Leo Adam Biga's My Inside Stories

Terence Crawford has captured the hearts and minds of Nebraskans with his move to the front ranks of professional boxing. The Omaha native has traveled a long, hard journey to get where he is at. Boxing is in his blood. The fight game is his life. Yet there is much more to him than the tenacious competitor, finely-tuned, supremely-conditioned, confident, technically-sound, and unbeaten world title holding prizefighter. He is also a devoted family man who loves kids. He is a sincere advocate for his community. He is curious about the wider world outside his hometown and homestate and he has made it a point to broaden his horizons. To indulge his hunger to know more and to see more, particurlarly to experience the Motherland, he has twice ventured to Uganda and Rwanda, Africa. The story of why he went to those places, whom he went with and what he did there reveals much about The Champ. My July 21 Omaha Press Club Noon Forum presentation describes in words and pictures the 2015 trip I made with him to those countries. I hope to see you at this event, where you will get a behind the scenes glimpse into Terence’s world away from boxing and his heart for people. The event is open to the general public.

Come to my presentation about going to Africa with Terence Crawford @ July 21 Omaha Press Club Noon Forum

In touting the event, Omaha Press Club Education Committee member Chris Allen, a colleague of mine who teaches at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, wrote this in the OPC newsletter:

Boxing champion and Omaha native Bud Crawford isn’t all hard abs and steel fists. Bud Crawford has a soft side to him as well.

On Thursday, July 21, Omaha writer Leo Adam Biga will talk about Crawford’s trip to Africa with his fourth-grade teacher to do humanity work.

Crawford made his first trip to Africa in August 2014, shortly after he defeated Yuriorkis Gamoa in a fight in Omaha to retain his light welterweight title. He accompanied Jamie Nollette, his fourth-grade teacher at Skinner Magnet School. Nollette is the founder and executive director of Pipeline Worldwide, a nonprofit organization working on sustainability and self-sufficiency in Uganda and Rwanda.

When she returned to Africa in June 2015, Crawford went along again, before he had to begin training to defend his title that October, which he successfully did. Biga went on that trip through an Andy Award from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Biga’s talk, including many photos from the trip, will highight their experiences over the 12-day journey.

“We met African, American and European program directors, educators, aid workers and humanitarians,” Biga said. “Crawford was feted as a visiting prince by sports officials, who orga-nized a press conference he handled with aplomb.”

Cost for the Noon Education Forum luncheon is $17. Lunch begins at 11:30 a.m.. The event is open to the general public.

The Press Club is located on the 22nd floor of the old First National Bank Building at 1620 Dodge Street.

Me interviewing our team tour guide in Uganda, Apollo Karugaba, a sweet-natured man who escaped the slums to get an education and to do good workwith Watoto Child Care Ministries. He helped give me a local’s sense for the way of life and the scale of need there. This interview took place outside the Bomah Hotel in Gulu, the largest city in Northern Uganda. In that northern region we visited Bless a Child and Sister Rosemary’s Saint Monica’s site in Gulu and Sister’s second site in Atiak.