knoxville news
knoxville news knoxville daily sun lifestyle business knoxville sports travel knoxville classifieds knoxville jobs knoxville legal notices knoxville yellow pages smoky mountains contact facebook twitter linkedin rss entertainment knoxville advertising
  3:59 p.m. March 28, 2015
Boys and Girls Clubs breaks ground on multipurpose facility

groundbreaking
Supporters and members of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley (BGCTNV) on March 25 break ground on a new 54,000-square-foot multipurpose facility to be built on the site of the current Haslam Family Club University on Caswell Avenue. Thanks to fundraising efforts from the “Our Kids, Our Future Campaign,” the organization will build the new complex to help serve more kids, more often, in a more meaningful way. Pictured from left: BGCTNV board chair Jim Alexander; campaign co-chair Dugan McLaughlin; campaign co-chair Tony Hollin; club members Mia Davis and William Watson; BGCTNV President and CEO Lisa Hurst; Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero; and club member Anndrena Downs.

KNOXVILLE — Thanks to fundraising efforts from the “Our Kids, Our Future Campaign,” the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley broke ground on facilities that will serve more kids, more often, in a more meaningful way.

The groundbreaking ceremony took place at the Haslam Family Club University, which will be home to the Caswell Avenue Complex. After its completion, the complex will be a central hub for all Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley activities and will allow for enhanced services to impact more youth across the community. The new facility will include a pool, gymnasium, teen center, technology center, medical clinic and administrative offices.

“Because of the generosity of so many East Tennesseans, we are in this position to break ground,” said Lisa Hurst, president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley. “We are still raising funds for the project and continued support is needed as we move forward with the last phase of our campaign, which will allow us to serve more kids, more often, in a more meaningful way.”

The number of youth served by the clubs will increase to 7,500 annually by 2018. Additionally, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley will invest in technology upgrades at all 19 clubs to ensure members have access to educational tools.

“I’d like to thank each and every person, family and business that contributed to the ‘Our Kids, Our Future’ campaign,” said Shakayla Blair, a fifth-grader at Inskip Elementary School who has been a member of the Boys & Girls Club for nine years. “You have invested in my future and our community. I will be forever grateful.”

With the many challenges facing today’s youth, the Boys & Girls Clubs services four counties and more than 43,000 school-aged children who are classified as economically disadvantaged. Only 22 percent of low-income families have access to computers, and 82 percent of the kids served at local clubs live in food-insecure households, meaning they are hungry or at risk of going hungry.

“At the heart of this entire project and campaign is a desire to take Shakayla’s story and create hundreds more just like it,” Hurst added. “Today is the beginning of that process, and we are thrilled that so many members of our community supported our efforts.”

To learn more and to make a donation, please visit OurKidsOurFuture.com. Supporters also are encouraged to share the Boys & Girls Clubs story on social media using #OurKidsOurFuture.

Published March 28, 2015




knoxville daily sun Knoxville Daily Sun
2015 Image Builders
User Agreement | Privacy Policy