WATER TESTED FOR BOYS, GIRLS CLUB IN CAPE

A Boys and Girls Club could provide a safe place where youths from Cape Girardeau would find lots of activities done consistently with positive adults.

But does Cape Girardeau need such a club? That is the question Fred Paulke, regional director for Boys and Girls Clubs of America, put to a group of board members and directors of local organizations meeting to learn what is needed to charter a club here.

"At this point you need a group to determine if Boys and Girls Clubs are a good fit for the kids that live in this community," Paulke said.

Boys and Girls Clubs of America is a nationwide organization with locally autonomous clubs in cities across the county. The national organization provides resources like programming, staff development and planning tools. The local franchise, run by a local board, provides facilities, staff and funding.

Paulke said the national organization requires standards to charter local clubs. There must be an attractive facility where boys and girls ages 6 to 18 can go, and it must offer programs in the five core areas of character and leadership development; education and career development; health and life skills; arts; and sports, fitness and recreation. The club must have an executive director, appropriate staff, basic liability coverage and pay national dues.

Paulke estimated it would take a minimum of $100,000 to $120,000 per year to operate a Boys and Girls Club in Cape Girardeau County.

The move to bring a Boys and Girls Club to Cape Girardeau is being undertaken by board members of the Cape Civic Center.

"We have a similar mission," said Tamara Buck, president of the Cape Civic Center board. "We want to be part of the process."

Since the Civic Center has a building with a gym, activity rooms and other features Boys and Girls Clubs recommends for a facility, the Civic Center could become a Boys and Girls Club or one of its branches, Buck said.

Those interested in bringing a Boys and Girls Club to Cape Girardeau want to quickly move forward with the idea because the national organization has a federal grant of $35,000 that could be used as seed money if a charter is granted here by Dec. 1.

A needs assessment Paulke put together using data from the 1999 Kids Count Report showed that conventional clubs, sports and student activities do not reach a great percentage of youths from low-income, disadvantaged homes and dysfunctional families in Cape Girardeau County.

"Although there are agencies, groups and dedicated individuals working on such community issues, including CASA, the Salvation Army, Big Brothers/Big Sisters and the Civic Center to mention just a few, it is apparent a void remains," the assessment states.

What Boys and Girls Clubs offers is programs that have been developed and tested nationally, Paulke said. He said those programs, meant to be fun while teaching important lessons, are offered in a safe, non-threatening environment.

Paulke said to move forward with chartering a Boys and Girls Club here, those interested need to do more work at determining a need for a club and what sorts of facilities would be needed. Then the club should incorporate, develop a constitution and bylaws and organize a board of directors.

"The board of directors is the No. 1 important thing to do," Paulke said. A good, hard-working, diversified board can go a long way in generating the enthusiasm and funding that will make a club successful, he said.

Once the board is in place, it can secure a building, determine costs, raise funds and employ an executive director.