by Calli Townsend
HILLSDALE, Mich. - The Hillsdale College football team is teaching young boys to "look good, feel good, and do good." This is the motto of the new Guys With Ties club at Gier Elementary School.
Offensive Coordinator Nate Shreffler and his wife Jill began planning for this club last spring after hearing about the program from his brother in Canton, Ohio.
"There are 21 fourth-grade boys, and they're the old kids in the school," Nate Shreffler, assistant football coach for the Chargers, said. "We want them to feel empowered to change their environment and have a positive impact on the kids in their class, and the school at large."
Shreffler said that there are many schools around the Canton area that have Guys With Ties clubs, and he would like to see it expand further, maybe even to a national level.
"My wife teaches [fourth grade] at Gier, so she's the one that has kind of spearheaded this whole thing," Shreffler said. "She secured a grant from the PTO which allowed us to buy shirts and ties for the kids, and we finally got the thing off the ground this fall."
The Guys With Ties club began meeting during the lunch hour. During its first meeting, coach Shreffler gave a presentation and the group did introductions. By their second meeting, the fourth graders were learning how to tie a tie from the Charger football players. They will continue to meet about every three weeks Shreffler said.
"We're trying to teach them other things along the way too," Shreffler said. "Like being a gentleman and teaching them how to shake a hand and greet people."
About a dozen football players volunteer their time to work with these young boys. It's hard to fit it in everyone's schedules, but even if the team can't be at the elementary school during meeting times, they're helping out in other ways, such as preparing the shirts and ties for the boys to wear.
"With our football team involved, the kids are getting good examples of great students, athletes, and guys," Shreffler said. "It's good for them to see that they can be all of that, and that's the message we're trying to get across."
Eventually they want to teach the boys dinner etiquette skills to put into practice, perhaps at the Hillsdale Rotary Club.
"I know the Rotary Club will have guests come in, so maybe we could take them there for a luncheon to practice," Shreffler said.
In just its first two meetings, the Guys With Ties club is already having a positive impact.
"On meeting days we get the kids suited up and they go greet people at the door or head to the playground," Shreffler said. "The amount of smiles they received was pretty neat. It's amazing to see what kind of an impact even just a high-five can make in a person's day."