MISSION STATEMENT:

The Bainbridge Youth Football League, Inc. will provide a FUN, SUPERVISED, ORGANIZED, and SAFETY ORIENTED atmosphere. This is accomplished by keeping competitions free of any adult ambition and personal glory. The example we set as adults should, and will take precedence over the game itself.

The Bainbridge Youth Football League, Inc. (BYFL) is a 501(c) 3 tax-exempt organization that has an absolute dedication to making a significant, and positive influence on the lives of children by using youth sports as the catalyst through which it can incorporate this mission. The BYFL will provide FREE youth sports programs to children as young as four years of age and regardless of race, gender, religion, or economic status we hope to bring children together in a positive setting so that we may more easily identify the specific needs of each individual child. As we get to know each of the children and begin to gain their trust and respect we can then more easily identify those children who may be considered at risk, who perhaps lack a positive support structure at home and based on our own life experiences we may then be able to act as a guide to help keep them pointed in a positive direction. That’s why it’s so important to begin working with them at an early age.

The BYFL will combine youth sports with a touch of “Walt Disney” in an attempt to inspire the children and spark their imaginations, to open up a world to them that provides more promise than perhaps they would have otherwise had. Through mentoring and working closely with parents, coaches and teachers we hope to fill their childhood with more positive experiences than negative. Kids today face far too much adversity and temptation during their most impressionable years. It is up to us as adults to somehow make a difference.

As the Atlanta Falcons have already done the BYFL will also adopt, as its own, a mission of helping educate both children and parents about the increasing danger of childhood obesity. In a culture of over indulgence in fast food, junk foods, video games, and cable television many of our children have developed very poor eating habits and have also become increasingly less active. According to the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, since 1980, the prevelance of overweight children age 6 to 11 has doubled. If that isn't alarming enough the rate among adolescents age 12 to 19 has tripled. This is a formula for disaster. The BYFL will strongly promote participation in youth sporting activities as well the importance of developing better nutritional awareness.

The BYFL also hopes to address a growing concern we identify as “Spectator Rage”. This is a problem that seems to be getting increasingly worse all across the nation. When parents, coaches, and spectators loose control it can be traumatizing for a child and it sets a very poor example as well. Let’s face it though, even the best of us can get caught up in the moment from time to time, we’re all human. But we must all remember the game is for the children and we should be “appropriately” disappointed for the children during a competition and not react in such a way that it reflects negatively on the program and more importantly in the eyes of a child. The BYFL will maintain a strict code of conduct for all participants in this regard. The BYFL requires fully certified officials on the field of play who have the knowledge, maturity, and temperament needed to maintain control while also assuring that the appropriate levels of self-discipline and fair play are encouraged for both players and coaches. A uniformed law enforcement officer present during competitions will also help promote a safe and positive atmosphere. Having law enforcement present to deal with incidents as they occur rather than arriving after-the-fact will hopefully prevent children from witnessing, or even becoming involved in much more than they otherwise would. The example we set as adults should, and will take precedence over the game itself.

Another goal of the BYFL is to prevent wasteful spending by acquiring unnecessary overhead so that the vast majority of funds provided through grants, sponsorships, and fundraisers can go directly into improving the program for the children and likewise their quality of life. In promoting youth sports we feel it is a wasteful and unnecessary expense to build, buy or lease a facility. Administratively the organization can be run just as effectively from a home-based office. As an example, one of our sponsors currently allows us to store the sports equipment we now have in one of their buildings for little or nothing, and for uniform issue, and player parent meetings we simply rent a facility for a day such as the local community center, which only cost $50 to $100 per day. An average rent or lease for a building to occupy as an office and storage facility would probably range in cost from $600 to $1000 per month or more depending upon location and space needed. For $800, which would be the average cost of one months lease on such a facility, the BYFL can provide as many as 100 kids the opportunity to attend FSU’s “Youth Day” football game at Doke-Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida, which takes place only once a year at a reduced price of $8 per child. Doke-Campbell Stadium is a very large stadium and can seat some 80,000 spectators. Now, I would ask you to just imagine your looking through the eyes of a child. A child you already know from your own community who lives in an impoverished environment, a child you somehow feel certain would not otherwise have the opportunity, as he or she walks into a stadium of that immensity for the first time. Now I ask you to possibly justify a more fulfilling way to spend $8.

Imagine this simple scenario. There’s a little boy sitting at home watching television with his favorite uncle when suddenly the door slams open and Sheriffs Investigators rush in and hand-cuff the young boys uncle, then hauls him away in a patrol car. To you and I the Sheriffs Investigators were justified in the arrest of the young boys uncle who is a wanted criminal. However, through the eyes of a six-year old boy who just witnessed this traumatic event it may be interpreted completely different, as perhaps all the young boy understood is that his favorite uncle was treated badly and taken away by some mean men in uniform. Now I could have probably done a better job in telling this story but I think you get my point. The BYFL would like to involve as many law enforcement personnel in the coaching and mentoring aspect of the program so that perhaps a more positive relationship can be cultivated between our youth and law enforcement personnel as well as our other Emergency Services.

Although this may all seem a bit grandiose, and sound as if we think we have all the answers, nothing could be further from the truth. We are all human, and we are all going to make some mistakes in our efforts along the way I can guarantee you that! However, we must all at least try to make a difference. The school system does a great job with our kids; I’ve seen that first hand as a father of five. However, the difficult task of rearing and educating our children shouldn’t be thrust solely upon their shoulders. Most parents I meet are great and do a much better job of raising their kids than I do my own, I’m no where near perfect, just ask my kids, my teenagers will be more than happy to confirm that, lovingly of course! However, There are those parents who either cant or wont make the effort to become more involved in the rearing and development of their child. This statement is not meant to offend but to raise parental awareness. It’s just an observation that has been reaffirmed by many others. For those kids who’s quality of life is falling short of what a child’s reasonable expectations should be, for what ever the reason, we hope to somehow find a way to make up the difference for them. The BYFL’s solemn promise is that our programs will always be FREE for the children, and that we will always strive to do our very best in becoming a positive influence on each and every child’s life we touch. All we ask of you is your continued support in helping this program to succeed.

William Walden
League Director