ORLANDO, Fla. — Filling a void in young boys’ lives — leaders at the Orlando nonprofit Boys 2 Men Mentoring program say that's a goal their organization seeks to achieve.

Currently, the after-school program has more than 200 boys taking part, and the nonprofit says an estimated 70% of them are growing up without a father.

What You Need To Know

  • The Boys 2 Men Mentoring program is geared toward helping teenage boys

  • Leaders say volunteers come every week to show the boys healthy behavior and relationships

  • Boys 2 Men Mentoring receives funding from the city of Orlando and Orange County, and officials at the nonprofit say they are working to raise funds to take participants on fully funded college tour trips

Angel Valdez has been going to Boys 2 Men Mentoring for more than three years. He said he was living in a shelter with his parents, but things started turning around when he found a brotherhood in the Boys 2 Men Mentoring program.

The program is geared toward teenage boys, and volunteers come every week to show them healthy behavior and relationships.

“I was a little bad," Valdez said. "I didn’t know much and kept getting in trouble in schools. I kept getting into fights. It wasn’t working out for me."

Now he’s leading by example, and Tyrone Jones, who helps with the program, has seen a world of difference in not just Valdez, but other boys journeying through the program.

“Over a period of time, you can definitely see how the boys grow personally, mentally, and physically,” said Jones.

Jones told Spectrum News the program is more than just a job for him, it’s a passion.

“I realized I needed the boys just as much as they needed me," he said. "I needed to grow up inside. I needed to learn from them as well as they learn from me."

As for Valdez, he said he's got his life all planned out. He wants to go to Florida A&M University on a football scholarship and hopes one day to play for the Baltimore Ravens. 

That may take a while, but in the meantime, Valdez said he is happy making friends and building relationships through the Boys 2 Men Mentoring program.

Boys 2 Men Mentoring receives funding from the City of Orlando and Orange County. Leaders at the nonprofit say they are working to raise funds to take participants on fully funded trips to tour colleges.