Ten Laws with East Forest Justin Wren - Overcoming (#179)
Justin Wren knows what it's like to feel like the world is against you. Like many kids, Justin was bullied as a teenager, but he had a dream that kept him going. Fueled by the anger he felt toward his tormentors, Justin pursued wrestling in high school where he became 10 time State Champion, 5 time All American, and 2 time National Champion. Justin trained hard and this propelled his dream of becoming a UFC fighter into reality. But the pain from his childhood didn't dissipate, and Justin fell into a spiral of depression and addiction that led him on a path toward destruction. After he was kicked out of his training community, his career was in shambles and he had nowhere else to go so Justin attended a men's retreat. It was there he found his faith and purpose for living.
As Justin began piecing his life back together, he took several international trips. This led him to the Ituri rain forest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo where he came across the Mbuti Pygmies, a group of people persecuted by neighboring tribes and forced into slavery. On one of his trips he stayed for a year living among them and sharing the culture of what he calls "the most bullied people on earth." They gave him two names Efeosa which means "the man who loves us" and Mbuti MangBO "The Big Pygmy." His encounter with the pygmies left him wondering who was there to help them, and in that moment Justin stepped out of the cage and into a Fight For The Forgotten.
In 2015, after a five year hiatus from professional sports, Justin returned to his winning ways in MMA fighting, but now he is fighting for someone besides himself. Since returning to fighting, Justin is undefeated in three fights. His current record is 15-2.
Justin is not only giving a voice to the pygmies through land, food and water initiatives but, state-side, he is addressing the escalating problem of bulling through an anti-bullying character development curriculum titled "Heroes in Waiting." He says, "Everyone can be a hero. To be a hero all that's required is to see a need and do what's right." The program aims to inspire students to take action at a moment of choice through empathy, kindness, compassion, courage and integrity.