Boys and Girls Club still trucking after staff cuts
Posted By Kevin Maimann/EXAMINER STAFF
Posted 3 months ago
We’ve been rocked, no doubt about it, but we’re still going to be here five years down the road.
With half the staff it had two months ago, the Boys and Girls Club of Edmonton needs local volunteers to step up.
The club cut 104 of its 214 staff members in September after the province ended a $200,000-per month contract for the club's Crisis Intervention Program.
The now-cancelled program, which provided one-on-one supervision for youth sent to hotels in emergency situations, ran on a fee-for-service basis.
"The Crisis Intervention Program was a profitable enterprise. We did make some money on that, which of course went to support some of the club activities (and) some of the administration," says Boys and Girls club executive director Ross Tyson.
Thanks to volunteers and a supportive board and staff, the club has managed to make a few adjustments and get back on track.
"We've been rocked, no doubt about it, but we're still going to be here five years down the road."
The club operates nine locations in high-risk, low-income Edmonton neighbourhoods. In 2008, Boys and Girls helped 4,300 Edmonton kids, a number that Tyson says will drop as a matter of attrition.
But the more volunteers they find, the less significant the drop will be.
"We're never comfortable and we're never satisfied with the number of kids we serve. We've got lots and lots of neighbourhoods in the city that could use our services and programs," he says.
"We do what we can do."
To learn how to volunteer or make a donation to the Boys and Girls Club, call 780-422-6038
