Gangs, gratitude & giving DAVE'S MISSION TO BE A BUTTA MAN!

The community hero reveals how he used heartbreak to turn his life around

- Catherine Milford

There are very few days when Dave Letele doesn’t have to relive his own painful, traumatic past. The former professional boxer and rugby league player-turned-motivational speaker and community leader, 44, spent his childhood surrounded by gang members. These days, he spends his life trying to help as many people as he can “break the cycle” of crime, gangs and prison that for a significant percentage of New Zealand society is sadly the norm. And the reason he is so in demand is because he followed that same path – and broke the cycle himself.

When the Weekly catches up with Dave – known as Brown Buttabean, and founder of BBM (Buttabean Motivation), a fitness movement and community support organisation – he’s enjoying some precious time with his family: wife Koreen, 38, and sons Tavita, 18, who studies commerce at AUT University, Fabian, 14, and six-year-old Brook. Eldest son William, 22, isn’t home as he’s just finished his engineering degree.

“These guys – my family – they’re my backbone,” says Dave, who is a semi-finalist in this year’s New Zealander of the Year. “Doing what I do can really get me down. When I come home to my family, I’m not the nicest sometimes. I can be short, angry, frustrated and tired, and I don’t want to talk, which is hard for Koreen to live with. But this is what I do – I’m so driven to help where I can.”