At 130kg and heading for gang life, Devlin Rodgers was given an ultimatum by his partner – join the Mongrel Mob and never see his unborn son, or man up and become a real dad.
“My partner could see I wasn’t in a good space,” Rodgers, 28 told the Herald.
“At that time the gang life looked very attractive. Money, fast cars, brotherhood. I was heading to the gangs because I had no where else to go, but the ultimatum snapped me out of my heavy drinking and angry behaviour.”
That was two years ago and last week Rodgers – who dropped 55kg over that time period – entered and won his first bodybuilding competition at Peak Vision, Havelock North, near Napier.
Weighing in at 72kg, he scooped the Men’s Section, Best Pose and was crowned the Overall Bodybuilding champion. He beat a few seasoned bodybuilders and the win gained him entry to the Pan Pacific Bodybuilding competition in Auckland later this year. Now his gym hobby has become his obsession.
“The thing I’d like to stress to people is find yourself something that you love because it will keep you out of trouble,” Rodgers said.
“I was heading to the gangs before I met my son’s mum. We had a split and I went really hard on the booze and was mad at the world and close to jumping on board with the Mob.
“Even though we had split, she contacted me and said I’m pregnant and we are having a kid.
“That’s when she put the ultimatum to me, ‘you can either join the gang and never know your son or you can be an active dad and not join the gang’.”
Rodgers said it was an easy choice.
“I wanted to be in my son’s life, because I don’t know my who my biological father is. I don’t know his name and I have carried that hurt with me all my life I couldn’t do that to my son,” Rodgers said.
“All the boys I went to school with are patched members, and I don’t hold that against them as a lot of them were born to be patched members and never had a chance to not join from the gang from the get go.”
Though he is no longer with Koby’s mum, he is a very big part of his son’s life.
Born in Maraenui, Napier, Rodgers said he was bullied as a kid and got into trouble as a teenager.
“When I was 15 I got into trouble with the law. It still haunts me and I don’t like thinking about, it but I was falsely accused of a crime I didn’t do,” he said.
“I became an angry fella and ended up remanded in youth justice in Palmerston North.
“In remand, I changed my behaviour and was allowed home. After two days of a court hearing, I was found not guilty.”
He said that trauma still haunts him.
“That trauma has travelled with me ever since and a reason why I have trouble being affectionate or close to people,” Rodgers said.
“But that changed when I had my son, because some wrong had been done to me, doesn’t mean he (Koby) should miss out on affection from his dad, but I still find having relationships with people quite hard.
“I don’t have a girlfriend and haven’t since my son’s mum and me split up.”
Rodgers, who has whakapapa to Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngāti Porou, said he has a lot of people to thank for where he is today.
On a benefit because of mental health issues, Rodgers said people have helped him make ends meet – especially gearing up for the competition last week, through food parcels and financial support.
Twenty-six days before last Saturday’s competition, Rodgers started a tight calorie campaign.
“I was needing to eat 240g protein, 150g carbs and 40g of fat leading up to the show to build muscle,” he said.
“I managed that through chicken and rice because that’s the cheapest, but on a benefit it was hard and people would drop food off to help me.”
His weight went from 81kgs to 72 for the event.
“Bodybuilding is just my example of some success, it can come in many forms,” he said.
“For example, let’s say someone who struggles with alcohol or drugs manages to get sober – to me that’s as big as winning a bodybuilding competition because once again I can relate to that.
“The main thing that comes to me from this is that without love and passion, determination and sacrifice there is no success.
“The amount of times I failed, I bled, I cried – (it) all came to fruition, all meant something because I never gave up and all I want is for our people to know that it doesn’t matter how many times you’re knocked down by life, you get back up because there will be a day where the sun will shine for you.
“I spent years believing I wouldn’t ever amount to anything, my sun is starting to shine for me.
“To some people the gym is just a place people go to lift weights or run on a treadmill – to me the gym is the place that saved my life.”
Joseph Los’e is an award winning journalist and joined NZME in 2022 as Kaupapa Māori Editor. Los’e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News newspaper covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and prior to joining NZME worked for urban Māori organisation Whānau Waipareira.
Leaders call for community-driven health campaigns to address bowel cancer inequities.