Celebrities add dazzle to Pavlik festivities

By Jon Moffett

VIPs offer thoughts on the middleweight champ.

YOUNGSTOWN — Just as Bruce Zoldan and his VIPs began to leave Overture restaurant, snow began to fall.

Welcome to Youngstown in February.

Zoldan, chief executive officer of B.J. Alan Co., had a private party at the downtown restaurant for his guests. Guests included current NFL stars as well as local and statewide icons.

“We have guests tonight in town that are used to going down to Miami Beach or Tampa for a Super Bowl or some large city to celebrate a large sporting event, and here we have these people in Youngstown, Ohio,” Zoldan said. ‘And they’re impressed with the way the city looks, and the way the city has come out for Kelly Pavlik. I think, for our community, it’s something to build upon. I’m very proud of it.”

Zoldan added that having an icon like Pavlik represent his home city is a special feeling.

“I grew up in Youngstown. I went to Youngstown State University, and I started my business selling out of the trunk of my car. And that is what Youngstown is all about. It’s starting with nothing and building. That’s the story of Kelly Pavlik and that’s the story of Youngstown,” Zoldan added.

Jared Zwick, former YSU quarterback, was at the party. Zwick played for the Penguins under former head coach and current Ohio State coach Jim Tressel from 1996-2000. He said Kelly gives the Mahoning Valley a sense of pride.

“This city has been through a lot of ups and downs over the past several decades with the decline in the steel mills and industries like that. This is something that is unprecedented. Kelly Pavlik has just been a great ambassador to the city.”

Troy Smith, a Cleveland native, Heisman Trophy winner from OSU, and current Baltimore Ravens quarterback, praised Pavlik for his toughness.

“I’m a huge fan of what Kelly Pavlik has going on; I totally look up to Kelly,” Smith said. “When you see some of the grit and determination that he shows in his fights, I think it justifies and shows what being from Ohio is all about. I’m pretty sure there is somebody else in the sports world that he looks up to, and I’m happy to say I look up to him a little bit.”

Also on hand at the party were a pair of offensive linemen for the Cleveland Browns. Ryan Tucker, who plays tackle, and Hank Fraley, who plays center, spoke about Pavlik’s importance to the area.

“It’s outstanding and it says a lot about [Pavlik] for getting [the fight] here,” Tucker said. “It’s a city’s once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to designate itself and host something like this.”

Fraley went beyond the area and said Pavlik’s impact is statewide.

“Youngstown is just a hard-nosed, blue-collar town that I’ve always heard about. I think [Pavlik] means a lot more than I probably can even say. He has a lot of heart. The effort he puts in and the way he fights means a lot to not only Youngstown, but all of Ohio. It shows that there is hope for everybody and inspiration for everybody.”

Former OSU quarterback and current ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit, who lives in Columbus, said the city felt a lot like home.

“It’s awesome. I love coming to this part of the state. It’s unlike anywhere else. People are great, and there is such a family and community feel around here. When you’re not from here you feel it really, really fast.”

jmoffett@vindy.com