{"id":131185,"date":"2016-08-24T09:30:00","date_gmt":"2016-08-24T07:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/131185\/keeping-boxing-alive\/"},"modified":"2016-08-24T11:36:12","modified_gmt":"2016-08-24T09:36:12","slug":"keeping-boxing-alive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/sports-news\/2016\/08\/24\/keeping-boxing-alive\/","title":{"rendered":"Keeping boxing alive"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Primrose Bowling Club hosted East Rand Veterans Boxing Association’s (ERVBA) 27th birthday celebration on Saturday.<\/p>\n

The association, established in 1989, has been growing from strength to strength.<\/p>

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\u201cWe have come a long way and it has been a good year for us,\u201d said the association\u2019s chairman, Nigel Pera.<\/p>\n

\u201cThough we are celebrating today, the actual birthday was on August 9.<\/p>

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\u201cThe dedication and commitment shown by the members is great and it is one of the things that keep the association strong.\u201d<\/p>\n

The members of the association meet every month at the Primrose Bowling Club.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have meetings every second Thursday of the month,\u201d said the association\u2019s public relations officer, Willie Stols.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe usually have a guest speaker at our meetings and, afterwards, we talk about boxing and have refreshments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stols added that people interested in joining the association are welcome.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t have to be a boxing legend to join; boxing fans and anybody interested in boxing and the association is welcome,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth men and women can join.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among other things, the association assists former boxers with medical, rental, electricity and funeral costs.<\/p>\n

The evening\u2019s guests were dressed to the nines.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are quite honoured to have legends such as Harold Volbrecht, Norman Abkin and Jaap van Nieuwenhuizen with us here today,\u201d said Pera.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you to everyone who graced us with their presence and joined us in our celebration.<\/p>\n

\u201cA great big thank you to all our sponsors and to everyone who contributed towards making this evening a huge success.\u201d<\/p>\n

To join the association, or for more information contact Pera on 078 404 6319 or Stols on 083 632 4233.<\/p>\n