ISLE is a 16-day intensive multimedia workshop focused on community storytelling. I was placed in Muscatine, Iowa, for a week to learn about the town’s overall history as well as the Muscatine Boxing Club’s rich, community-driven history.

The Muscatine Boxing Club has been a pillar of the community since the 1940s, with its brick-and-mortar location opening in 1971. Multiple generations of the Williams’ family have played a role at the gym, notably Lance Williams, a professional boxer with six Iowa Golden Gloves belts to his name. Lance’s older brother boxed at the gym, and his father, Ron, has been coaching there for over 20 years despite never boxing a day in his life. Lance committed his life to boxing and coaching with the gym’s goal of keeping kids off the streets in mind. More about this story can be seen here.