Bucks County Sheriff’s Office starts youth boxing effort with Joe Hand

A new youth athletic program is landing its first jab at Joe Hand Boxing Gym, which is teaming up with the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office to bring boxing to local kids.

This program is the inaugural effort of the office’s recently established Police Athletic League. The league is a free initiative designed to offer Bucks youth skill-building activities — alongside the mentorship of local law enforcement — to keep them engaged and out of trouble.

“We are going to make a tremendous difference in young people’s lives all throughout this county,” Joe Hand Jr. said at a press conference July 29 in his Feasterville gym.

The program, which started earlier this month, brings community children into the ring twice a week to learn boxing fundamentals. They receive guidance from coaches and members of local law enforcement, said coach and gym development director Patrick McCue.

“The benefits of this program are tremendous,” said Hand, the son of two Philadelphia police officers.

“There’s discipline. They show kids how to show up and work harder and focus. They get some confidence where they can master new skills. They start to believe in themselves.”

The Police Athletic League is a nonprofit largely backed by a grant from Penn Community Bank’s charity arm and other community donations. Bucks County Sheriff Fred Harran serves on the nonprofit’s board.

“Building the community’s foundation is good for everyone,” Penn Community Bank executive Kelly Boyle said.

“These programs are so integral to keeping kids off the street, keeping them out of trouble, forming a great bond with law enforcement and the youth of today.”

The first cohort participating in the program — 30 kids between the ages of 12 and 17 — was selected by the sheriff’s office as those who could most benefit from it. Harran said he hopes the program will soon accommodate more participants, and that the nonprofit backing the initiative aims to raise $100,000 for it by the end of the year.

Harran, who said he saw the positive impact of a smaller league in Bensalem, said boxing was a deliberate first choice to start the county’s Police Athletic League.

“Boxing isn’t just about boxing,” Harran said. “It’s about education, about being a leader. It’s about athletics. It’s about physical fitness.

“It’s about just your own personal self.”