At 6’2”, Anthony White, stage name Tony Atlas, is not a small man -- and neither are his ideas.

White, a World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., Hall of Famer, and former Mr. USA bodybuilding champion, makes time to mentor youths in communities around the nation, and participates in wrestling shows for entertainment and benefits. This Saturday, he will be part of a Top Rope Productions wrestling show at the Wareham Middle School, as part of a benefit for the Wareham Boys & Girls Traveling Basketball Team.

White said he is a great believer in self-responsibility, and hopes to pass this value on to children, regardless of whether he takes a sit-down mentor role or a place in the ring. He said he learned this value from his mother, and the local Police Athletic Program (PAL) where he grew up in Roanoke, Virginia.

White said a police officer took him to the program, after White kept getting into fights and other kinds of trouble.

“He took me down to the [boxing] ring, and told me to get in the ring [with another officer],” White said. “I was bigger than him, but I couldn’t hit him.”

Most success does not come overnight, but White said his did, due to the nature of the sport, with his 1974 wrestling debut at 20 years old. But he also said the reason he was not simply a flash in the pan is because he was prepared for the success. In the long term, White said, young people must prepare themselves for greatness, and take responsibility for their failures.

“My success in life I owe to thousands of people. My failures in life, I owe to one person -- me,” White said. “No matter what anyone says, you always get the last decision.”

White also said it is important for children to learn about bullying, which he said is more prevalent now than it was when he was young, due to technology -- “you can bully people now over the computer” -- and the power of education, coupled with self-love.

“If you don’t want that education, it means you don’t want the best for yourself,” White said. “The reason most kids get in trouble is because they don’t love themselves as much as they should.”

White and 17 other professional wrestlers will be appearing Saturday, May 9, at 7 p.m. at the Wareham Middle School. For questions, contact Roger Chouinard at 508-295-1366. To purchase tickets, stop by Sinners & Saints Tattoo on Depot Street.