We had the honor and privilege to host Hoops for Hope International the first week of June for a 4 day basketball camp. Mark Wible, founder of HFH, and 7 volunteers from the Waco, Texas area did an incredible job as more than 70 athletes enjoyed building basketball skills, participating in competitions, and learning their PURPOSE, PLAN, PLACE and PART in this world. The camp was broken up into two session daily. Session 1 featured over 35 of our younger athletes (ages 8-12) while the afternoon sessions welcomed another 35+ athletes ages 13-18. Each camper went home with a free basketball, bracelets from both HFH and FCA, and a certificate. Want to know the best news of all? 38 athletes said "YES" to the free gift of Jesus in their life!

The month of May was highlighted by the opportunity to host our first mission team. Two FCA leaders and 5 college students from the Daytona Beach, Florida area served with us in a variety of ways over the course of the week. They spent time doing some work projects at Free Will Baptist Christian School, ventured out on the Hoop Lab, enjoyed a night of hoops and bbq with some of our HOOPS Academy athletes, helped run a 3x3 basketball tournament and, of course, enjoyed exploring and experiencing the beauty of St. Croix. They were a real blessing to the local ministry, especially our basketball ministry.

The month of June was filled with partnerships and collaborations. A couple of weeks after the Hoops for Hope Camp, we welcomed Zach Arington from Sports Reach. We worked together to put on a 3 day basketball clinic for fifteen 8-12 year olds at the local YWAM base. Skills, competitions, and conversations about identity, purpose and excellence were the focus over the course of the 3 day clinic. Each athlete went home with an FCA bracelet and a New Testament Bible.

Zach and I also had the opportunity to visit another local basketball camp and share about the work we do and the importance of faith on and off the court. It was a great week of ministry and exploring what the FCA/Sport Reach partnership can look like in the future.

The month of May started off with a bang as West Global FCA leaders gathered in Guatemala for a week of leadership development, planning, local ministry, and team building. No matter the language or location, God is at work in and through the FCA ministry around the world. It was such a great week of deepening relationships with leaders from other countries, growing together, and experiencing a new culture.

Emily and Jada have officially wrapped up the 2025-26 school year. For Emily it was her first full year as principal a Free Will Baptist Christian School's Lower Campus (K3-5th). She did an amazing job of learning her new role and leading her staff, students and families. As soon as the final bell rang, she has jumped right into summer work projects on her campus that include, adding AC's, solar, new windows, painting, and major space renovations and modifications. Jada is a part of the summer work crew at the campus and is doing some painting and organizational work.

Brady is in Indiana and currently transitioning jobs. He just accepted a position at FedEx and will begin there in July. Isaac has been doing a variety of work throughout the summer as well as training for and attending football showcases. He will soon be transitioning back to Lead Prep Academy in Michigan for football while taking courses through Cleary University.

Matt has of course been busy with hosting 3 different groups over the past couple of months plus a trip to Guatemala. Oh, and Emily recruited him for a flooring project at her school as well. 

We have enjoyed hosting two college mission program students at our home while they serve at FWBCS. They leave early in July. We also got to spend some time with a group of high schoolers and their leaders that were part of the E-Team Missions program. They served at the church and school doing work projects, running VBS, and helping lead youth rally nights as well as a weekend retreat.

Yes, the last couple of months have been very busy, but we have experienced the blessings of serving along side some amazing groups of people.