxer Christine Wilkinson. “He had that just way of connecting with the community and the neighborhood, and this place is always full of kids, and they felt comfortable with him. He just had open arms.”
The community is keeping his legacy alive by keeping the gym doors open.
