He found that group.

And they taught him how to fight.

The group—the San Jose Police Activities League—introduced Ramirez to the "sweet science" of boxing.

And now, 15 years later, Ramirez—a Sunnyvale public safety officer—is hoping to pass on the lessons he learned through the art of boxing to Sunnyvale youth.

Ramirez, 30—in partnership with the Columbia Neighborhood Association and Advanced Micro Devices of Sunnyvale—is bringing the sport of boxing to Columbia Middle School and Fremont High School students as an after-school program.

"For me, it was a deterrent. It kept me doing something positive instead of going out and causing trouble," Ramirez said. "You train and have these coaches that you depend on. You become like family, like brothers."

Laurie Karzen, case manager for Columbia Middle School, said that many students at Columbia begin wearing gang colors and claiming affiliation with groups before they get to high school and then get involved heavily during high school.

"It's an ongoing problem at Fremont High School," Karzen said,"particularly with the two big Latino gangs, the Norteños and Sureños."

Karzen said there are probably 50 of the 900 students at Columbia who exhibit signs of gang interest, including anger-management and behavioral problems. Those students will be invited into the program when it begins, in hopes of stopping the flow of gang "wannabes" into Fremont High.

"A lot of these guys who get into gangs are followers," Ramirez said. "They don't have that self-confidence."

Karzen, who has been working closely with Ramirez since the program's inception almost a year ago, said boxing may be a perfect fit for those students.

"It builds discipline, focus, self-esteem and leadership skills, gives them a safe place to go after school, and helps them build a mentor and student relationship with their trainers," Karzen said.

She added that the sport also appeals to the cultural demographic at Fremont, thanks to Latino boxing stars like Julio Cesar Chavez and Oscar De La Hoya.

"It's a sport that is particularly compelling to the Latino community, and we have a very high population of Latino students here at Columbia," Karzen said. With the installation of equipment at Columbia during the week of March 15, the program could be running by the end of the month. Already, Karzen and Linda Kim, Columbia Neighborhood Association manager, say they have around 50 students in mind from Columbia and Fremont who will be invited to participate in the program. Ramirez said that while the program is targeting at-risk youth for gang prevention, anyone in the community interested in joining is welcome.

By starting up the boxing program, Ramirez hopes to fill several voids in the community, including the lack of positive activities for at-risk students and a lack of Police Activities Leagues in Sunnyvale. San Jose PAL has leagues for a number of sports, including boxing, which is where Ramirez began his training for the annual Police Officer Olympics.

It's that bond and support system that Ramirez hopes will appeal to students who are looking for it, because they may not get it at home. He hopes the same needs that bring students into gangs will instead bring them into the ring.

"With a program like this—or any kind of sport—there is no time for kids to do drugs, drink, or smoke, they have to be training," Ramirez said.

He said boxing is the ultimate test of a person, because it demands physical, mental and emotional dedication to train and improve as an athlete. And what may seem like a solo sport actually becomes a team sport when all the trainers and training partners are considered.

To facilitate the training, AMD—who previously helped pay one-third of the $1 million needed to build the Columbia Neighborhood Center—donated $9,000 to pay for starting equipment, including a 22-foot by 22-foot practice ring and various punching bags. The local 24-Hour Fitness facility also donated "retired" equipment—older, working pieces—such as weights and Nautilus machines for training.

Eventually, Ramirez—who has two former boxers from the area helping with coaching—hopes to expand the program, bringing in more training staff and helping students work up into amateur boxing competitions. He also hopes that if this is a success, a full-fledged Sunnyvale PAL league could grow out of this one sport.

"I see this really growing like a wildfire after the first month, once word gets out," Ramirez said. "We're trying to fill the void, bring some of these kids in off the street and create champions in and out of the ring," Ramirez said.