“BE GREAT!” sign at Boys & Girls Club

Drivers along East Harvard Boulevard may have noticed a new and inspiring visual, courtesy of the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley. The sign, creatively fashioned from blue plastic cups and hung by club members, reminds passersby to “Be great!” Director of Resource Development, Carole Power, explains, “It is an encouragement to be aware of what you’re being, and to be the best you can be.” The Club aspires to help all children reach their greatest potential by offering programming in The Arts; character and Leadership Development; Education and Career Development; Health and Life Skills; and Sports, Fitness, and Recreation. The Club provides vital after-school programs in communities with limited recreation and education options for students.

During the past year, the Club has been in steady recovery from previous financial challenges and is currently in a stable state of solvency. It continues to serve over 700 students at six school sites and two club house locations and is growing in membership in Santa Paula and Fillmore. A new computer lab will be opening in early November at the Santa Paula Clubhouse. Teens in grades 6-12 have a new option for fun-including basketball, board and table games, and food-with Teen Nights every first and third Friday of the month. Call Mari Juarez at (805)525-7910 for more information.

The Boys and Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley is a 501(c)3 nonprofit funded in part by the generous donations of local businesses and community members who desire to make an impact on local youth. For every dollar invested in the Boys and Girls Clubs in Ventura County, $8 is reinvested in the community. The Ventura County Clubs continue to make a noticeable impact on youth, with one example being the 97% of Club members passing the high school exit exam compared to 70% of Ventura County youth on average. (As reported in ‘Snapshot of the Economic Impact of The Boys & Girls Clubs in Ventura County’ by Jamshid Damooei, PhD, Professor of Economics at California Lutheran University, Spring, 2010.)