Your previous support and coverage of the Boys and Girls Club of Harrisburg has helped us to provide safe after-school and summer programs for over 1000 children in 2019. We are asking you to renew your support this year with a gift to the club because the community needs us to help even more children than before.

The Harrisburg School District estimates that approximately 3000 children leave school at risk of being unsupervised, unguided, and unsafe during the critical after-school hours. For every hour a child spends in school, they spend two hours out of school. What happens between school and home has a dramatic impact on a child’s future, and these moments are vital in determining the course of a child’s life.

The Club provides access to positive and productive after-school and summer programs, as well as caring adult mentors. We intentionally intervene in the lives of our Club members to create positive opportunities for them to reach their full potential. We work tirelessly to reverse the most negative trends facing our youth and our country, including low graduation rates, drug abuse, violence, and obesity.

When young people have access to a safe place with caring adult mentors and enriching programs during this crucial out-of-school time, great things happen. Last year alone, we served nearly 37,000 hot, nutritious meals for our members. We provided after-school programs for over 1,000 members, academic enrichment programs for 1,000 youth, and a nine-week summer camp program for 250 children. In addition, over 400 members participated in meaningful service projects.

These programs are having an impact. Last year, 80 percent of our children maintained or improved their good attendance records, and 100% of our senior Club members graduated high school on time. Compared to only 38% of non-member seniors from the same district.

Our impact is clear, but we know there are more than 3000 children in Harrisburg who still need access to the Boys & Girls Club. We are on a mission to double the number of children we serve. This is an ambitious goal, but the future of our city and the Capital Region depends on programs like the Boys & Girls Club to provide meals, safety and academic enrichment to help these children in need grow up to be successful and productive citizens.

We kindly ask you and your organization to join us in building a Brighter Future for children of the Boys & Girls Club of Harrisburg with a financial gift so we can provide even more children with food, mentoring, security and the learning enrichment necessary for a Brighter Future.

One way to make a gift and experience the impact of our programs is to attend our annual gala. This year’s gala, on November 1, promises to be ‘Out of This World.’ We are bringing Dr. Bernard Harris, Jr., the first African American astronaut to walk in space, to share his inspiring story of success and determination at the gala. Additionally, he is scheduled to speak to the children of the Club, and in select Harrisburg schools about setting their sights on the stars and pushing past obstacles to create a better future for themselves.

If you would like to sponsor a table at the gala or RSVP to bring a guest, please visit https://betterfuturebgchbg.eventbrite.com. If you cannot attend, but wish to make a tax deductible donation to please visit http://donate.bgchbg.org.

Thank you for your consideration and for helping us build a better future for the children of Harrisburg.

Sincerely,

Mark Hawthorne
Interim Executive Director

Marissa Hoover
Board Vice President

Scott Pitts
Communications Outreach Committee

Please register for the Out of this World: For a Better Future Boys & Girls Club 2019 Gala