HMS's Coach Sills influences young men

Five years ago, Coach Steve Sills founded a new club at Homewood Middle School named Men Striving for Success. That year, the Christian-based organization educated 40 young men on how to better serve their communities. But since then, success has extended well beyond individual students. Last year Sills and other volunteers worked with more than 130 students.

Men Striving for Success is dedicated to developing and preparing young men to become leaders and pursue success in all walks of life. The club not only focuses on community service, but also teaches boys to live with integrity and character. Students in the club have assisted a community kitchen, raised money for the Lupus Foundation and Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, founded a Haiti Supply Drive, cheered at the Exceptional Foundation for special needs athletes and developed fellowship within families and the community as a whole.

“This club is a very diverse club filled with athletes, MATH-letes, guys from single parent homes, two-parent homes, guys that attend church regularly and guys that go only on special occasions,” said Sills, a computer applications teacher for grades 6-8.

As Sills plans for the future, he hopes to see the club expand to the high school, continue to grow at the middle school and eventually spread across the metro area.

Outside of the club, Sills takes pride in coaching the HMS football and track team and inspires athletes to commit 110 percent to whatever they do.

“In coaching, I have the opportunity to meet kids of many different backgrounds and athletic abilities,” Sills said. “I get to see their passion for the sport and rediscover my love for sports and kids every day.”

Sills and his family live in Trussville and are members of More Than Conquerors Faith Church in Birmingham, where he has been the youth director for two years.

With the support of his wife, Lori, and children, Makiyah, a sixth grader at HMS and Kaylee, a kindergartener at Shades Cahaba, Sills continues to act as a positive role model for his kids, students and peers.

“Homewood is a special place for me and my family,” said Sills. “I believe God wants us to put more in the world than we take out, and we try to accomplish that through ministry.”

For more information, follow Homewood Men Striving for Success on Facebook.