The tradition of St. Louis-area professional wrestling – a long and honored one – made a stop in Glen Carbon Saturday night as Dynamo Pro Wrestling held a benefit card at The Sports Academy before an enthusiastic crowd.
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The card was a benefit for Share, a St. Charles, Mo.-based organization that provides support for those who have lost infants during pregnancy or in the initial stages of life. The organization has 75 chapters across the country, including a chapter based as Anderson Hospital in Maryville.
“It was a long day,” said. Rob Mangrum, Dynamo's Media Director, following the card, “but seeing how great the crowd was and knowing how good of a cause Share is, it was worth it.”
Mangrum and his wife lost twin girls during her pregnancy last fall, and Mangrum, who has been in the professional wrestling business for more than 20 years, admitted it was difficult following their loss. “Talking about what happened is a difficult thing,” Mangrum said, “Having been a wrestler and a referee, it's not an easy thing. But seeing the crowd we had tonight and having the support of family and friends has been tremendous.
“Seeing the reaction and the turnout tonight and what Share has done, it's a great feeling.”
Travis Cook, the promotion's most prominent manager and a well-known personality in St. Louis-area wrestling circles, was also glad lend his hand to Saturday's card. “Kind of like Jerry Lewis and what he did for the Muscular Theosophy Association, I'm glad to lend my celebrity to help groups like Share,” Cook – who's Travis Cook Organization controls Dynamo's championship belts – said. “It something we all do here, give back to the community.”
Cook's championship wrestlers – tag-team champions The Black Hand Warriors (Michael Magnuson and Dave DeLorean) and heavyweight champion “Dirdey” Jake Dirden – successfully defended their belts, the Warriors defeating The Bite Club (Rocket Mapache and Jackal) and Dirden dispatching “The Irish Luchador” Billy McNeil in the Main Event. “I'm very happy about that,” Cook said. “It was a successful night; we've still got the belts.”
Other matches saw The Professionals (Shawn Santel and Mauler McDarby) defeat C.J. Berry and The Snitch in an opening tag-team bout; “Queen of Chaos” Lucy Mendez defeat Rachael Freeman in a women's contest; Brandon Aarons defeated Adrian Surge in a singles contest; Mike Outlaw defeated Cook wrestler Jayden Fenix; “The King of Chaos” Ricky Cruz defeated “Young and Dangerous” Evan Morris as Cruz successfully defended his IWRG Rey Del Ring title belt; and High Level Enterprise (Jack Gamble and Jon Webb) emerged victorious in a four-way battle for Dynamo's No. 1 contender for the tag-team championship over The Bum Rush Brothers (“The Don Mega” Shorty Biggs and OuTtKaSt), he team of “Filipino Warrior” Elvis Aliaga and “Freestyle Phenom” Jay Howard and the team of Keon Option and Justin D'Air.
Sponsors for the card included John Standefer Allstate Insurance Agency; TheBank of Edwardsville; Stand Your Ground Martial Arts; Alignlife Chiropractor of Wood River; Hair Saloon for Men; and Slackers CDs and Games.
More information on Share can be found at their web site, www.nationalshare.org; for information and upcoming events for Dynamo Pro Wrestling, their web site is www.dynamoprowrestling.com.
