Though only two bouts into his amateur mixed martial arts journey, Halifax fighter Zach Garcia has a clear vision for what he intends to achieve through his involvement in the sport.
Beyond the obvious ambition of reaching the pinnacle of competition, Garcia aims to merge his expertise in MMA with his professional pursuits to make a meaningful impact on other people's lives.
The 28-year-old earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and social work from Acadia University, and plans to leverage his understanding of the sport alongside his dedication to serving others by eventually establishing his own gym and launching a specialized MMA initiative designed for at-risk youth.
"I'd like to create an MMA program for kids that have mental health or behavioural issues that's therapeutic towards their needs. I want to teach the great values MMA brings to people, but bring it to the people that need it the most," said Garcia in an interview with MMA Empire.
"As soon as martial arts came into my life, a lot of deficiencies in my character and personality kind of got shown to me a little bit. When you go to your first class and you're the strongest guy in the room, but everyone keeps beating you up, there's certain things that get exposed in you. But when you keep coming, keep seeing the improvement and the change in your attitude, all those things are incredibly beneficial to someone. If you can present it in a way that's fun and meant to be helpful, there can be great benefits to that."
During his formative years, Garcia struggled to avoid trouble, frequently finding himself involved in altercations and spending time with negative influences.
He explained that his choice to enter social work and support underserved youth was heavily influenced by his own upbringing, representing his way of "paying it forward" to the individuals in his life who guided him toward better decisions.
"As a kid, I was always really angry and never really had any help, and if it weren't for my mentors later in life, I'd be down a very different path.
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