Power League Wrestling
Power League Wrestling (PLW) is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. It was founded in Swansea, Massachusetts by Bob Evans and Mark Amaral in 1991, and later taken over by Amaral, Carlos Arenas, Paul Lauzon, and Tommy Degnan. It is the first and longest running "indy" promotion in the state of Rhode Island and one of the few successful groups outside the Greater Boston Area.
Power League Wrestling
In the fall of 1994, PLW became involved in local fundraisers by holding wrestling shows for charity. One of their first events was a benefit show for St. Pius V Church in Providence, Rhode Island on November 13, 1994. Punisher defeated Sub-Zero, substituting for injured champion Scott Z., to win PLW Heavyweight Championship at the event. By 1995, PLW was officially running monthly shows as a not-for-profit organization. Their shows, modeled after the 1980s wrestling boom, used "family friendly" entertainment to raise money for various charity organizations in Southern New England. Although independent promotions are often involved in local fundraisers, neither the PLW promoters or wrestlers performed for money and all of the proceeds, largely from ticket sales, went to the sponsoring charity. Its Power-Fest and Power House Brawl supercards that year went to help the Cranston Martial Arts Studio in Cranston, Rhode Island and St. Pius V Church in Providence, respectively. By this time, thanks in part to Bob Evans and Paul Lauzon, PLW had made contacts with other independent wrestlers from New England allowing a number of regional stars to appear on a semi-regular basis. The promotion also served as an environment where younger wrestlers could learn their craft attracting wrestlers from as far away as New York, New Jersey, and Ontario, Canada. PLW's monthly fundraisers were typically held at the Boys & Girls Club, YMCA, and other local community centers with Fall River, Massachusetts, Sturbridge, Massachusetts, Newport, Rhode Island, and Pawtucket, Rhode Island being its biggest towns.