Boys and Girls Clubs of Benton and Franklin Counties: Local kids thrive because of your support

During this time of uncertainty, we at Boys & Girls Clubs are grateful to be part of a community that has come together to respond to COVID-19 as safely and as compassionately as possible.

Given the school closures mandated by Gov. Jay Inslee on March 16th, we have closed many of our sites to cooperate with legal requirements. However, as we are the licensed childcare partner for the Pasco and Richland school districts, and our schools have been asked to provide emergency childcare services, we at the Boys & Girls Clubs have been offering emergency childcare to support first responders, healthcare workers, essential community personnel, and those parents who must work to maintain employment. In upcoming weeks we expect this to continue, although it may change as needs change.

It has always been a part of our mission to serve those kids who need us most. During this time of community emergency, we have been pulling together and supporting efforts to make sure our kids and family stay safe, well fed and their essential needs met, and engaged in virtual educational and fun activities from home.

We continue to look for creative ways to meet the needs of youth in our community, especially those who need us most. We have been receiving donations from Second Harvest as well as individual supporters, putting together boxes with foods and other essential items, and delivering them to families who need them the most.

One seven year old boy who attends the Club regularly was known to be homeless, but our staff had been under the impression that he and his mother were living with friends. When they arranged to deliver a backpack full of activity books, slime, playdoh, and other items to keep him learning and engaged, they found that he was living at the Union Gospel Mission, and not allowed to leave home. Main Branch Director Andrea Locati said, “He’s just the sweetest and most polite child. It broke my heart to see him cooped up when he is always so thankful to be at the Club.”

We have been so grateful and humbled to experience our community pulling together to support each other at this time. We have received donations of in kind materials, cash, even food for our program staff, who are rising to the occasion gracefully to make sure our community is taken care of.

As we look back on 2019, we are so grateful to have seen the completion of our Kennewick Clubhouse capital campaign, where so many amazing supporters made life changing investments in an underserved community. That Clubhouse saw its 1st anniversary this January. Last year we offered a safe, supportive environment to 4,450 local youth! That is a 33% increase from the previous year. It’s not possible to describe all the amazing services we offer to our families, but here are a few highlights: Our school-based programs go the extra mile to support refugee children with extra English language help. Our coordinator at New Horizons nursery for teen parents regularly goes above and beyond to provide families with formula, diapers, clothes, and even furniture for their homes.

In order to be strong for 2020, we need your support more than ever. For more than 20 years, we have been offering safe, healthy, and nurturing environments to local kids, encouraging them to fulfill their potential, and thereby making Benton and Franklin counties much more resilient and productive. I encourage you to visit us at www.greatclubs.org to learn more about our work. Our community's investment in local youth will continue to have a long lasting and powerful impact.

This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 5:01 PM with the headline "Boys and Girls Clubs of Benton and Franklin Counties: Local kids thrive because of your support."