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Healthy Futures Start at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South
Monica Lombardo • February 12, 2019
February is #AmericanHeartMonth
and offers a timely platform for raising our members’ awareness of heart health and the importance of overall wellness. Healthy Lifestyles programs at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South are focused on nutritional assistance and education, promote physical activity through active play, and empower our boys and girls to take control of their own health. Programs like Triple Play, Healthy Habits, and SMART Moves work to develop our members' capacities to engage in positive behaviors that nurture their own well-being, set personal goals, and live successfully as self-sufficient adults.
Food insecurity and lack of access to foods with great nutritional value is a challenge for many of our members due to the socioeconomic climate of Brockton and Taunton. A lack of proper nutrition and physical activity can lead to serious chronic health conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, and diabetes – all of which take a toll on quality of life and which can place additional financial hardship on families already struggling to make ends meet.
Over the last forty years, childhood obesity rates have more than tripled, putting today’s youth at a higher risk than ever.
In the United States, 18.5% of children ages 2-19 are obese. Unhealthy eating and lack of exercise cause many of the conditions that lead to heart problems and other health issues for children in the future.
92% of our members qualify for free or reduced school lunches, and many depend upon school lunch as their primary source of food each day. We believe all kids should have access to healthy food that can sustain and nourish them.
That's why our Kids Café Healthy Meals program provides nutritious meals to our youth each evening during the academic year, and both breakfast and lunch during the summer months in order to ensure that they receive the nutritional support they need.
It's not only important that our members are free from the worry of not knowing where their next meal will come from, but also that they learn how to make healthy choices when they are away from our Clubs. That’s why, in addition to daily meal service, we work to teach our members how to choose healthy foods when they are not at our Clubs and to make the connection between eating well and feeling well and healthy.
Our Healthy Lifestyles programs teach members about the entire cycle of their healthy choices. Members grow fruits and vegetables in our Club’s garden and then harvest them for use in our “Young Chefs” elective cooking program, wherein kids can learn to prepare healthy meals following along with recipes. With more than two-thirds of our members being a part of single-parent households where a guardian is working long hours or multiple jobs, learning to prepare healthy meals gives our members the tools they need to be self-sufficient and make responsible choices over convenient ones.
Aside from diet, exercise is also an extremely important aspect of healthy living. For kids, exercise means playing and being physically active. That can be a real challenge for low-income urban youth who may not have safe play to play in or outdoors. Today, kids spend more time than ever before indoors and front of screens, but it’s extremely important for them to exercise every day. It is recommended that children and adolescents get at least 60 minutes of physical activity per day. Lack of play and increased screen exposure can cause many harmful effects on a child’s development and health. The benefits from exercise range from developing stronger bones, to lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels. But exercising also helps children sleep and focus better during the day, as well as handle life’s challenges.
Only 21.6% of 6 to 19-year-old children and
adolescents in the United States attain 60 or
more minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical
activity at least 5 days per week.
Many children rely on our Clubs as a safe place where they can run and play. Daily physical activity is not just important for kids because it keeps their bodies healthy - it also keeps their minds healthy. Daily physical activity is shown to increase a child’s mood and self-esteem, as well as help them overall in school. Students who are physically active tend to have better grades, school attendance, cognitive performance, and classroom behaviors. Children need a variety of structured and unstructured exercise to keep them on top of their game on and off the field.
At our Clubs, we offer a variety of options for members in our Healthy Lifestyles programs that keeps them active and having fun. Whether it’s in Triple Play, where members experience a higher level of physical activity through Daily Fitness Challenges, by participating in organized team sports like basketball, soccer, and volleyball, or just playing in the gym, there’s a way for every member at our Clubs to get up and get moving.
Health and fitness are extremely important for a child’s mind and body. It is important to educate our youth about the tools they need to succeed while they develop mentally and physically. The key to success is maintaining positive behaviors and a lifestyle that promotes their success. Helping kids on their way to becoming independent and successful adults is the role of places like Boys & Girls Clubs.
#AmericanHeartMonth serves a reminder that good health is something we need to take an active role in to achieve. Small, incremental changes to diet and activity level can make a big difference over time. When youth feel empowered to take control of their health, they feel empowered to take control of their lives.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South are committed to helping our members lead healthy, productive lifestyles so they can go on to achieve #greatfutures.
