PORT CHARLOTTE — The Fellowship of Christian Athletes has had a very busy summer training local kids to be better athletes and Christians.
This past week, the FCA was at Aileron Golf Course in Port Charlotte for a golf clinic to help boys work on their short game, long game, and in life.
Tom Parker, area director at FCA, said kids from Florida and throughout the country came out for five days to compete and learn more about their faith. Their last day was Thursday.
“The kids have learned how to strike the ball, change weight and things to take their game to the next level,” Parker said. “We had one who was newer at the game who couldn’t hit the ball more than 30 feet, but who is now hitting the ball 150 yards.”
For five days, the kids would spend the morning at Aileron for training, with help from staff and club professionals. They then departed for other courses such as Riverwood and Lemon Bay to compete in match play, stroke play, foursomes and contests like longest drive and closest to the hole.
Parker said the players have shown they will be forces to contend with once the golf season begins in the fall. Two players shot 74 on Wednesday, with several others shooting under 80.
Campers came from all over. Karl Meredith, 15, from Frederick Md., said he had a coach who worked with him on his downswing to improve on his approaches. He scored a 78 on Wednesday.
Meredith also learned a lot about his faith and wants to take what he learned to teach others about the work of God.
“Every night we would get together with our huddle leaders and get questions about faith that they can have discussions about. A lot of guys showed me a side that I hadn’t seen,” Meredith said. “Tom showed us how he tried to get the best of both God and Satan. He said to look at God and not to look back at temptation. It helped me grow my relationship with God.”
Zack Parker, Tom’s son, is from Port Charlotte and will golf at Pine View School this fall. He said he liked the course and the format, which encouraged smaller groups who formed deeper bonds.
“I learned a lot about weight shifts with the driver and it helped me get the second-best score of my life (a 74, winning the playoff),” Parker said. “After breakfast, having 10 to 15 minutes to talk about God before going on the range is a great way to start the day.”
Huddle-group leaders played a big role in the camp. Luke Shamblin, a recent college grad from Charleston, S.C., said being in FCA has brought him out of some dark places in his life.
“We played golf every day, but more importantly, we’ve been able to build a strong relationship with the kids,” Shamblin said. “The huddle times at night and the morning devotions have been the most important part of the camp. We wanted them to strengthen the perspective they have in their faith.”
The FCA held a coach’s camp, wrestling camp (in which 75 kids locally took part), cheer camp and this camp so far this summer.
FCA has a lot going on in the coming weeks. Next week, Charlotte football will go to Stetson University for a clinic. The following week, Port Charlotte football will attend a camp in Naples.
A Night of Champions is coming up in August at Murdock Baptist Church, with a guest speaker to be determined. A golf tournament will happen in October, tentatively at Lemon Bay Golf Course.
The FCA gala will happen at the end of October at the Charlotte Harbor Event Center, with several speakers expected for that.
Parker said FCA is looking for staff, both men and women, as well as funding, as they have increased their budget.
For more information or to express interest, call Parker at (941) 456-5433 or email him at tparker@fca.org.