Take 80 boys ages 11 to 13, put them together in a hotel ballroom for a day, add a strong dose of information and fun, and shake well.

That was something like the recipe Havasu For Youth baked up Friday at a workshop designed specially for middle-school-aged boys called Wise Guys.

Havasu For Youth put on a similar program for girls Oct. 26 called You Go Girl.

The boy-centered version had a distinctly different flavor, said Havasu For Youth Executive Director Melissa Dobar.

“We couldn’t put candy on the tables like we did with the girls because they wind up pitching it at each other,” she said.

Wise Guys followed essentially the same format as the girls’ workshop, with frank and informative sessions on domestic violence, sexually transmitted diseases and drug use.

Youth pastor Brad Paradee used karate to help teach self-esteem, said Havasu For Youth Program Coordinator Cheryl Wallsmith.

“It was kind of ‘believe in yourself and (you) have the power to do things,’” Wallsmith said.

Dobar said it takes a little longer to break the ice with the boys.

“They loosen up as the day goes on and you get more giggles, more laughter and more questions,” she said.

Members of the Lake Havasu City Rotary Club faced that initial reserve as the boys gathered for a series of “Low Ropes” exercises, which require participants to work together to resolve physical challenges.

But soon the boys were engaged sometimes cooperatively, sometimes contentiously.

“It’s not apparent in their faces, but I think they’re taking away a lot of great information,” Dobar said.