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A Summer Of Partnerships, Community And Celebration With The Boys & Girls Club Of Greater Vergennes

photo provided Boys & Girls Club Youth of the Year Jesse Whitney and VT Governer Peter Shumlin.

Tuesday July 16, 2013

By Cookie Steponaitis

   Summer months seem to fly by and the average Vermont family packs more into the daylight hours than at any other time of the year. It is a time of planning, planting and harvesting and gatherings and celebrations both small and large. The same can be said for the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Vergennes as they mark their summer months with new partnerships, successes, and a celebration of their youth and community support and plan carefully for a future that is still far from secure.

    The Vergennes Boys & Girls Club, like hundreds of other clubs around the nation found themselves at the beginning of this fiscal year with shortages in their budgets of literally $70,000 due to grants and other federal funding no longer being available. In order to meet this challenge the Vergennes Club under the leadership of Mike Reiderer and the Board of Directors made the painful but necessary decision to close the youth center part of the program and to change the ages of their teen center to serve fifth grade –twelfth grades. At the heart of these massive changes was an outreach to the community that has been answered by individuals, groups, civic organizations and corporations alike. “We are very thankful,” commented Reiderer, “that a large number of donors have stepped up including County Home Products, WOW Toys, Vergennes Rotary, Vergennes Lions Club and individual donors.”

    Reiderer went on to stress his great appreciation for not only how the groups are stepping up but linking with other organizations to acquire much needed funds and supplies for the children’s programs. The Vergennes Rotary not only contributes $100.00 a week for snacks to be purchased for the teens but joined with the Middlebury Rotary to write a grant at the district level to secure additional funding. It is this kind of networking and outreach that has encouraged the Boys & Girls Club about the future and documents the strength of community support.

    The highlight of the summer celebration is the selection of the annual Youth of the Year which is part of a proud tradition of recognizing growth and hard work of the teen members.  Many young people who have previously received this recognition have been selected as the Vermont Youth of the Year and this year the club is proud to congratulate Jesse Whitney as the 2013 Youth of the Year. Reiderer expressed that, “Jesse has grown into a true leader at the Club, helping staff with projects, welcoming new members and contributing to the constructive atmosphere by encouraging other members to use appropriate ‘Club behavior’ which is a big development from his early days at the Club.  As Jesse puts it, “I used to have a bad temper at times but I’ve learned to redirect my anger and talk about what is bothering me.  The club staff didn’t just kick me out; they encouraged me to talk about my problems.  As I got older it helped me to see other people’s point of view.” Jesse's interests include culinary arts, video games and athletics.  As a member of the undefeated State Champion Boys Basketball team at Vergennes Union High School Jesse learned the value of hard work, sportsmanship and being a good teammate.  He became a real fan favorite over the course of the season.  Jesse will be working towards furthering his education in a Culinary Arts program upon graduation and would like to continue to volunteer at the Club.  

    The annual fundraising campaign for the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Vergennes commences in the month of August.  The needs are still there but the programs are still continuing meeting the teens’ needs where they are needed. It is a place to be safe, to grow and develop new skills and most importantly a place to call their own. “We are serving as many children now as when we had the youth center,” shared Mike Reiderer. The Vergennes Boys & Girls Club is open for business no matter the season and continues partnering with others to keep the doors open and the programming strong.

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