Billy Graham says he would have been born on the wrong side of the tracks in Naenae “but my mates had already stolen them.” Billy's new book, written with Phil Gifford, will give parents and people organising youth groups, a practical, detailed blueprint to turn around the lives of boys struggling with life. Based on lessons learned the hard way it will reveal the secrets behind one of the most remarkable success stories in New Zealand youth work, the Naenae Boxing Academy. A national boxing champion, and then a globally recognised motivational speaker, winning a standing ovation from an audience of 5000 people at the Million Dollar Roundtable convention in Atlanta, Billy came home to Naenae five years ago to set up the academy. Awards have flowed, local police say youth crime is down 30%, and a detailed Massey University study confirmed the academy's amazing ability to help troubled boys become good young men. Minister of Youth Affairs Paula Bennett came for a brief visit, and left in tears of astonishment three hours later. Billy's new book will tell, with passion and humour, how to work the same miracles in your home or community. Billy Graham won the ‘Local Hero’ section of the 2011 New Zealander of the Year awards.

Author Biography

Phil Gifford is an award-winning broadcaster and journalist. The author of 14 books, 10 of them biographies, that in total have sold over 205,000 copies, he was the first person to be twice chosen as the New Zealand Sports Journalist of the Year. From 1981 he worked in breakfast radio for 23 years, hosting No.1 shows at Radio Hauraki, 91ZM and More FM in Christchurch. In that time he won 12 New Zealand and two Australasian radio awards. He has reported on one Olympic and three Commonwealth Games, on every Rugby World Cup since 1987, covered every rugby test in New Zealand since 1977, and reported on rugby in Great Britain, France, South Africa, Argentina, Ireland and Samoa. He created in print a satirical rugby character, Loosehead Len, a column that ran for 32 years from 1973, and spawned six comedy books that sold in total 65,000 copies. He now hosts the rugby show “Up Front” on Radio Sport every Saturday, writes a weekly column in the Sunday Star-Times, and airs sports comments on NewstalkZB. Phil, who was a writer for the Billy T James show in the 1980s, has written a script with Ian Mune for a Billy T movie that will be released this year.