John Wills, founder of Custom Real Estate decided he wanted to do fight night a few months ago and, as he explained to Ponsonby News, "the main reason I got involved was because I really believe in the charity that was benefitting from this year’s event.
"Cure Kids work very hard behind the scenes to complete very expensive and time-consuming research into diseases and conditions that seriously affect our little ones. They also provide a wonderful support network and environment for the kids and parents that they come into contact with. A brilliant organisation.
"I worked hard to raise money through my friends, family and associates' networks, and through a number of wonderful and generous donations, raised over $16,000. This is a charity that people really connected with, and wanted to get in behind, so the fund raising went very well.
"The whole fight night campaign raised around $60,000 in total, which was brilliant. Getting into a boxing ring, in front of a big crowd, is something that sits outside of my comfort zone, but I really enjoyed the experience and, weirdly, I absolutely loved the training. It was hard, different and fun.
"On the night, I lost the fight on points in a close split decision. But I didn’t really care. It was a very well run event, and I had done the training, met some great people, helped raise money and had a huge amount of fun. I’d recommend the whole experience to anyone."
Anyone wanting to donate to Cure Kids, can do so through their website - they would love to hear from you!