Ball Team Cares
We once again asked our team to recommend a charity for Ball Team to support in 2018. Many entries were received in support of well-deserved organizations, but one stood out to this year’s selection committee.
Freedom for Youth Ministries, founded in Des Moines in 2003, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit on a mission to reach Iowa’s youth. Their role is to unite and empower Christian communities to reach young people from kindergarten through 22-years-old with programs that help them stay in school, learn life skills, prepare for the workplace, and develop healthy relationships. Their programs include tutoring, after-school activities, meals, and supportive employment training
In May 2006, the ministry acquired a six-acre property in inner-city Des Moines. The campus underwent major renovations and, in 2007, they launched elementary, middle, and high school programs. The campus now includes buildings for woodworking, employment training welding, auto mechanics, art, culinary training, computers, worship, and large group activities.
In 2009, Freedom built and opened a 5,000-square foot transitional home for young women in addition to starting a statewide outreach ministry to help towns across Iowa reach youth with gospel-centered programs. In December 2016 the residential program of Freedom for Youth Ministries closed. Now there are Freedom Centers in Mitchellville (2010), Stuart (2012), Perry (2013), Winterset (2015), Knoxville (2016), Huxley (2016), and Carlisle/Hartford (2017). We also have church-sponsored sites in the Des Moines Metro. These areas include Johnston (2014), Downtown Des Moines (2015), East Des Moines (2015), and the Drake Park Neighborhood (2017).
In 2010, the ministry founded as an enterprise, Freedom Blend Coffee. It is a coffee business that empowers high-school youth and young adults through Christ-centered employment training. In 2014, Freedom for Youth purchased a car wash located on the west end of the Des Moines campus and began renovating the structure into a retail coffee house projected to open in summer 2017. Freedom Construction Services was founded in 2015 as an employment training enterprise.
In 2016, Freedom received funding to purchase Scores Bar, next to the coffee shop. They got straight to work on a design plan and have secured approval from the city to bulldoze the bar down and start construction on a Children’s Center in 2018.
In 2017, Freedom acquired the Bike World Warehouse west of the Hickman campus. With this building they have plans to expand their employment training programs geared toward teaching young people skills in the trades.
In the summer of 2017, a new program called Freedom Quest was born. This traveling ministry visits rural communities during the summer to help pave the way to planting new Freedom Centers across Iowa.
Today, more than 600 youth participate in programs each week at Freedom Centers across the state. Young people are discovering their God-given talents and planning their future. Some graduates are attending a 4-year college or trade school, or starting careers in health care, manufacturing, construction, and ministry.