5 minute read
Charity Spotlight: Boys and Girls Club
Safe Harbor
Marion County Boys and Girls Club offers a positive program for at-risk youths
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BY CARLTON REESE | PHOTOGRAPHY BY RALPH DEMILIO
Sometimes the walk home from school entails unsolicited engagement with nefarious characters who have nothing to offer but drugs and a negative world view. The walk may even include the occasional sound of a gunshot. Many times, the walk home from school is the easy part, with an abusive adult waiting at the end of the journey. Such scenarios happen every day all over the country and, fortunately, not all are relegated to sad endings.
For many youths age 6-18, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America become a port in a storm, a place to avoid many of the pitfalls that plague disadvantaged kids in this country. A safe haven that also acts as a den of learning as well as good, clean fun makes the club perhaps the most important part of the day in steering one’s life through troubled waters.
At the Boys and Girls Clubs of Marion County, the tradition of guiding and men-
—April Savarese
toring vulnerable children has been going strong since 1967 even through the recent pandemic which has strained but not diminished the proud mission at stake.
“In general, our mission is to enable all young people, but especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as responsible, caring and productive citizens,” said April Savarese, CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Marion County.
Many of the children who walk through the doors of the club seem to be on a trajectory far from the adjectives used by Savarese. The overwhelming majority of members come from low- to moderate-income households, most of which are headed by just a single parent or grandparent while located in neighborhoods burdened by an abundance of crime. Savarese notes that three-fourths of the members come from households living at or below the poverty level.
In Marion County, clubs exist in Ocala, Dunnellon and Silver Springs Shores – in communities where the need is highest. Instead of heading directly home after school, kids go to the club which is more than just a building in which to hang out with friends. Once there, members are engaged in learning activities to supplement school with many programs ranging from academic to hobby to sport, all with caring mentors that become not just helpers and tutors, but role models.
It’s all part of three-pronged mission for the kids, according to Savarese: Safety, enriching environment and fun.
“Kids are not going home alone,” Savarese said. “They’re not hanging out with less-than-desirable influences. They’re in a safe environment.”
Savarese notes that in addition to entering a safe environment, members are able to receive help with schoolwork, engage in academic success programs and learn healthy habits. There are even opportunities for kids to participate in drama, gardening, cooking and the arts.
“The third piece is fun,” Savarese said. “We want it to be safe and enriching, but when the kids come, we want them to have fun. We’ve got games, such as basketball and billiards, and we want them to have a good time when they’re here.”
Between the three Marion County locations, the club serves anywhere from 1,000 to 1,300 kids a year, with most of them unable to afford the $30/week charge. As such, many of the fees are covered through fund raising donations as the majority of kids participate via scholarship or discounted rate based on financial need.
Among the ways of raising these funds is the Car, Truck and Motorcycle Festival hosted by Ocala Car Audio and War Horse Harley Davidson. The festival, which takes place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 16 at War Horse Harley Davidson on North Highway 441, will feature over 300 show cars, music, games, vendors, food and awards. That event, plus the recent Bourbon in the Barn Spring Gala at the World Equestrian Center, help raise funds for the summer camp program in which close to $60,000 is needed.
With the club close to operating pre-pandemic style and summer camp just around the corner, the hope is that the usual routine is returning for the kids.
“Their sense of normalcy, whatever that looked like, has been gone for the last year,” Savarese states in reference to the past year of school closures and temporary quarantines. “We’ve been able to loosen up some of our restrictions. More recently we’ve started to invite more of our volunteers back and we’ve started allowing small group offsite trips, so we’re getting back to what they’re used to.”
Savarese noticed how the pandemic has taken its toll on the kids both academically and socially. With the socialization aspects of the club returning to normal, it has been time to ramp up the academic side for members, many who were left behind as a result of poor bandwidth and inadequate equipment for virtual learning. As such, the summer reading program was instituted in January and testing showed that 65 percent of the kids were reading below grade level, an unusually high number.
While the Boys and Girls Club of Marion County has a direct effect on those members, Savarese correctly points out that the community as a whole benefits with the proper nurturing and mentoring of these kids, many of whom may have turned out to be detriments to the community otherwise.
“It’s hard to measure the result because you don’t know who – because they were at the club – didn’t have to go home to an abusive home or didn’t contemplate hurting themselves or didn’t get in trouble or arrested,” Savarese said. “It’s hard to measure the ‘what-ifs’ that we saved.
“I am surprised at the number of adults in our community that will say, ‘If it wasn’t for the Boys Club I would be in jail’ or ‘All my friends got into drugs, but I didn’t because I was at the club.’”
Anyone wanting to volunteer at or make a donation to the Boys and Girls Club of Marion County may visit the organization’s website, bgcofmarionofmarion.com.