Hawkins returns home to Coas
Date: 28-07-2011
Posted by: Anabolic Info TeamUnited States |
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Charles Hawkins hasn’t participated in bodybuilding competition since Hurricane Katrina.
The Waveland native will compete in the second annual NPC Power Shack Classic on Saturday at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum.
When Katrina destroyed Waveland, Hawkins relocated to Richland, Calif., which is 20 minutes from Oakland. The minister and personal fitness trainer hadn’t competed in six years. He’s 5-foot-8 and weighs 208 pounds.
“My wife, child and I stayed at Stennis Space Center after the hurricane,” Hawkins said. “Our family lost everything. They were moving people to Tennessee and Texas. I told them we didn’t want to go a place where we didn’t know anyone. We went to California because my mother-in-law lived there.”
Hawkins, 46, has built an impressive résumé in powerlifting. Titles he’s won include the teen Gulf Coast Bodybuilding championship, five-time Mr. Mississippi Bodybuilding championship and the 2004 Team Universe Light heavyweight bodybuilding championship.
“I’m starting over in bodybuilding where it first began for me,” Hawkins said. “There’s nothing like the old hometown. I still have family and friends who live in the area. My mother, May Hawkins, lives in Waveland. I feel great to be back home.”
Christiana Saucier, who works at Power Shack in Biloxi, expects a solid turnout.
“We had a great showing last year,” Saucier said. “This will be something we’ll continue to do.”
