At one point, Ben Cookson had lost all the pieces. His house, his business, his family – all gone. What followed was a decade-long spiral into addiction that left him homeless on the streets of East Devon.
Today, though, the 50-year-old spends his Wednesday evenings in a really different place: leading boxing classes inside St David’s Church, Exeter.
“I mainly went on a 10-year bender and just smashed my life to bits and ended up homeless,” he said. “Since the day I got here to church, I’ve never touched drugs or alcohol – that is 4 years.”
Cookson’s story, which has been reported by the local BBC Devon network, is as much about survival because it is about transformation.
After first walking through the doors of the city-centre church 4 years ago, born-again Ben began using fitness and boxing to reconnect with himself, his Christian faith and other members of the community.
What began as personal healing has grown right into a free weekly programme called Fitter for Faith, open to anyone battling addiction, personal struggles, or just trying to get healthier.
The classes aren’t nearly constructing stamina. For Cookson, they’re a gateway to deeper conversations.
“People don’t openly need to seek advice from a random stranger about their trauma, or the shame or guilt they could carry,” he explained. “What the boxing does is it that it builds a relationship, after which once I share a few of my experience with people they really open up.”
Cookson has been running the church sessions for 2 years now, using his past not as a burden but as a bridge.
His philosophy is easy: faith, fitness, and fellowship can go hand in hand.
Reverend Mike Clark, vicar at St David’s, believes the unconventional mixture of boxing and church community has been a blessing.
“I just think it’s amazing what Ben is doing bringing in such a wide range of people,” he said. “Boxing will not be something I’d have ever considered doing in a church but I can see the way it enables him to attach with people.”
The sessions, Clark added, are open to everyone without expectation or pressure – a protected space for people to explore each health and, in the event that they wish, faith.
The impact of Fitter for Faith goes beyond those recovering from addiction. For 74-year-old Moira Dale, the classes are a significant a part of her week.
“It’s teaching them discipline, control, and all the pieces else like that. It’s just the perfect thing,” she said. “If it’s doing that for me, what’s it doing for these other young people.”
Her words reflect what many on the church have seen: boxing isn’t just exercise, it’s a tool for growth – mental, physical, and spiritual.
Looking back, Cookson knows how close he got here to losing all of it for good. “The recession got here … I lost my house, my business, my family and in my mid-30s, I turned to cocaine for the primary time,” he recalled.
That selection nearly destroyed him. Addiction is a robust and unrelenting foe.
Now, with gloves strapped on and pads in hand, Ben Cookson is constructing something recent – for himself and for others.
And within the quiet nave of a Devon church, the sound of punches hitting leather has turn out to be a soundtrack of hope.
 At one point, Ben Cookson had lost all the pieces. His house, his business, his family – all gone....){kind=link}