Mentoring conference planned for young men in Wichita

The sixth annual Developing Every Man’s Opportunity conference, run by local mentors to young people, will be 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Boys and Girls Club of South Central Kansas, 2400 Opportunity Drive, organizer David Gilkey said.

The conference is open to the public.

Gilkey is a former local prison convict who has run mentoring programs for years in Wichita, in recent years as the founder of Do You Want to Live or Die, a mentoring organization that coaches young people to get the best out of themselves regarding character choices, education and the importance of getting jobs and taking responsibility for family obligations.

The purpose of Saturday’s conference is to emphasize to young men that others in the community care about them. The event is free for boys ages 14 to 18. Community members are invited to the event; tickets will be available for $20 at the door. The conference is presented by Do You Want to Live or Die, a program of Rise Up for Youth Inc., Gilkey said.

Gilkey will lead the conference, which will feature workshops by area leaders. One session will help young men think about their responsibility as fathers.

The conference will include a speech by Lamont Carey, an artist, author and actor, Gilkey said.

Rise Up for Youth was founded last year by Gilkey and his wife, Lynn; they run two mentoring programs. For more information, contact Gilkey at dgilkey@riseupforyouth.org or 316-312-5705.

This story was originally published April 14, 2015 at 5:26 PM with the headline "Mentoring conference planned for young men in Wichita."