The Boys & Girls Club (2011, p. 2) has about 4.1 million kids; 3,954 clubs; about 276,000 staff and volunteers; and 27,000 board members. The Boys & Girls Club is meant to help young people out. They help young people with character & leadership, education and career, health and life skills, arts, sports and fitness and specialized programs. The character and leadership program helps the youth become responsible, caring people and helps them develop leadership skills that help plan and decision making. The education and career programs help for the future and provide opportunities.
Health and life skills help young people engage in positive things and help with their own well-being.
Many of their arts programs help develop creativity and cultural awareness. Sports and fitness help with the use of free time, reduce stress, and have fun. Specialized programs help with specific needs. The Boys & Girls Club cares about where young people end up and what they will do for there future. The organization tries to make a difference in their lives, as well as in the parents’ lives.
A parent at Boys & Girls Club (2011) stated, “For me and my child the Club is a life saver. I don’t know what I would do if it wasn’t for the Club. It’s a blessing for my family” (p. 2). The Boys & Girls Club helps kids with clubs and events all around the world.
The Boys & Girls Club has been around for more than 150 years. It began in 1860 with three women. The Boys & Girls Club original name was Boys Club Federation of America.
The three women who started the club were Mary Goodwin, Alice Goodwin, and Elizabeth Hammersley. They wanted boys who walked the streets to have a better alternative. By 1906 they had several Boys Clubs and by 1931 the name changed to Boys Clubs of America. When girls started getting involved the name changed in 1990 to Boys & Girls Club of America. The whole point of the Boys and Girls Club in the beginning was to build character. The first club professional was John Collins. He devised a plan to guide the boys by capturing their interest, improving their behavior, and then increasing personal expectations and goals.
In the 1950’s Aaron Fahringer created The Code for Boys & Girls Club. It was popular in the 50’s and 60’s and is still hung in some Boys and & Girls Club. The Code says, in simple terms, to believe in God and your own faith and religion, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights (Aaron Fahringer, 1955, p. 2). The Code also mentions to believe in fair play, honesty and sportsmanship which are what the Boys & Girls Club stands for. When the Boys & Girls Club was called Boys Clubs of America in 1956, there were many founding fathers. One of the founding fathers was Herbert Hoover, the 31st President of the United States. Later on many celebrities became notable members of the Boys & Girls Club such as Denzel Washington, Shaquille O’Neal, Jennifer Lopez and etc.
The Boys & Girls Club (2011, p.1) is made of “The Power of People” or the National Leadership, Officers, and Board of Governors. The President and CEO is James (Jim) Clark and The Chairman of the Board is Emil J. Brolick. The Boys & Girls Club national headquarters is in Atlanta, Georgia. Even though they have a headquarters, Boys & Girls Club operates all over the world with their projects and clubs. For example, the Kiwanis International is a partner, as well as, a program with the Boys & Girls Club. Boys & Girls Club have a military partnership. A lady named Rebekah Harwell is an example. She has been an eight year member of the Boys & girls Clubs of Iwakuni. She has led projects that provide aid to victims of recent earthquakes in the area of Japan. Then she plans to attend college. She stated, “The Club has been a place where I have been able to truly grow as an individual, free to be myself” (Rebekah Harwell, 2011, p.1).
According to the Boys & Girls Club of America (2011), “(t)o enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens” (p.1); is the mission of the Boys & Girls Club. The Boys & Girls Club provides a safe place to learn and grow and ongoing relationships with caring, adult professionals. Providing life-enhancing programs and character development experiences and hope and opportunity are part of the Boys & Girls Club motto or part of their core beliefs. On the Boys & Girls Club website there is a page called Kids in Crisis. It says that America’s Kids are in crisis and gives you facts about why they are. For example, “three out of ten kids won’t graduate on time” (Kids In Crisis, 2011, p.1). At three to seven p.m. juvenile crime escalates.
The reason being for that is that 15.1 million kids are left unsupervised. This is why there is a Boys & Girls Club. Another fact is that three out of ten kids are obese or overweight and one out of five young people lives in poverty. The Boys & Girls Club has files on their website for tips on education, health and fitness, and crime and violence to help parents with their children or child. It has homework tips, bullying information, and a healthy smiles guide, which are translated in several languages. Through the Boys & Girls Club, Nicole “Nikki” E. went into the Club Tech program. She interviewed like Denzel Washington and Oprah Winfrey on www.myclubmylife.com.
Nikki was in high school and almost everyday after school she went to Boys & Girls Club of Santa Monica. According to Nicole (2009), “I was made fun of frequently by groups of girls for speaking correctly, my clothing and the area I lived in” (p. 1). She used the Boys & Girls Club like a refugee camp. She did homework, volunteered, used the computer or did art pieces. Now Nicole is a student at Santa Monica College majoring in journalism. The Boys & Girls Club serves nearly all young ages from five years old and under to sixteen years old and older. In Boys & Girls Club (2011) 55% are male and 45% are female. Boys & Girls Club serve all ethnicities (p.1). Most are which Caucasian, African-American, and Hispanic/Latino.