On May 5th, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South was recognized as “the safest Club in the nation” when we were awarded Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s 2023 Culture of Safety Award at BGCA’s 2023 National Conference in Orlando, Florida. As BGCA’s most coveted and prestigious national safety designation, the Culture of Safety Award is awarded annually to the local Club that best exemplifies an organization-wide commitment to physical and emotional safety. BGCMS was selected from more than 5,000 Clubs nationwide to receive this award. An award ceremony was held during BGCA’s 117th National Conference in Orlando, Florida, which was attended by representatives from thousands of local Boys & Girls Clubs across the United States. During the ceremony, BGCMS President & CEO, Derek Heim, was invited onstage to accept the award and share a few words about the Clubs’ mission and commitment to safety. “Safety is our number one priority,” Heim said. “We practice safety day in and day out. At BGCMS, every individual—from Club members all the way to the Board of Directors—is charged with keeping themselves and others safe.” Our commitment to safety is apparent in every aspect of leadership communication with staff and community members, including email messages, phone calls, and in-person conversations. Parents, staff, and community members can clearly recognize the critical role that safety has in Club strategy, programs, and operations. This award serves as a testament to BGCMS’s exceptional efforts in promoting safety throughout the organization and the broader community. Comprehensive training in child abuse prevention is required for all full-time and part-time staff. All staff are also required to download CrisisGo, an app that sends instant alerts and step-by-step guidelines in the event of an emergency. This year, our Clubs implemented WAVE, a drowning detection and prevention system. WAVE utilizes a comfortable, lightweight, head-band-like device to monitor how long each swimmer's face is fully submerged underwater. If someone submerges beyond the maximum safe allowable time, the WAVE system immediately alerts lifeguards so they can intervene – well before the event can turn dangerous. Throughout the past several years, our Clubs have been instrumental in implementing innovative safety programs and practices in the areas of facility improvement, emergency preparedness, and holistic youth well-being. BGCMS is honored to receive this award in recognition of its comprehensive safety efforts and is committed to continuing its innovative approaches as a community leader in safety.
Celebrating Women's History Month
What does an after school program look like when there is no longer a traditional school day? That’s the question that Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South has been working hard to answer since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic forced our temporary closure back in mid-March. Our Clubs have continuously looked for new ways to adapt to meet the challenges of this not soon to be forgotten year. In March, our Club leadership quickly sprang into action, pivoting our long running daily Kids Café healthy meals program to a “ Grab & Go ” style weeknight dinner service just two days after first closing our doors, in order to ensure that youth who might not otherwise have consistent access to healthy meals could receive free and nutritious dinners that could be picked up from either our Brockton or Taunton Clubhouse and eaten safely in their own home. Ever since, our Clubs have been adapting swiftly and intentionally to continue serving youth in need, beginning with the launch of our “Club at Home” virtual programming suite which provided 5-10 virtual activities and programs for youth each weekday through the end of the school year in June. As spring turned to summer, our focus turned to safely operating the summer programs at Camp Riverside in Taunton and at Camp Brookside at our Brockton Clubhouse. That meant reducing the daily capacity in camp programs to around 250 youth per day compared to the more than 500 youth served each day in 2019 summer camp programs in order to ensure social distancing could be observed and group sizes limited to no more than 10 youth. We extended the summer camp season at both camps by two weeks, offering full-day programming through Labor Day in response to the delayed start to the 2020-2021 school year. When the school year did finally arrive, our Clubs were ready to spring into action again. On September 21st, we launched full-day Learning Pods programs at both our Brockton and Taunton Clubhouses. The program day begins at 7:30 a.m. and provides youth with a safe and supportive place to do their remote learning while parents and guardians return to work. When the classwork portion of the day concludes, our Clubs revert to their roots -- offering many of the traditional after school enrichment programs and recreational activities which our members have enjoyed through the years. “It’s more important now than ever that youth have a place where they can receive support for their social-emotional needs and for many kids, without in-person school, our Clubs are the only place where they receive that intentional support,” - Samantha Fagundes , Taunton Clubhouse Executive Director With this in mind, our Clubs have made intentional adaptations to ensure programs were poised to meet the evolving needs of members as they returned to the Clubhouse this fall. In developing our programs for this school year we worked harder than ever to ensure that our programs included opportunities for youth to have a voice -- providing enriching hands-on and interactive experiences. In our Learning Pods, youth are divided by grade level into groups of up to 10 students with dedicated staff assigned to each pod. Each Clubhouse is currently serving approximately 60 children per day in Learning Pods -- in addition to another 50 or so youth per Clubhouse who are enrolled in licensed school age child care programs -- and all youth receive breakfast, lunch, and snacks as part of the programming day. In the morning, youth log in to their remote classes and participate in their school’s assigned curriculum from algebra to physical education, all within their pod. After the school day wraps up, our pods participate in rotating supplementary enrichment activities including gym games, computer skill-building, arts and crafts, STEM exploration, and outdoor play. Our Learning Pods provide kids with in-person staff support during their remote learning along with the enrichment