CrossFit West Chester started out in 1,200 square feet with 30 members. Today, the affiliate’s space is 7,600 square feet that accommodates more than 200 members.

“It’s very special to me having seen our gym grow,” says coach Jenny Butler. “It’s a really special thing to me.”

Like most boxes, CrossFit West Chester has its particular touches, including a wall painting that pays homage to Pukie the Clown.

“We’ve been open here in this location for about four months now, and only three people have met the Pukie wall,” says Coach Jimmy Wiser. “So that’s a pretty good thing. We don’t encourage puking, but if it happens, they go up on the board.”

For Steve Wakefoose, a correctional officer, coaching at CrossFit West Chester has offered deeper relationships than those he finds at his day job.

“It sounds like so hippy-ish or whatever, but I get to help people be better in a positive way, and I get to see (the) effects,” he says. “In corrections, jail doesn’t change people. People change themselves. It may or may not work. I never got to see the fruits of (my) labor.”

Video by Mike Donofrio.

For more info on becoming a CrossFit affiliate, click here.