VIDEO: The coach

By Mathias Meier

In a neighborhood widely portrayed as a hub for drug trafficking and street violence, one coach is making a difference.

Mathias Meier takes us to Little Village and the basement of a community church where boxing and dreams collide.

Photo at top: Gabriel Navarro coaches his 17-year-old boxing student, Alexiss Ayala, at this year’s Golden Gloves championship held at Cicero Stadium. (Mathias Meier/Medill)