Youngstown Boys & Girls Club turns 40 in the midst of challenges

As we weather the current economic storm that has bankrupted corporations and decimated retirement funds, we must also consider the devastating effect it’s having on our children. Due to funding being slashed, schools have been forced to discontinue programs and services. Agencies such as the Boys and Girls Club, which fill the void left by school cuts, are facing the same challenges that have brought many industry giants to their knees. Despite the perilous economic climate, our focus must be directed at children and providing them with any and all possible opportunities for their futures.

As families struggle to make ends meet, too many kids are being forced to leave childhood behind and assume adult responsibilities. Teens are dropping out of school for jobs to contribute to the family income. They’re giving up their education to be caregivers to younger siblings in order for both parents to work. Right now, someone’s child is sacrificing his or her future.

It can’t be happening in our community; and, yet, it is. Left on their own, children face the threat of teenage pregnancy, alcohol and drug involvement, and gang-related pressure. Without adult guidance, they’re more likely to be victims of crime or get into trouble with the law themselves. However, the Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown offers these children a positive path to success.

The Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown is very proud of our 40 years here in this Valley helping children and aiding parents to provide them with a path to a successful life. Every year, thousands of kids stay out of trouble and develop positive character and leadership skills through club programs. Because of generous donors, many children are able to spend their time at agencies throughout Youngstown and Mahoning County. In fact, there are an estimated 2,300 non-profit organizations working to make a difference in Columbiana, Mahoning and Trumbull counties.

Caring people needed

Many of us in the social service sector are hurting. With less government funding, the number of available grants has drastically decreased. Due to their own economic hardships, individuals have been forced to decrease their ability to donate. We are working hard to maintain our commitment to the youth of our community within this economic challenge, but we need caring people to help.

As city council president in Warren and an executive director of a youth agency in Youngstown, I hear the pain in the voices of our community. As the 2000 census narrative indicates, “We are older, less educated and more poor than the rest of Ohio.” Imagine if this current generation is not helped now, when it matters most. Imagine the statistics as this current generation ages — when only one out of every 11 individuals under the age of 25 remains here in this valley; when only 11 percent of the population have college degrees in our valley. We can close our eyes and turn away, or together we can help the neediest.

In the last year, I have had the opportunity to witness things that few people in our Valley realize exist. Not many people feel the sorrow when an elderly man in a soup kitchen line asks, “Would it be OK to have another slice of bread?” Nor have they experienced the emotion when a grown man tears up asking for “more time” to pay his yearly $7 admission fee for each of his five children. Few have shared the personal pain of families asking for a “loan of food or clothing for their children.” It is these experiences that must empower us to fight harder for these children. We are challenged to provide a place where there is positivity in a community surrounded, at times, with negativity. Our Boys & Girls Club of Youngstown has proudly performed this duty for the last 40 years.

High ranking

We at the Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown have much to celebrate. Our club ranked 29 out of 4,000 Clubs nationwide in tutoring and school enrichment — chosen for our best practices. We have had the opportunity to send two of our youth to be among 19 young individuals chosen for the Youth of the Year in Ohio. We are the only Boys and Girls Club nationwide to collaborate with the YWCA of Warren and the Community Resource Center of East Liverpool, spanning three counties to pull together resources for our statewide acclaimed “Pathways to Peace,” an anti-violence program for youth.

Through the Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown, we can change a young person’s life with a gift of time, compassion and generosity. Some children merely need a caring adult to stand up and say, “You can do it. Failure is not an option, we believe in you.” Every day at our facility, children hear just that and they experience activities that show them they have the power to create a good life for themselves and a better community for us all. No child is ever turned away due to an inability to pay the $7 per year membership fee.

This September, our organization celebrates 40 years of service. I invite everyone in our community to help celebrate by being a champion for our kids. For more information, visit us online at http://www.ytownbgc.org or call us at 330-782-2714, so together we can make a difference in the lives of more children.

We in the youth services business need your help — this year more than ever.

X Robert Marchese is executive director of Boys and Girls Club of Youngstown.