by Erin Odom

Davidson resident Melissa Gibbs has one message for Lake Norman’s youth: Jesus goes with you everywhere.

Gibbs, the mother of four sons, and a group of other local parents and youth leaders are hoping that message will resonate with area teenagers through the recently formed Fellowship of Christian Athletes of Lake Norman.

“I want my boys to know that Jesus is more than just for Sunday morning,” she said.

Davidson resident Jay Poag, who played football for Davidson College in the 1980s and has coached college and youth sports for more than 18 years, formed the group in January.

“It was God’s idea,” he said. “I was just the person that he started hitting in the back of the head with tennis balls.”

Poag’s vision for the organization is to give young athletes of the community a way to stay connected while growing their Christian faith. The group is part of the international Fellowship of Christian Athletes that has members around the globe.

“We, as a ministry, get to reach people in a competitive mindset – coaches and athletes – and minister to their hearts,” said Dan Britton, senior vice president of international Ministry Programs. “And we’re going to share something even greater than sports.”

Since starting, the group has held monthly “workouts,” he said, where students worked on service projects like feeding the homeless at the Charlotte Rescue Mission and a field day for after-school children at the Ada Jenkins Center in Davidson.

Poag is excited about a rally the group is hosting on Monday, June 20, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Mt. Zion United Methodist Church in Cornelius. The carnival-type event will feature games, live music, food and guest speaker Stephen Curry, a former Davidson basketball standout and now point guard with the Golden State Warriors.

Fellowship of Christian Athletes of Lake Norman is open to any student in sixth grade or above, although the vast majority of participants are currently in middle school. Students from schools in Cornelius, Davidson, Denver, Huntersville and Mooresville are welcome to attend the rally, Poag said.

For more information contact Poag at 704-363-9711 or jaypoag@bellsouth.net.