Page 5 - Wayne Dispatch Pages

Beating cancer to

fighting the odds

By Sarah Shurge
“I’ve had the gift of having cancer.
The gift of losing my leg. The gift of
almost losing my life to drug addic-
tion and alcoholism. These are all
gifts,” said Zach Gowen. “Life is one
big gift.”
At 8 years old, Gowen was diag-
nosed with cancer and his left leg
was amputated. He found comfort
from the negative feelings in his life
while watching and engaging in pro-
fessional wrestling. By 16 years old,
Gowen knew he wanted to be a pro-
fessional wrestler and at 18 years
old, he had an opportunity to train
to be one. Gowen jumped at the
chance.
In 2003, Gowen signed a contract
with World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE) and was featured on their tel-
evision show Smackdown. Gowen
was involved with icons like Hulk
Hogan, Roddy Piper, Brock Lesnar,
and Vince McMahon.
“It was a dream come true. Zach Gowen
There’s no other way to put it, espe- ets. This event is for anyone and
cially growing up the world’s biggest everyone, so be sure to get your tick-
wrestling fan,” said Gowen. ets.
Gowen was the first and only one- The Bret Hart Meet and Greet
legged competitor ever to compete in will be from 4PM - 6PM and the
WWE. doors for the wrestling show open at
“To be the first to do it and to do 6:30PM.
it with who I did it with, was a dream “I’m really excited about seeing
come true,” said Gowen. the community come together, cele-
Gowen will be at HYPE Athletics brate the magic of wrestling, and
on Friday, October 13th for a family- help with a great cause,” said Gowen.
friendly wrestling show fundraiser, “I can’t thank everyone enough and
Champion for a Cause Promotions can’t wait to give them the best live
Presents: The Hart of the Matter. wrestling show.”
Wrestling icon Bret "The Hitman" Gowen’s path to where he is now
Hart will be appearing at the event. has not been an easy one. Six
Also appearing: The "Man Beast" months after he signed a contract
Rhino, The Motor City Machine with WWE, he was let go.
Guns, The "One-Legged Wonder" “I was going through a really dark
Zach Gowen, "The Dearborn De- season of my life with alcoholism
stroyer" Karam Alame, and more. and drug addiction,” said Gowen.
The Hart of the Matter is an event “There’s a huge stigma around addic-
about making a difference. Proceeds tion and I like to shine a light around
from ticket sales and sponsorships it. It can affect anyone at any time.
will be donated to the Fredi the Piz- There is no amount of willpower to
zaMan Foundation This organization stop and I realized I was powerless
is dedicated to building sensory in this fight.”
rooms in public schools, and creat- One thing helped Gowen with his
ing safe spaces for students with addiction.
autism to learn, grow, and thrive. “I had to stop fighting. Give up.
Tickets can be purchased at Accept that this is a challenge that I
championforacausepromotions.com. can't overcome on my own. Once I ac-
Use promo code: SCHOOL to get
$20 off four general admission tick- See Fighting, page 11
The Wayne Dispatch · October 2023 · 5