INDIANAPOLIS — Learning life lessons and staying out of trouble are what a local camp hopes its 65 campers will accomplish this summer.
Young Men Inc., Youth Ministries, works to help boys become young men.
It's also building family relationships.
Parents and grandparents tell WRTV that Young Men Inc. has truly made a difference in their youngsters' lives. They've seen growth, maturity and discipline.
"The camp has really changed him in the last four years. He has changed his attitude. He has changed the way he responds to me. I see more effort and chores, and his behavior in school, his academics. I see everything change in him," said mother Nina Smith. "It's a relief, a real big relief."
Nina Smith said Young Men Inc. is more than a summer camp. It's life-changing for her son, Xavier Brown.
"I have problems that I have and I'm fixing them now, and this camp helps me," said Brown.
The camp is run by Revered Malachi Walker and peers at Great Commission Church of God.
"Reverend Malachi has changed a lot of these boys' lives," Smith said. "I've seen and I can attest to it,"
This year, 65 young men aged 8 to 16 enrolled in the program will learn about gun violence, street violence, health, fitness, manners, respect and more.
"That's been good for us because they're teaching us how to not play with guns because they're not good to play with, and to not be on these streets like other people are, and it's not safe," said Brown.
Brown said he loves the camp.
"We'll have God in our life all the time. They let us make friends. They let us do a lot of stuff but we do work hard," said Brown.
The structure of the program caught the eye of community member Kim Kennedy.
"All that knowledge that has been instilled in them may save their lives or save someone else's life. Also, they can verbalize what they have learned for safety because there's too much of it [violence]. Every day you turn on the TV, you hear about a 5-year-old, a 2-year-old, you know, even down to the little itty bitty children," said Kennedy.
She encourages parents to look into it.
"They offer a lot for $85, you know. I'm not knocking any other camps, but they offer a whole lot," she said. "Two days a week, and everything that they give them and instill in them. They provide their uniforms, they give them a backpack with a journal, so they can have their thoughts, mental health counseling, they have the counselors there to help them. They bracket them in an age group. They even pick them up from their homes and take them back home," she said.
The camp runs through July. On June 12, the IMPD Police Chief, Deputy Chief and Marion County Prosecutor will visit the campers to teach them about the impact of gun violence and how possessing guns is the number one charge the prosecutor's office is filing among young people.
