Gabe Lira, left, with his father Ben
Gabe Lira, a former boxer and trainer from Whittier, died Wednesday following a 10-month battle with a fungal brain infection. Lira, just 54, succumbed after his heart gave out at Pomona Valley Hospital.
Lira helped his father, longtime area trainer Ben Lira, train boxers out of the Teamsters Youth Boxing Club in South El Monte. Gabe Lira was also a parks and recreation worker and his father learned during the ordeal that made him more susceptible to a fungal brain infection by being around eucalyptus as well as bird and pigeon droppings.
Gabe Lira, who attended Pioneer High in Whittier, boxed professionally from 1982-86. He went 7-3-1 with four knockouts as a featherweight and super featherweight.
Details on his services are pending.