MMA FOR CHARITY

TO HOLD HAITI BENEFIT EVENT

Event will take place on March 13-14 in Richmond, VA

Richmond, VA (USA): On January 12th, 2010, a vicious earthquake struck the country of Haiti. As of this writing, an estimated 3,000,000 people have been affected by magnitude 7.0 quake. The Haitian Government has reported that between 217,000 and 230,000 people have died, an estimated 300,000 have been injured, and an estimated 1,000,000 are homeless. What’s more, the death toll is expected to rise. The response from within the United States as well as the world has been overwhelming. Tens of millions of dollars have been raised in the U.S. alone, and aid has poured in from all over the world. But recovery efforts will be ongoing in the years to come, as Haiti attempts to rebuild itself.

On March 13th, a two-day seminar hosted by MMA Institute, located at 6145 Jahnke Road, Richmond, VA 23225, will commence. The seminar will consist of grappling, striking, and MMA training, and the team of instructors will be made up of world class MMA fighters such as rising WEC star and Haiti native Mackens Semerzier, UFC fighters Aaron Riley and“The Filthy Mauler” Tom Lawlor, former TUF competitor Sam Hoger, Bellator fighter Jorge “Gamebred” Masvidal, and 2009 Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC) champion and recent Shine Fights signee Braulio Estima. In addition, 50/50 Jiu-Jitsu owners Ryan Hall and Seph Smith will be teaching, and a kids seminar will be educated by the well-respected John Simons. All these great athletes will be donating their time, and merchandise will be auctioned off, with all proceeds going towards Haiti relief.

MMA for Charity is an organization conceptualized by MMA Institute Head Trainer Rick McCoy and Eric Callahan in order for the sport he loves to have an opportunity to respond to the tragedy in Haiti. “When I saw the footage of all the suffering going on by the men, women, and children in Haiti, I just felt in my gut that I needed to do something,” explained McCoy. “I spoke with some of my associates, and things quickly came together to form the organization. Now, the sport gets to show that it’s about more than what happens in the cage; MMA is filled with good, caring people. And through MMA for Charity, we’ll get to show that.”