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How You Can Help


Children do not choose the circumstances of their birth or childhood. In too many instances children along the Mississippi Gulf Coast do not dare to dream that they can change their destiny.

Those of us who never felt the struggle of these children or those us who did and broke through and realized our own potential must provide those children with the chance to break out of the boundaries imposed on them and help them experience new opportunities never before imagined.

These are our issues, to name a few:
  • Parents are working and away from the homes of over 60% of our school age children
  • Even with the parents working almost 50% of our school age children are on a free lunch program
  • 20% of our children do not graduate from high school
  • 70% of our children do not take high school courses to prepare them for higher education
  • 44 out of every 1,000 of our teenage girls will become a mother before the age of 18
Over time, the Boys & Girls Club mission has been expressed in many different ways, but the essence remains the same: to inspire and enable young people to become responsible, productive, caring citizens by providing quality programs and activities to assure that every young person we serve has the opportunity to share the American dream as we have.

We provide time-tested programs that provide solutions to each issue our children face. In its latest "Philanthropy 400" report, The Chronicle of Philanthropy ranked Boys & Girls Clubs #1 among youth organizations for the eighth consecutive year.

“What can I do to help?” you may ask. Well, there are many ways you can assist us with our mission:

Donate

Donations can be made in a variety of ways including:

Online - give a donation online through our secure form.

In-Kind Gifts - donate goods or services to direct service or administrative needs. Check out our Wish List for some items that we could use.

Special Events - Attend or sponsor a Special Event. We have everything from a Black Tie Dinner, to a Steak Dinner with Club Members, to a Golf Tournament. Just choose how you want to have fun, and we'll take care of the rest.

Planned Giving - Remember Boys & Girls Clubs in your will and estate plans with planned gifts or bequests of money, stocks, bonds, real estate, or other assets that can be designated for annual program operations or restricted to the Endowment Fund.

Volunteer

If you wish to help staff and Club members by sharing your time, please call the Club nearest you. There are many ways you can help. We support parent volunteer participation. We'll be happy to welcome you and familiarize you with activities. If you have a particular skill, why not share it with a youngster? Contact CStinson@bgcgulfcoast.org for more information about volunteering.

Join us by telling others in the community about the Boys & Girls Club and what we do. Encourage others to become involved. You CAN make a difference! With your help, we can continue to provide quality programs and experiences and address the issues for our children along the Gulf Coast!