In the ring of life, Alexander Johnson has been knocked down a few times. Never knocked out, he has gotten back up and learned how to share his experiences to help others.
From his office at the Jim Taliaferro Community Mental Health Center in Lawton, the former U.S. Army Sergeant talked about the people who have influenced his life and the importance of community connections.
Johnson was raised by his grandmother, Pinkie Johnson, in the Dallas, Texas, area after his mother committed suicide when he was six years old. His father went to prison when he was eight years old.
“I was very angry, and I was fighting at school a lot,” he said. “My grandmother was a teacher there and the janitor suggested that she get me involved in a boxing program as a way to channel my anger. He said that once a person learns how to fight, they don’t fight. It takes a lot of discipline to learn how to fight and that discipline takes you out of fights.”
The janitor just happened to be a coach at the Blue Devils Boxing Club, where Johnson found direction and training until he went to work at age 16.
“Everything in boxing can be translated to real life. It’s about something that’s bigger than yourself and believing in a God-given talent. It’s something in your life that challenges you and gives you an opportunity to use tools to face it,” he said.
At South Oak Cliff High School, Johnson participated in cross country track, football, boxing, basketball and tennis. His grandmother, who he calls Mom, wanted Johnson to be a well-rounded person. His boxing coach wanted him to participate in tennis because it helped with footwork and coordination skills.
After graduating from high school in 1999, Johnson joined the Army, which became his career for the next 20 years. His basic training was at Fort Sill, and he became part of the 13F Joint Fires Observer team. He served two combat deploys; one in Iraq and he also spent a month in Afghanistan. Johnson also helped provide humanitarian service through the Army during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. He said he also volunteered on his own to help during Hurricane Harvey in his home state of Texas in 2017.
Volunteering became a way for Johnson to not focus on himself or his problems and to give to others. He said it’s a way to serve a God-given purpose above yourself. Volunteering is how he became connected to Bad Boys Boxing in Lawton in 2017 when he decided to take up the sport again. He struck up a great friendship with the owner, Grady Brewer.
“He is a man’s man. He is very calm and very patient,” Johnson said about Brewer. “He is that way with his family, also. He’s very helpful. We are great friends.”
Another boxing great that Johnson looks up to is former professional boxer George Foreman.
“I relate to him because he was also an angry guy early on. With hard work he was able to change,” he said. “One thing I’ve learned is to look at everything from a different perspective. If you don’t like your reality, change your mind.”
After retiring from the Army in 2019, Johnson spent the next three years volunteering with organizations in Lawton, including Family Promise and the animal shelter. In January of this year, he became an employee of the Jim Taliaferro Community Mental Health Center with the title of Mental Health Tech I. He’s also had the opportunity to be an inspirational speaker with some organizations and events around Lawton.
Johnson’s passion is helping people face challenges in their lives and showing them how to be successful with life skill tools. His message is that in the ring of life, winning is possible no matter what the circumstances.