Rotarian Matt Edgemon introduced program speaker, Jeff Shills, Director of Idols Aside Ministries.
IAM was founded in 2009 as a Christ-centered ministry whose Sons Without Fathers program offers outdoor and hunting retreats for at-risk and fatherless youth. Their Central Florida lodge was completed in 2014, and the program has since spread to a second location in Kentucky.
According to Shills, the outdoors events were implemented as part of IAM's operations since Day 1 as tools to connect fatherless youth with God. From September to May, IAM hosts two or three overnight events per month, averaging four youths per event. They also hold day hunting and fishing retreats off the property. Overall, this totals about 30 events per year serving more than 125 youth.
IAM provides scholarships for every youth to participate in these events at no cost to the mother or guardian. In the early fall, the group organizes a fundraising event to solicit sponsors and partners for the general budget and to provide funding for scholarships, youth-sized camouflage gear and camp supplies.
Jeff told the Club that fatherless homes are a large-scale problem with the US, and the ripple effects of this family deterioration have unmeasured costs to society. IAM is working, one family at a time, to repair the broken and break the cycle.
Jeff is looking to expand their reach into Plant City, and would welcome mentors, volunteers, and kids who could benefit from this ministry.
Thank you, Jeff, for your program, and for your service to this worthy cause.
