On June 26, the GreatNews.Life (GNL) core staff held its second quarterly meeting of the year at the Valparaiso Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana. After the team celebrated the company’s recent successes and discussed what lies ahead, Lauren Roths, club director of the Valpo branch, took them on a tour of the nearly two-year-old facility. The GNL team members learned more about the club’s programs, talked with some of the kids at the club, and even tried out some of the facility’s features for themselves. Roths believes that the Valpo branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana has had a significant positive impact on the community.
“We offer a wide variety of services to a very expansive community,” Roths said. “We interact with families from many different walks of life. We can use this space to advocate for those families as we provide their children with a safe space to go. Whether it’s our summer camps or our after-school programs that help kids build their social skills or learn something that their parents don’t have time to teach them, we have so many cool amenities to offer. I think our facility here offers an immense amount of opportunities for kids, no matter what their situation is. Moving into this building has enabled us to meet the needs of the Valpo community in a way that we never had before.”
During the tour of the club, Roths showed the GNL team the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Lab where kids can learn how to dissect insects and use a 3D-printing machine, the Music Room and adjoining studio where kids can take music lessons and produce their own songs, and the gymnasium where kids can engage in a variety of sports. Roths also let the team take an early look at the nearly completed Exergaming Room, a space where kids can play active virtual games like soccer and Dance Dance Revolution. Chris Mahlmann, founder of GNL, appreciates the opportunity to see what the club has to offer.
“The Boys & Girls Club is a place where kids feel like they belong and where they are surrounded by a team that cares about them,” Mahlmann said. “It’s the perfect setting for us to meet and talk about how our team members serve one another. It’s also been a great opportunity to appreciate just how incredible a resource the Boys & Girls Club has been in so many of our communities. On top of that, being here today also helps us remember what it is like to be kids.”
Upon the tour’s completion, Mahlmann and Jenny Craig-Brown, executive director at GNL, engaged in a race up the club’s two-story indoor rock-climbing wall, of which Craig-Brown emerged the victor. The GNL team then returned to the gymnasium for a quick round of dodgeball in which staff members had a face-off with Mahlmann. Craig-Brown viewed the outing at the Boys & Girls Club as a well-deserved treat for the staff.
“Our team is amazing,” Craig-Brown said. “We just perfectly wrapped up an insanely busy quarter. I hope everyone had fun together here at the club today. They truly deserve it after all the hard work they put in."
Roths hopes that more individuals will plan a visit to the Valpo club to learn about the great programs and resources offered there
“I believe that our children have been overlooked in some ways in recent years, especially since the pandemic,” Roths said. “I hope everyone who visits us recognizes that we need more spaces like this for kids in the community. It's great when people can come here and see kids being kids again because I don’t think that’s something we see a lot these days. Spaces like our facility show community members all of the great things that the Valpo Boys & Girls Clubs has to offer. I always tell adults that if they come in, play with some of the kids, or have a conversation with them, it will open their eyes to so many different things.”
You can learn more about the services and programs offered by the Valparaiso branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Northwest Indiana by visiting bgcgreaternwi.org/valparaiso.