and socialization that they would otherwise miss out on by being away from their traditional classroom environment. So far, this model has been a winning formula, giving kids that might otherwise be home alone a chance to thrive in a familiar environment and giving parents peace of mind that their children are safe and supported throughout the day. “ I really love the staff members here and that I’m able to see my friends, ” says Story , a 9-year-old enrolled in the 4th grade Learning Pod at the Taunton Clubhouse. Her friend and classmate Maya , also 9, agrees. “ I think online school is easier here than at home because I’m around 4th graders like me, ” said Maya when asked about the challenges of switching to remote schooling. With the help of support systems like these, students are finding new successes in their online classes, making friends, and getting the space they need to safely play and grow. “Fittingly, the kids here at the Brockton Clubhouse are handling this change like champions... Virtual learning is not easy for anyone but they are doing their best to keep learning and growing.” - Rachel Dawson , Brockton Clubhouse Sr. Program Director In Brockton , in addition to running a full-day Learning Pods program, we are also operating one of the only dedicated in-person teen programs in the city at this time. The daily activity slate kicks off at 2:30 p.m. each weekday with homework help and dedicated study spaces available for teens to pre-book. Elective enrichment programs like songwriting and music production, college prep, and small group mentoring begin around 4:30 p.m. each day. At our Brockton Clubhouse we have also introduced a refreshed version of our “ Money Matters ” financial literacy program which is sponsored by SCU Credit Union . The program teaches our teen members best practices for saving, budgeting, paying for college, and other valuable financial skills they will need as they enter early adulthood. Also in October, we began offering a teen Healthy Relationships 101 peer leaders program aiming to combat dating violence in partnership with Family and Community Resources, Inc. and Cape Verdean Women’s United through grant funding from the Dept. of Public Health. Marisa Nieves , College & Career Access Director at the Brockton Clubhouse, can’t overstate the importance of having a safe place for teens during the coronavirus pandemic, saying: “When our teens returned in late September they hadn’t been in the building since mid-March and they really needed a place to have safe social interactions... Ultimately, it’s about giving them a space where they can grow and feel connected through our programming." For Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South, 2020 has been about adapting our longstanding formula for impact to meet new challenges as they arise, and meeting those challenges head-on with resiliency and compassion for those most impacted by the social and economic effects of this sustained global health crisis. Adaptation has now become second nature, and despite all the challenges the year at hand has presented to our Clubs, we continue to live out their mission in support of the youth who depend on us. “Across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and across the Boys & Girls Clubs of America Movement, our rallying cry has been ‘ Whatever it takes to build great futures ’ for Club kids and this year it’s certainly taken more than any of us could have imagined. “I couldn’t be more proud of our organization and especially our frontline program staff for the flexibility and resilience they have shown these past 8 months... They may not realize it but our kids are learning so much just by watching how our staff team -- their mentors -- have risen to the occasion. I know that when we come through this we’ll all be coming away with a renewed sense of purpose and newfound confidence that we stand ready to take on any challenge that comes our way, together. ” - Derek Heim, BGCMS President & CEO One thing is for sure here at Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South... today and every day we will continue to adapt, overcome, and we will continue to do whatever it takes to build great futures .
On July 1, 2019, the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton and the Boys & Girls Club of Taunton officially merged to become Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South after nearly two years of partnership in order to do more for even more kids in Southeastern Massachusetts.
This month we’re celebrating the one year anniversary of our union and taking a pause to reflect on all that we have accomplished in a year that has been anything but ordinary.
At Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South, the safety of our members has always been our highest priority, and now more than ever before during this unprecedented global health crisis, safety is at the forefront of every decision we make.
As we recognize hashtag#NationalWaterSafetyMonth throughout the month of May, we're reflecting on the critical importance of safety and skill in the water, and the longterm developmental benefits for youth of accomplishing the feat of learning to swim. For many of our Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South members, learning how to swim serves as the foundation upon which they'll build the confidence they need to try even more new things as they march towards adolescence and young adulthood.
#NationalVolunteerMonth, recognized throughout April, gives us the chance to celebrate the many incredible individuals and groups that help us live out our mission and ensure that every child has the chance to have a great future!
At the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South, #WomensHistoryMonth gives us the chance to honor our female founders, empower the women who carry out our mission, and embolden the future generation of female leaders within our Clubs
Each February, during #AmericanHeartMonth, Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South doubles down on our commitment to educating our boys and girls about the long-term impacts of the choices they make today on their health and vitality in the future. We know the road to heart health begins in childhood and that the habits youth form today are likely to become their habits for life.
Mentors offer a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction – and during #NationalMentoringMonth we are shining a spotlight on the important role that mentoring plays in the positive personal development of our members at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South.