Genesis Prep: Boxing or business - Bentley Ubert is ready to take a swing at what’s next

When Genesis Prep Academy senior Bentley Ubert was looking for a new hobby during his junior year, he didn’t take up chess or e-gaming. He decided to become a boxer.

“My dad showed me six of the Rocky movies,” he said, “and I was really interested. We got a phone number for Jacob Fridley, who teaches boxing classes in Coeur d’Alene, and I tried it out. My mom is leery about it, but still supports me, and my dad is on board.

“For now, it’s just to enjoy and see how it goes, but if I like it, I may try to go further. I wasn’t good at team sports, and I like that my success is on me. There’s lots of strategy in boxing and it’s not something that everybody can be good at. Boxing has helped me to realize who I am and given me self-confidence that I didn’t have before.”

Ubert will look for a gym when he moves to Florida in October with his two older brothers, hoping to find work learning to apply custom vinyl wraps to automobiles. He’s never really enjoyed school that much, he said.

“Genesis has been great. I’ve made great friends and have had awesome teachers who gave me skills that I can use in the real world. I thought about going on to school, but I feel like if there’s something I need to learn, I’ll do it, preferable on my own.”

Ubert’s family moved to Post Falls from Minnesota before his freshman year, and while he was nervous about being the new kid, he found a community of friends who made him feel welcome almost immediately.

“I went to youth group (his dad is a pastor at Real Life Ministries) and was accepted right away. I had known my friends in Minnesota my whole life, but when I showed up at youth group, one guy introduced me to everybody else and the other kids were excited for me to be there.”

Ubert started a small landscaping business during the summer after his freshman year. It started with yardwork, but he has also done fencework and painting.

“I’m sort of a jack-of-all-trades,” he said. “I love working outside and by myself. When I get older, I definitely want to be working for myself. I know that it’s harder to manage your own business, but it’s also more rewarding.”

Ubert’s counselor at Genesis Prep, Paula Thurston, described him as “fascinating.”

“Ben is very quiet, so he is often overlooked,” she said. “He has thrived since he moved here. He is very business savvy and is an entrepreneur with his own business.”

“I think that my personality differs from most kids my age,” Ubert said. “Lots of kids aren’t very motivated or care very much, but I hope that I have a good character and I always try to be kind.”