A fez, a go-kart and a purpose: Sumter’s Jamil Flyers help support children’s hospital through parade appearances, raising money

It's not every day you see men driving around in go-karts sporting fez hats. However, if you attend a parade throughout the year in Sumter or any surrounding community, you'll likely run into them.

They're the Jamil Flyers, a Sumter-based unit that is part of the Jamil Shrine Temple in Columbia, which in turn is part of the Shriners International organization. And they're looking to put Sumter back on the map.

Founded in May 2023, the Flyers, currently with 11 members and continuously growing, is one of three units in Sumter alongside the Streakers and Jets. Each unit is themed, and the Flyers revolve heavily around parades, participating in about one a month on average in Sumter or in other areas across the state.

"I think of as a kid seeing Shriners come through with our fezes on and driving the go-karts. That's what I remember from parades, and we're just trying to keep that going," said Josh Sivertsen, Jamil Flyers assistant director. "The parades really just show people who we are."

Their go-karts make them stand out in a sea of parade floats, and they take great pride in them, oftentimes building them from the ground up and working through the night to make sure they're ready to go for parade days. "We put a lot of time and effort into the go-karts," said Kris Jordan, Flyers director.

Being from Sumter, the Flyers draw inspiration from Shaw Air Force Base and the F-16 fighter jet in the design of their go-karts and parade attire.

As one of three units in town, the Flyers work closely with the other units toward the same goal: raising money for the Shriners Children's Hospital in Greenville. "The Jets and the Streakers are all Shriners, just like we are, just different themes that they have. [It's] all the same goal, and we all work really well here together," Sivertsen said.

Sumter's three units, along with all other units in the temple, work to provide support for the Shriners Hospital, with a goal of offsetting the cost of medical bills for families as much as possible, from transportation to the hospital to the care needed once there. Units like the Road Runners are even in place heavily to provide transportation to and from the hospital.

"Last year alone, they drove over 7,000 miles transporting patients and their families," according to Jordan. "The temple gave over $60,000 to the Greenville Shrine Hospital."

"Every time you see us out in the community, we're doing it for a reason. We're doing it to support the hospital, to support the operations fund, which in turn helps the children," Sivertsen added. "Most of us are fathers ourselves. And just some of the stories we hear, some of the young children that we meet … every time I meet one, I get more involved because I feel like my purpose is here for a reason."

The hospital in Greenville is one of many in the Shriners International network, and South Carolina's three Shrine temples, along with other units in other states, help to support it. Shriners International, a Masonic fraternity, was founded in 1872, originally called the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.

"What we do is important because of the cause, but it also gives us the opportunity to be fraternal with other brothers that have the same beliefs that we do," Sivertsen said.

While Shrine membership requires one to reach the status of Master Mason, donations are always welcome from the community to help support their cause. To get in touch, contact Jordan at (803) 968-2327 or Sivertsen at (843) 373-9151.

The Flyers are currently doing a raffle as well in partnership with Simpson's Hardware. Tickets are $10 each, and the gift card prizes reach as high as $1,000.

"We're happy to be here. We plan on growing, and we plan on raising a lot of money and giving it to where it needs to go," Sivertsen said.