It beats going home, often alone, to veg out in front of the television.
The launch of the Boys & Girls Club of Grand Traverse After-School program at Traverse City West Junior High School ten days ago gives participants an alternative where they can hang out with friends, shoot some hoops, play games and just have fun.
For members like Patrick Schuster and his friend, Allan Ray, both seventh grade students, the revived Boys & Girls Club offers a variety of fun options.
"At my house, I would go home and sit on the couch and watch TV,” said Schuster, who munched on pizza and played table tennis Monday afternoon after school.
"I like this better than being at home because I don't have to pay for it and my friend's here,” added Ray.
Thanks to $50,000 grants each from the Traverse City Rotary Club, the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians and the Boys & Girls Club of America, the club returns to Traverse City after nearly a two-year hiatus. The Boys & Girls Club of Grand Traverse previously had three locations — Traverse City, Suttons Bay and Kingsley — serving around 2,000 children but closed in 2006 due to rising costs and lack of revenue. The program has been in the region since 1992.
"We appreciate the community support to do this — honestly, without them we wouldn't be able to do this,” said Pat Lewallen, executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Grand Traverse. "The Boys & Girls Club of Grand Traverse would very much like to get more funding.”
The after-school program at West Junior High welcomes students in grades 7-9 from any school or homeschool, although transportation is not provided. The club joins the Boys & Girls Club of Peshawbestown, which opened in March and serves 125 kids in ages 6-18, to bring back the national organization.
"One-third of the 4,300 programs are school based, mostly in rural areas,” said Lewallen of the trend at Boys & Girls Clubs around the country that is mirrored in Traverse City. "The board decided let's partner with the school.”
The Traverse City roll-out began earlier this month as the Boys & Girls Club began holding a lunchtime program at West. This effort piggybacked on a successful lunchtime program formerly administered by the Every Step Counts grant.
"The board games come out at lunch time, which I find interesting,” noted Lewallen, who retired from the Traverse City Area Public Schools last June. "They don't play them after school.”
"We're trying to listen to kids to find out what they want,” she added of a student advisory group.
On October 22, the after-school program launched and already 125 students are enrolled. The annual membership fee of $10 will be waived through January 1, 2008, as the program builds membership to a capacity of 250 kids.
The club boasts a manager as well as eight part-time assistants, with plans to hire at least one more assistant so the library can be opened for study time and homework help.
"This program means that we have a safe place after school that kids can come to,” said Pam Alfieri, principal of West Junior High School. "It really extends the opportunities for all kids.”
For more information about the Boys & Girls Club of Grand Traverse, contact Pat Lewallen at 933-1798 or club manager Julie Bergman at 499-9094. Registration packets are available at each grade office at West Junior High.