The Boys & Girls Club is and has been in the media several times. Not only is it because they are helping the earth and the people, but because some celebrities have gone to the Boys & Girls Club when they were children. Examples are Shaquille O’Neal and Earvin “Magic” Johnson. Both are basketball players except O’Neal went to Newark, New Jersey Club and Johnson went to the Lansing, Michigan Boys & Girls Club. Boys & Girls Club is always doing something to get more donations so they could help the planet and more people. They are on YouTube bringing awareness to kids; they are on the news saying what their latest events are and until when. They are saying ways you could help. Just recently Ne-Yo, an R&B superstar, made a surprise visit to Blue Hill Boys & Girls Club and signing autographs and distributing toys for the kids. In the Boys & Girls Club of Western Broome received a grant and are now partners with Payless. For the holidays they are giving kids a pair of shoes that actually fit because, believe it or not, some kids don’t have a pair that fit perfectly.
The Boys & Girls Club is a nonprofit organization, which means they get all there money and proceeds from donors, sponsors, dues, and etc. They earn a lot of money to help kids. They use the money to create programs and to keep the clubs running. They also use the money to expand the clubs with better equipment and to pay their diligent staff. The money is to pay for supplies for the clubs. For example, art supplies for the art to help the young people with their creativity. Also, sports supplies like basketballs, soccer balls, and footballs to help young people exercise and play sports to have fun and reduce stress. They use the money to pay for the healthy snacks for the youth to for them to continue on what they are doing, such as homework, sports, arts, and etc. The money can also be used for children to make sure they choose the right career.
For the year of 2010, the total support and revenue money is $187,296,918. However, the total expense of their money was $156,403,541. The difference between the support and revenue and total expenses is $30,893,377, which is how much the Boys & Girls Club earned in 2010. The Boys & Girls Club is an organization to help young people get and/or stay or the right path in their lives. It helps them stay in shape, choose enjoyable careers for them, embrace creativity, find hope and hopefully their character. It’s a place that young people can get away from the rest of the world and spend time with people who share their same interest.
As the Boys & Girls Club(2011) mission statement says, “it’s to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens” (p.1). I have learned the history of the Boys & Girls Club. I have learned that the Boys and Girls Club is not just a club or an afterschool program, but it’s a place to volunteer and a place to make a difference. It’s a place to learn and help your future and present. You can get involved by volunteering, donating, sponsoring, starting a club, becoming a member, touring a club, joining the cause, or if you have a child in The Boys & Girls Club, you can be a parent of a member, and/or you can give or support Boys & Girls Club.
For the future, Boys & Girls Club will always help young people out. They will probably expand their clubs which will lead to them getting more young people in their clubs. They may also gain more volunteers and have new and improved programs. If a national disaster were to occur, they would probably help out with the kids making sure they get back on their feet. They will help the earth by recycling and planting more trees. Kids may become healthier due to the Boys & Girls Club. The Boys & Girls Club will stick to their mission statement, maybe even make it better, and their organization will live on.
References
Boston News (December 12, 2011). Dorchester Boys & Girls Club. Received from http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/dorchester/2011/12/dorchester_boys_and_girls_club.html Boys & Girls Club (2008). 2008 Annual Report. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/Documents/AnnualReport_2008_lores.pdf Boys & Girls Club (2010). 2010 Annual Report. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/whoweare/Documents/191411%202010%20Annual%20Report_FNL_lowres.pdf Boys & Girls Club (2010). Annual Report. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/whoweare/Pages/AnnualReport.aspx Boys & Girls Club (2011). Faces of the Future. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/CLUBTECH/FACES/Pages/Nikki.aspx Boys & Girls Club (2011). Facts And Figures. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/whoweare/Pages/FactsFigures.aspx Boys & Girls Club (2011). Kids In Crisis. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/whywecare/Pages/KidsInCrisis.aspx Boys & Girls Club (2011). Media Coverage. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/newsevents/MediaCoverage/Pages/MediaCoverge.aspx Boys & Girls Club of Pawtucket (2011). Quotes from Members/Parents. Retrieved from http://www.bgcpawt.org/change-quotes.asp Boys & Girls Club (2011). Our History. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/whoweare/Pages/History.aspx Boys & Girls Club (2011). Our Mission. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/whoweare/Pages/Mission.aspx Boys & Girls Club (2011). Providing Great Futures. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/meetourpartners/Pages/Military_State_YOYs_2011.aspx Boys & Girls Club (2011). The Power of People. Retrieved from http://www.bgca.org/whoweare/Pages/Board.aspx Boys & Girls Club Wikipedia (2011). Boys & Girls Club of America. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boys_%26_Girls_Clubs_of_America#History Boys & Girls Club (2011). What We Do. Retrieved from
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