Sometime around 2016, Pastor Buddy Osborn stopped counting the kids who visited Rock Ministries in Kensington; there were simply too many to tally. His program, which combines boxing with Bible study in an effort to prevent violence, was proving so popular that, after reaching 11,000 young people in Philly, Osborn started to lose track.
Through Rock Ministries, students have found work, a path to professional boxing, academic support, and a safe space. Its approach stems from Osborn’s philosophy to look at his community “not with a lens of violence, but the lens of hope.”
Now, as Philadelphia experiences a historic decrease in gun violence, Rock Ministries is one of over 100 organizations citywide that are trying to push that trend even further by preventing shootings from happening in the first place. In Rock Ministries’ case, the idea is that by giving youth skills, an outlet to release their anger, along with community and potential employment, they’ll have the tools to end disputes before they become deadly.
Osborn’s path to becoming a pastor, mentor, and advocate was not straight. By the time he was 10, his mother, who was raising three boys and six girls, couldn’t keep him out of trouble, so he started spending time with his father. When Osborn was 13, his father took him to a boxing match in Kensington. “I loved it so much that I wound up getting involved, and I became really good at it,” Osborn said. “I fought at Madison Square Garden, I was on HBO at 17, and by the time I was 19, I was a Golden Gloves champion of the state of Pennsylvania.”
“It was quite an accomplishment for a kid from Kensington,” said Osborn, who became a roofer and a local union leader after retiring from boxing.
Despite his successes, Osborn still found himself in serious trouble. He spent more than five years in federal custody on a racketeering conviction before he was released in 1995. “I came out a different person. And not because of what prison did for me, but what a woman did,” Osborn said. That woman sent him a letter saying, “Buddy, Jesus has you in the palm of his hand and he’ll never let you down.” It inspired him to improve his behavior and to embrace religion.
At the age of 26, Osborn learned that his racketeering conviction barred him from work as a roofer. After exploring a few career options, he trained teens at a friend’s boxing gym and taught Bible study at the Philadelphia House of Correction.
One boxing student in particular impressed him. The 16-year-old made it to nationals, but lost. “One Saturday, as I’m teaching a Bible study, I was in the book of Matthew, and sure enough, he walked in with an orange jumpsuit on,” Osborn said. “He had killed somebody.” That moment made Osborn wonder, “how can I be more effective on the street block, as opposed to the prison block?” Still, he was so bereft that he took a break from teaching.
Two years later, Osborn started again, he said, “but this time with the stipulation that the students have to attend Bible studies for 20 minutes every Thursday.”
That’s how he came to found Rock Ministries, also known as “The Rock,” 20 years after his release from prison. Rock Ministries is in the heart of Kensington, at 2755 Kensington Avenue. “We’re right in the center of the biggest open air drug market in the country. … There was a dilapidated building that had no windows, no heat. It was totally abandoned,” he said. “There were rats bigger than cats and it goes on and on. We took up one room at a time, and now we have so much more.”
The Rock is open seven days a week. On average, about 75 students show up each night. “We have boxing, grapples, homework club, and weights,” said Osborn. His efforts have helped keep hundreds of kids out of trouble and employed; some, like Aanjhrue Williams, 24, have become mentors themselves. Williams joined The Rock at age 10; he’s now an electrician and a coach. In a joint interview with The Trace, Osborn and Williams shared their perspectives on gun violence, particularly among young people, and how the Rock’s mix of combat sport and prayer is changing lives.
The answers below have been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
AT: What are we facing now in terms of gun violence in Philadelphia?
BO: Kids in Kensington are suffering from post traumatic stress disorder due to gun violence. When I was growing up in Kensington it was a community of hard-working people. You could walk down the streets. I don’t remember any gun violence. You handled your business with street fights. You never worried about a gun. That has changed. People are now living in an area that is overrun with drugs. I’ve seen kids working the block. They’re only 12, 13 years old, slinging, trapping drugs. That shouldn’t be.
AW: We’re facing a cultural epidemic. People think they need guns, not for safety reasons, but for the narrative that the media pushes that having the gun makes you bigger, makes you strong, or makes you somebody of important value. There’s a different type of gun that people own, ghost guns. You don’t even need to actually go through the purchasing process. You can just purchase the parts to put together.
Why combine boxing and Bible study?
BO: Proverbs 22:6 says train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. There’s so many biblical references that can help a young kid develop character. As does the discipline of boxing. We can’t make them Christian, but we can offer them hope in Christ. These lessons help them understand that there is a right and a wrong way.
AW: I didn’t expect Bible study inside of the boxing gym. I went in with the intention of defending myself and possibly holding my own in the streets, but I ended up walking into a safe haven, which was pretty cool.
What skills are the students learning and what does a typical night look like?
BO: We’re teaching kids to have a solid foundation. We teach them the proper way to breathe, push and pull weights. Say a kid doesn’t understand the first thing about grappling; in increments, you teach. If they can learn that, they can learn anything, they can do anything with their life. We have many people that’ve been in prison. We have guys who have been involved in gang shootings, and we’re all here as mentors. Thursday at 6 p.m. we have a 20-minute Bible study. Tuesdays at 6 p.m. we bow our heads in prayer. We go back to training or do whatever we have to do.
AW: The guidelines encourage young people to be responsible and respectable. You can’t curse or scream to get your point across. You have to express yourself in a better manner. That makes you more conscious of your tone. Students are motivated to make an honest living and be an honest person.
In what ways is the boxing program a gun violence preventative measure?
AW: If you know how to hold your own hands, you won’t feel the need to carry a weapon that can take someone’s life. And the gym gives you a pastime. You’ll be less likely to run into people who are indulging in that type of lifestyle. No one glorifies weapons here. If anything, they’ll discuss proper use of guns. There’s good mentorship plus being able to utilize your time for something positive, rather than having your mind idle and just consuming media that pushes a gun narrative.
How do you measure success?
AW: Any kid from this neighborhood that ends up finding a stable form of income and stable life that’s not filled with toxins and unideal situations, drama, and stuff like that, I think that’s successful. I can probably name 20 people I’ve influenced and still talk to today. Some will say “Yo bro, I really appreciate that you showed me this.” The Rock Ministries influenced me and my career path, which is why I give back.
The Trace’s reporting in Philadelphia is a part of Every Voice, Every Vote, a collaborative project managed by The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. The William Penn Foundation provides lead support for Every Voice, Every Vote in 2024 and 2025 with additional funding from The Lenfest Institute for Journalism, Comcast NBC Universal, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Henry L. Kimelman Family Foundation, Judy and Peter Leone, Arctos Foundation, Wyncote Foundation, 25th Century Foundation, Dolfinger-McMahon Foundation, and Philadelphia Health Partnership. To learn more about the project and view a full list of supporters, visit www.everyvoice-everyvote.org. Editorial content is created independently of the project’s donors.
