_JPG.jpg)
OUR STORY
how surge began
Surge was created in 2015 because the kind of gym I was looking for didn’t exist.
​
After spending years in training environments that felt unwelcoming or impersonal, I wanted to build something different: a place where people of all experience levels felt supported without having to prove they belonged.
​
What started as one person’s vision has grown into a family-run gym and a community built around strength, respect, and progress.
​
That belief still shapes Surge today: give people the space, support, and opportunity to become stronger in whatever way that means for them.
​
Because strength isn’t something you build alone.
​
It’s something we build together.
OUR GROWTH
BUILT BY COMMUNITY
Surge started small. In 2016, we opened the doors to our first 2,500-square-foot space with a simple goal: create a better place for people to train.
​
As the community grew, so did the gym. In 2018, we expanded to 5,000 square feet. By 2020, Surge had grown again into the roughly 12,000-square-foot facility we call home today.
​
Each move gave us room for more equipment, more ways to train, and more people to become part of what we were building.
​
The space kept getting bigger. The reason behind it stayed the same.
OUR IMPACT
a decade of impact
Growth at Surge has never just been about the size of the gym. Over the past decade, this community has created opportunities to compete, give back, support athletes, and help people discover what they’re capable of.
10+ Years
​Building strength and community in Chicagoland.
50+ events hosted
Powerlifting, strongman, boxing, and charity events ranging from local competitions to internationally attended meets.
$30,000+ GIVEN BACK
Supporting local charities, community causes, and people who need it most.
$50,000+ IN ATHLETE SUPPORT
Prize money, scholarships, and opportunities created for athletes.
From someone walking into a gym for the first time to athletes setting records on the competition platform, the accomplishments we’re proudest of are the ones that started with someone believing they could become stronger.
BEYOND THE GYM
THE STORY BEHIND THE STRENGTH
Surge has always been personal to me.
​
The same years that shaped this gym also shaped me in ways that weren’t always visible from the outside.
Training, struggle, resilience, and community have all influenced how I think about strength and what I want Surge to represent.
​
In this documentary, I share more of that story and the experiences that helped shape the person, coach, and business owner I’ve become.
