Fellowship of Christian Athletes Director receives Kindness in Action recognition, connecting athlet
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - This week's Kindness in Action highlights a former Sportscaster for 27 years who left the business to guide Pine Belt young athletes.
The Director of Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), Mitch Williams said, "It was an assignment that I really did not ask for."
McNair was a promising athlete in high school when Williams shared his stories of the up-and-coming NFL player.
In 2009 McNair was shot and killed, and his mother asked Williams for a personal favor, to organize her son's funeral.
“July 4th 2009, my life changed, and 7 days later we helped coordinate the funeral of a great man Steve McNair of July 11th, 2009" said Williams.
He added, "...And then 14 months later, I found myself in this position of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.”
The unexpected death of McNair made a huge impact on Williams.
Williams said he was always a man of faith, but the tragic incident pushed him to guide athletes for the better. The last 6 years he helped 15,000 athletes between Meridian to the coast recognize more than just their talents.
Williams continues to help athletes create influential relationships and encounter Jesus Christ.
“Telling them that the sport they play, or the sport they are involved in, is not your definition of life, that is not who you are, that does not represent the mirror" Williams said.
He continued, "God has given you an ability, and he wants to use this sport for a platform, and wants to use your life for somebody else.”
With the help of 150 plus organizations, Williams attends schools across the Pine Belt and spiritually connects with coaches of different sports.
He said, “Whatever they do either they run throw, or shoot a basketball, or lift weights, whatever they do to get better, there is actually someone above that loves them, even more than anything they can do on the field."
"He was the one that gave them the ability, and wouldn’t it be great to use that ability and ask Him to use you to affect the world" questioned Williams.
Whether it is on or off the field, Williams hopes to leave a lasting impression on each athlete he comes across.
Recently Williams guided Southern Miss athletes to hard-hit tornado areas to give back to the community.
Williams said, "This is 200 students athletes, from Southern Miss, coaches and student athletes going up the trail here, this is the day after the storm, this is that Sunday, look at the trail, look at the trail of the young people, that is every sport represented going down there to help people that they don’t even know.”
He hopes his mission and message of sports and Christ will continue to grow every year with the FCA.
