“A need or problem encourages creative efforts to meet the need or solve the problem.”
Plato, “Republic”
The Family and Youth Research and Education (FYRE) Foundation, Inc. was granted its federal 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization status in April 2022 from the IRS. At the Florida State level, the FYRE Foundation was first incorporated in September 2018 as a youth non-profit corporation.
FYRE’s mission today exists to fortify families, break the cycle of broken homes, build servant leaders, and help abused and neglected children. When FYRE started in 2018, it was purely to charter Boy Scouts of America (BSA) units. Today, FYRE is so much more. The organization has since expanded, partners with government agencies, Florida’s Community-Based Care program non-profits, and even the local Chambers of Commerce.
Born out of necessity, the FYRE Foundation began with a small group of parents serving the local Riverview, FL community in the American Legion’s chartered BSA program in 2012, Cub Scout Pack 606. The BSA units were transient and meeting in elementary school cafeterias, but having fun and limited to only serving families with boys. The core group of families promoted up from Cub Scouts to a start BSA Troop 1481 and the number of families grew. Pack 606 converted to Pack 1481 under the American Legion and Troop 1482. When BSA changed their membership policy to allow girls to join in 2017, the core group of families left their BSA franchises/charters under the American Legion and created their own family-focused non-profit corporation and started an all-girl Troop 483. The original corporation was called “Friends of Riverview Scouting, Inc. (FORS)”. Under FORS were three newly chartered BSA units; Cub Scout Pack 481, Scouts BSA Troop 482 (Boy), and Scouts BSA Troop 483 (Girl).
FORS was created specifically to charter the Scouting units. Then the volunteers recognized they wanted to do something bigger and better to make a difference in the community. They needed to be broader than just youth Scouting. They changed their name to the Family and Youth Leadership Foundation, Inc. (FYLF) to signify the focus on families and leadership skills being taught at all levels. However, the acronym was not the wisest choice for obvious reasons. The all-volunteer group demonstrated they were life-long-learners with a drive for the mission, not the money. The volunteers reconvened and chose “Family and Youth Resources and Education (FYRE) Foundation”. This name highlighted that the future charity would be there with tools and tangible assistance to help families and youth as well as teaching them in the way they should go. In fall of 2021, the board filed for its official IRS 501(c)(3) charitable organization status under the name of Family and Youth Research and Education (FYRE) Foundation this time swapping “Research” for “Resources”. They name still implies assistance, but also communicates FYRE exists to find new and novel methods to help those in need.
FYRE programs certified adults and youth in American Red Cross First Aid, CPR and AED, Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) and advanced SCUBA, sent kids to multiple local Florida summer camps, and sent kids to West Virginia and New Mexico to national youth leadership training courses. FYRE held events with other state agencies and non-profits to promote adoption, foster care, guardian ad litems, and advocacy for abused kids. Volunteers of FYRE helped elderly veterans file and receive their Veterans Administration benefits, helped single moms with life skills, budgeting, and family matters, and taught older teenagers home economics skills. FYRE hosted multiple “FYRE-Side Chats” with senior military and federal government officials to help high school families make decisions about their future college and career experiences. FYRE stepped into the gap within the local school districts to assist with Special Needs kids and their programs. FYRE continues to innovate and find new ways to meet family’s practical needs today in order to secure the future of our nation tomorrow.
If you want to partner with FYRE in serving families and youth, please contacted us here.