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Boys & Girls Club of Janesville continues to provide children a safe, positive place to go

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Photo by Kyle Bursaw

Edward Cobb, 7, whips a ball during a game of carpetball at the Boys & Girls Club of Janesville.

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Photo by Kyle Bursaw

Keyona Olson, 7, left, and Diamond Davidson, 8, paint pictures in the art room at the Boys & Girls Club of Janesville.

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Photo by Kyle Bursaw

From left, Devon Laser, Noah Loui and Trenton Hiller react to one of the web-based computer games they played one afternoon at the Boys & Girls Club of Janesville.

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Photo by Kyle Bursaw

There are multiple activities available for attendees of the Boys & Girls Club of Janesville, they have foosball, carpetball, pool, an art room, a gym, board games, a reading area and a snack area to name a few. Here kids snack and transition between activities.

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JANESVILLE — Tyler Garey enjoys nothing more than playing a friendly game of carpet ball or hockey with his pals after school at the Boys & Girls Club of Janesville.

Without the club, Tyler said, he'd be at his grandma's house, where all he'd have to do is watch TV or do chores.

"This is more fun," the 9-year-old Madison Elementary School fourth-grader said on a recent afternoon at the club.

"Here I have stuff to do," he said.

Since joining the downtown club a year ago, Tyler also has taken advantage of the club's summer programs and computer lab.

"They have a place to do homework," he said.

The payoff has been better grades, Tyler said.

"Last week I got a B. Now I got an A-plus," he said.

Tyler is one of more than 1,000 members at the club, which is celebrating a milestone this month.

"We are an amazing organization that has been changing the lives of the kids in our community for 20 years," said Heather Walz, executive director.

Finances

Keeping the club going, however, hasn't come without effort.

Financially, "it's always (been) a little bit of a struggle," Walz said.

"We definitely wish we had a large endowment to help support our organization," she said.

But the club doesn't, and that's why board members have set a goal of establishing an endowment when the economy improves, Walz said.

"We're making it through because we refuse to believe we won't," Walz said.

The club also is receiving more grants and foundation gifts than ever before, and a full-time development director was hired two years ago to aid Walz and board members in raising money.

"We're continuing to diversify funding, and our special events are doing well," she said.

While the club spent more money than it raised in three of the last six years, it also brought in more money than it spent two of those years. One year, income and expenses were the same. The 2010 budget will be similar to the 2009 budget.

"We don't plan on any huge changes," Walz said.

Programs/staff

The club is housed in the YMCA of Northern Rock County building and owns 35 percent of the new addition built 10 years ago. The club and the YMCA share two common entrances and outdoor space.

The club employs 25 part-time and six full-time staff. Of those, one full-time and five part-time employees work at the two Fort Atkinson school sites. The Fort Atkinson club, which has its own branch director and advisory board, raises its own money and pays the Janesville club a contract fee to manage its staff, Walz said.

While the club's main headquarters offers two dozen programs, its extension programs in the schools focus on education with homework help.

"Our primary goal is to increase their attitude toward school and their academics," Walz said of extension programs, which have had waiting lists since 2005.

Membership

Although club membership has stayed nearly level, it decreased in 2008 in conjunction with local businesses closing, families relocating and parents being home and no longer needing the program, Walz said.

Membership in 2009, however, will be higher than in 2008, she said.

"Our summer program had record numbers this year. We definitely aren't seeing a decline," Walz said.

The focus, however, is more on making an impact and retention and less on serving greater numbers of kids.

Focus

Though the poor economy has made this the toughest time that Walz has seen in her 10 years at the club, she said the organization locally and nationally remains strong because it stays focused on kids.

"We can cut cleaning services or outside maintenance services. But the last thing we want to cut funding for is programs or staff. Programs are the most important part of what we do and help our kids have a better future, and our staff is the magic that brings this place to life," Walz said.

The club's board of directors and many people in the community have put forth effort, hard work and dedication over the years to make sure the club continued no matter what, Walz said.

"Their strong commitment and compassion for children have been the heart and soul of the club."

Future

The club wants to reach out to more communities in response to inquiries, but Walz admitted that's not doable at this time because of finances.

Here is some of what the club is doing:

-- Busing children from their elementary schools to the downtown site, an inexpensive initiative the club started to serve more kids and retain them.

-- A pilot program, 2009 Dream girls, which kicked off earlier this year when 10 girls at the club were paired with women who work in a variety of careers. The girls spent time with their mentors at the club and at their workplaces to learn about careers in which they were interested.

"Some (of the girls) didn't think they could do anything with their lives because of the backgrounds they come from or lack of encouragement. We were able to give them something they could shoot for along with a positive role model outside the club," Walz said.

-- Teen outreach efforts started last year, providing programs in three middle schools and the Rock County Juvenile Detention Center. The club also extended hours a couple days of the week and one Saturday a month so teens could have a place to themselves, she said.

"There just is not enough positive activities or places for teens in this community,” Walz said. "We've done a lot but could do more if we could afford it.”

BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF JANESVILLE HISTORY

-- Winter 1988—A steering committee of 10 community members conducted a survey and determined there needed to be a safe, positive place for children to go after school.

-- Fall 1989—Began offering programs in four Janesville elementary schools—Madison, Jackson, Monroe and Wilson.

-- Spring 1990—The Boys & Girls Club of Milwaukee helped the Janesville club by offering the services of one of its branch managers.

-- Summer 1990—Began offering programs out of the building at 23 N. Franklin St. along with overflow activities at Marshall Middle School, city parks and a local church.

-- Fall 1990—Hired its first full-time executive director.

-- November 1990—Moved club operations to 113 W. Milwaukee St.

-- Fall 1993—Moved to 407 W. Van Buren St.

-- 1995—Started plans for a capital campaign due to growth in its building.

-- 1999—Moved into its current headquarters at 200 W. Court St.

-- 2005—Opened a satellite site at Lincoln Elementary School.

-- 2006—Opened a school site in Fort Atkinson.

-- 2007—Opened a school site at Jackson Elementary School as part of a joint grant with the Janesville School District.

-- 2007—Opened a second school site in Fort Atkinson.

BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF JANESVILLE LOCATIONS

Three Janesville locations:

-- Club headquarters—200 W. Court St., open year around.

-- Lincoln Elementary School, 1821 Conde St., open during the school year.

-- Jackson Elementary School, 441 Burbank Ave., open during the school year.

Two Fort Atkinson locations:

-- Purdy Elementary School, 719 S. Main St., open during the school year.

-- Luther Elementary School, 205 Park St., open during the school year.

BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF JANESVILLE EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS

1990-97—Dennis Weber

1997-99—David Bilgo

1999-2002—Heidi Krueger

2002-03—Heather Walz (Interim)

2003-06—John Benberg

2006-present—Heather Walz