HAVERHILL – He is barely 24, scratching the surface of adulthood and building a life of his own, but Nicky Tejada understands one key tenet of life.
Giving back matters.
So when Haverhill High School assistant principal Sean McLaughlin mentioned an idea that the up-and-coming, undefeated pro boxer start an after-school boxing club, Tejada leaped at the chance to help out at his alma mater.
Community first.
“There are a lot of kids who don’t have much going on at the high school,” said Tejada, an HHS 2018 graduate. “I felt like it was good to give back some time and help out. We started in September, and a handful of them are already sparring. To be honest, it’s relaxing.”
These days, Tejada is a busy man. Not only has he picked up a day job as an “at-risk liaison” at Haverhill High, but the 10-0-1 super lightweight has been training hard for his first trip back to the ring since November.
Friday night at Memorial Hall in Melrose, Tejada will tangle with Pablo Ernesto Oliveto, a well-seasoned, 13-15-1 veteran of many ring wars.
“For me, it’s just another stepping stone. He’s really experienced and he’s been in the ring with some really good guys. He just fought Joseph Adorno, and he has fought Jermaine Ortiz,” said Tejada. “I hope this one goes all eight rounds.”
Friday night, Tejada hopes, will be a springboard into a busy immediate future.
“Every time I fight, I just try to look better in the ring,” he said. “After this one, I hope to have something big coming up. I know there are some big cards in the summer that I hope to be on.
“I’m definitely ready. I’m definitely trying to test myself.”
Until then, he’ll continue to push himself outside the ring.
Along with the job and and volunteer work at Haverhill High, Tejada works part-time at Title 1 Boxing in North Andover.
More recently, he helped with the relocation of Ray Hebert’s Haverhill Downtown Boxing Club from Locust Street to River Street.
But it’s back to his passion come Friday night. Back to the ring for real.
His boisterous fan base, now a few handfuls bigger thanks to his students at HHS, can’t wait.