When the school bell rings at the end of every day, hundreds of kids across the Black Hills pour out of classrooms and into their after school routines. For some, this means heading home where they are met by a parent who helps them with homework before driving them to basketball practice and piano lessons. For others in our community, after school options are far less certain, stable and safe.
At Boys & Girls Clubs, we know the hours between 3:00-6:00 p.m. are the peak hours for juvenile crime and the time when kids are most likely to experiment with drugs, alcohol, cigarettes and other risky behaviors. We also know that today in our Black Hills community, children are facing obstacles more challenging than ever before. Kids from low-income families are six times more likely to drop out of school, and 41 percent of kids across the Black Hills are overweight or obese – a number that continues to steadily increase year after year.
Boys & Girls Clubs provide young people with opportunities to engage in programs that help them achieve academic success, take charge of their health by building healthy habits that will stick with them throughout their lives, and foster the skills they need to become leaders in their communities.
Boys & Girls Clubs are there for kids when they need us most: after school, all day in the summer, and even Fridays. Our membership is open to all youth ages preschool – age 18, and for $25 annually, our Club members have access to a wealth of programming that has the power to positively shape and change their lives.