A ‘Bon Temps’ for Boys & Girls Club of Taylor
The Boys & Girls Club of Taylor recently held a Mardi Gras-themed fundraiser on where the good times rolled – “Laissez les bons temps rouler.” This was the third year of the event, which was well attended by many brightly costumed guests.
Area director Daniel Antsee said numbers fell short of last year’s, but the Mardi Gras fundraiser brought in close to $23,000.
Fundraiser guest Rachael Bonser said, “I think it’s quite amazing actually what they can do for how much they do it for. It’s pretty impressive.”
The fundraiser covers approximately five percent of annual operational costs. Membership and activity fees only cover approximately six percent of annual costs, so the rest has to be raised mainly through federal, state, and local grants.
The Boys & Girls Club of Taylor opened in August 2019 with support from Taylor Independent School District and St. David’s Foundation that both continue to provide resources that enables the program to offer its services at what Antsee said was “an extremely affordable level.”
Annual membership dues are $25 per child, maximum $50 per family. After school activity fees are $20 per month per child, maximum $40 per family. Summer weekly fees are $10 per child, maximum of $20 per family.
“For those who may find it challenging to pay this, there are scholarships available,” Antsee said, but he acknowledged most families are happy to pay these fees.
Last year, the Boys & Girls Club of Taylor served a total of 409 children with around 140 children attending the after-school program each day. Antsee said 70% of these children qualify for free/reduced lunches at school and 51% reside in a single parent household.
The Boys & Girls Club of Taylor offers activities such as homework help, college and career readiness, health and nutrition education, computer literacy, arts and crafts and sports and recreation. During spring and summer breaks, the children are taken to local parks and attractions, including sporting events and ballet.
“All of our programming is intentional,” Antsee said, with programming flowing into three priority outcomes: academic success, good character and citizenship and healthy lifestyles.
While the Mardi Gras fundraiser provided a monetary boost that the Boys & Girls Club of Taylor needed, they also need to increase their volunteer base.
“Our impact can be measured by the positive and caring adults who are willing to support the staff and who bring subject matter expertise to the Club environment,” Antsee said.
Branch director Gerald Walker said the Boys & Girls Club of Taylor could use volunteers in a variety of interest from STEAM, technology, 3-D printing to gardening, playing guitar or Lego groups.
Antsee said, “Volunteers can help in whatever their passion is. We can integrate them into our programming easily.”
Anyone interested in volunteering can reach out to Gerald Walker or Velma Nealy at 512-3093030 for more information.
