Last week, Sarah Fraske stepped into the ring and helped raise money for a good cause.
The former Estevan resident fought for the welterweight boxing title at Aprons For Gloves' Restaurant Rumble held in Vancouver on July 23.
Aprons for Gloves is a non-profit organization.
"What they do is raise money for a boxing gym," said Fraske, who lives in Burnaby, B.C. "This gym gives free training, free counselling for at-risk youth in the downtown east side. It's for anyone who has troubled kids. They can train for free, they can learn confidence and build their self-esteem. They have to adhere to rules and have good enough grades. It's building these kids with some discipline."
The annual Restaurant Rumble sees employees in the service industry exchange their aprons and food trays for boxing gloves. They attend tryouts and if selected, train for the event and raise money for the organization.
"One of my girlfriends thought I'd be good, so I tried out and they accepted me. The conditions are you have to raise over $2,000 for the charity and show up for training three days a week."
The tryouts were held in May, so Fraske only got in a couple of months of training for her first fight.
"It was very hard. I lost about 20 pounds. The thing is I didn't lose weight, I just gained a lot of muscle. There was a noticeable difference. I was eating healthier, I could run five miles. It also takes a toll on your mind. There are 300 people watching you and you've never fought before in your life," she said.
Fraske, an assistant manager at a Burnaby pizzeria, lost the title fight to second-year fighter Andrea Chromik. However, it was not without controversy.
"(At first) I was awarded the belt. It was a split decision, which means it was decided by one point. But the announcer had made an error. It was taken away and she was awarded the belt. It was a huge controversy, a big spectacle," Fraske said.
"The comments are that I don't have the very best form, since I've only been training two months, but I've got all the heart and determination," she added, noting that Chromik had the edge skill-wise due to having more experience.
Fraske was asked to return for next year's event. She is also looking at getting into the ring more often.
"I definitely want to come back to Aprons For Gloves. I'm hoping to continue with training, but probably not as intense as this was. The gym I'm training at has offered me other fights, which I probably will take because I want more experience."
Leading up to the event, Fraske raised $2,200 for the charity and sold an additional $2,000 in tickets. She said there was a lot of support from family and friends at home. The pizzeria also donated a dollar from each pizza sold and co-workers left money in a jar.
"It means the world to me. Being from Saskatchewan and Estevan, especially, we're a very tight community. Moving to the city, I kind of lost that feeling of community. To be able to give back, it makes it feel like home for me. Now I've met a whole new group of people, and my community's getting tighter," said Fraske, who left Estevan after finishing high school in the early 2000s.
"In my interview (for the event), I talk about being from Saskatchewan and being proud of where I'm from, that I love the Roughriders. That's where I get all my will and strength from."
