LOCAL COACH IS IN CHAMP'S CORNER. West Seattle-raised Jack Stafford, Jr., pictured left with cap and earphone, coaches boxing champ "Vicious" Vincent Thompson, seated after round one just before his victory at a March 19 match at Emerald Queen Casino. Thompson's father, Calvin, pictured holding his son's mouth guard, also coaches him. Stafford's father was a well-known coach here.
West Seattle-raised Jack Stafford, Jr. is striving to continue his father's legacy as a legendary boxing coach. Jack Stafford, Sr. coached former two-time heavyweight champ Pinklon Thomas who lived in Seattle. Stafford, Sr. is gone now, but Pinklon works as a drug counselor at the "Center for Drug Free Living" in Orlando, Florida, with young offenders.
Stafford, Jr., who moved from West Seattle to Renton six years ago, trains and coaches heavy-weight professional boxer "Vicious" Vincent Thompson of Federal Way. Thompson beat Ryan Shay in a TKO in the second round of a March 20 match at the Emerald Queen Casino and is now undefeated with seven matches under his eager belt.
Stafford was ringside during the match, and in Thompson's corner after Round-1. Joining him was Vincent's father, Calvin, who also coaches, with the additional assistance of Sam Ditusa, a full time Seattle police officer from Normandy Park who coaches seven other boxers.
"My dad got his start at the old Red Shield Community Center in White Center, then moved to the Delridge Community Center Gym," said Stafford. "Then he picked up with Pinklon Thomas. I started boxing when I was eight on and off until about 18, then other things got in the way. Life."
Stafford is a West Seattle High School class of 1980 graduate.
"Dow Constantine was in my class," Stafford recalled of the King County Executive Director. "I hung out with him a couple of times when we were kids. I don't think his mom liked me coming over. Dow and I were two totally different guys. I was the bad kid in the neighborhood. Dow was the good kid. His mom was our home ec teacher. I hated that subject."
"I'd really like to start my own gym in West Seattle," Stafford said. "There's no other place except Tony Rago's 'PAL gym' in White Center. I want to train kids."
The White Center P.A.L. (Police Activities League) Boxing Club is sponsored by King County law enforcement. Rago is the guru there and told the West Seattle Herald that Thompson is impressive, and comes into his gym occasionally to spar with other boxing enthusiasts who look up to him.
Check out our current P.A.L. Boxing Club story here:
http://www.westseattleherald.com/2011/03/17/news/white-center-pal-boxin…
