Tired of bad news and depressing stories about nasty, sleazy people?
Try this:
Once upon a time, there was a boy named Jake Steinfeld. Growing up on Long Island, he was chubby and shy — so shy he stuttered. When he was 13, his dad bought him barbells. Jake began lifting, muscles began growing, and when he looked in the mirror, he saw a person to be proud of.
He hatched a dream: to become Mr. America. So, at age 19, he moved to California. But top bodybuilders were taking steroids; he didn’t have a chance. So he became a personal trainer. At first, the phone hardly rang. But by dint of hustle and charm, he became “trainer to the stars,” buffing the bods of Harrison Ford, Bette Midler, Priscilla Presley and Steven Spielberg.
Today, Jake is a fitness mogul. His company, Body by Jake Enterprises Inc., sells books, magazines, videotapes, audiotapes and exercise equipment. His various ventures have made millions.
“I’ve been very blessed,” Steinfeld said. “But it’s one thing to make deals and make a lot of money. Giving kids an opportunity to succeed in their lives, that’s what it’s all about.”
To share the blessings of his success, Steinfeld created the Don’t Quit! Foundation. The goal: to spread the confidence-boosting benefits of fitness to America’s teens by setting up fitness centers in inner-city middle schools and high schools.
Steinfeld was in Philadelphia recently to open a fitness center at Jay Cooke Middle School. It was the 12th nationally, Philly’s first. At a ceremony in the auditorium, Cooke students, wearing Body by Jake T-shirts, were giddy with anticipation. When Steinfeld rose to speak, they gave him a rousing ovation.
“Fitness is not only about building your body but a strong mind as well,” exhorted Steinfeld, who has a booming, kettle-drum voice. “Don’t quit and don’t be afraid to fail. Remember, success is failure turned inside out!”
After the ribbon-cutting, Cooke kids eagerly mobbed their gorgeous new fitness center. Built in a former classroom, it boasts a cushioned floor, bright lighting, and freshly painted walls adorned with mirrors and colorful murals by student artists.
The equipment — treadmills, exercise bikes, and a full array of weight-stack and resistance machines — is not hand-me-down junk but brand-new, top-shelf, state-of-the-art stuff from Cybex.
The kids were impressed.
Norman Richardson, 12, of Olney: “It’s bangin’ “
Alisa Griffin, 12, of Logan: “It’s the bomb.”
Alicia Keith, 12, of Logan: “It’s off the hook.”
Steinfeld paraded through the merry chaos like a god, surrounded by admiring seventh-graders. He stopped to show kids how the machines work, to tutor them in technique, to cheer them through sets of push-ups. “Were you really a fat kid?” one awed boy inquired.
His incredulity was understandable. Steinfeld, 41, is a massive V, with a 58-inch chest and 33-inch waist. His physique is not just gingerbread; he’s benched 465. The muscles are complemented by a buoyant personality and Hollywood charisma.
“About 80 percent of schools have no daily phys-ed classes,” Steinfeld lamented. A fifth of teens are obese and more than three-quarters spend their leisure time sitting and watching TV or playing video games. “Especially in the inner city, a lot of kids don’t have the opportunity to go to a gym.”
He’s encouraged by the feedback from other Don’t Quit! fitness centers, in L.A., D.C., New York, Seattle, Oakland, and Flint, Mich. Morale and attendance have risen, students and teachers are bonding, forming friendships outside class.
“We challenge teachers to come in and work out instead of sitting in the teachers’ lounge,” Steinfeld said.
Not by chance did the center land at Cooke. Principal Joann Caplan and her staff went after it with the ferocity of a pit bull. Beaming and proud, Caplan outlined plans for keeping the center open before and after school, weaving cardio and resistance training into the phys-ed curriculum, launching a lifting club.
Hers was not the only smiling face. The center is dedicated to Frank Marshall, a movie producer on the Don’t Quit! Foundation board. His relationship with Steinfeld goes way back. Marshall produced “Raiders of the Lost Ark”; Steinfeld trained its star, a fellow named Ford.
Marshall also produced “Olympic Glory,” a large-format movie about the Nagano Games made and distributed by MegaSystems Inc., of Wayne, Pa. Company chief is Hilary Grinker, 34, live-in squeeze of Pete Musser, Safeguard Scientific honcho. Marshall got to know the couple when he spent six months here as producer of “The Sixth Sense.” He shared his excitement about Don’t Quit!, and Grinker/Musser donated $50,000 for the center at Cooke.
“I believe in the idea of a sound mind and sound body,” said Marshall, 53, a marathon runner who lives in California. “This is a perfect way to give back to Philadelphia, a city I’m very fond of.”
With some philanthropies, half the money gets soaked up by administration or seems to vaporize. Not so with Don’t Quit! “You can see the enthusiasm of the kids and know it’s going to make a difference in their lives,” said Musser, who lifts weights, plays paddle tennis, and looks much younger than his 73 years.
“If it inspires just one or two kids, maybe they’ll be less likely to smoke a cigarette, do drugs, join a gang or drop out of school,” Steinfeld said. “It might turn them around. That’s the shot I’m taking.”
“This is a gift not only to the kids but the staff and community,” said Margie Wuestner, the school district’s physical-education director. “It’s a gift of life.”
