Column: Boys & Girls Club of Portage County Announces Pacesetter Donors
Donors lauded in first-ever capital campaign entitled “Building Great Futures”
For the City Times
With the New Year comes new beginnings for the Boys & Girls Club. Behind its blue door, exciting changes are being planned and the Club would like to encourage everyone in the community to be a part of these changes.
In December, the Boys & Girls Club of Portage County announced their “Building Great Futures” Capital Campaign with a goal of $4.2 million to be raised by Fall 2015. The campaign was created to construct a new, permanent home for the Stevens Point Club; relocate the Teen Center to the new facility; renovate the Plover Club house; enhance the safety and security of all Portage County Club sites; and provide more meals and snacks through new kitchen facilities.
Nestled between P.J. Jacobs Junior High and the former Mid-State Technical College building, at (2442 Sims Avenue), the future home of the Stevens Point Boys & Girls Club is perfectly situated for easy access by youth of all ages.
At the new Stevens Point location alone, the Club’s Board of Directors and Staff anticipate serving 300 more children annually and membership is anticipated to grow by more than 24%. The estimated number of snacks in a year will approach 30,000 and meals will surpass 10,000. This is 15,000 more snacks and meals per year than are served today.
This project has been years in the making. For the past six months alone, the Club’s Past Board Presidents from throughout its history came together, without hired professional consultation, to initiate this campaign. With a goal of $4.2M, thanks to the generosity of many community individuals and local businesses, 90 percent of the campaign has already been achieved.
Reaching 90% of this goal would not have been possible without the help of several local individuals and businesses, but especially thanks to two Pacesetter Donors.
It is the Boys & Girls Club’s distinct honor and privilege to announce the two Pacesetter Donors for its “Building Great Futures” capital campaign – Bob & Mary Berard and Delta Dental of Wisconsin. As Pacesetters for the Building Great Futures capital campaign, Bob & Mary Berard and Delta Dental of Wisconsin have taken the lead in setting high standards of giving for Portage County to follow. Both donors have each donated a generous $1 million to the Boys & Girls Club’s “Building Great Futures” capital campaign.
“Bob and Mary Berard have been long-time supporters of the Boys & Girls Club and for this project it’s no different. When visiting with Bob and Mary, they felt they could leave their own legacy by contributing to a project that will positively impact the lives of kids and this community for a very long time,” noted Kevin Quevillon, Executive Director. “They shared with me a story about one of their own employees at their farm who really values the Boys & Girls Club and what the Club provides for this employees’ own children so they were very interested in helping the Boys & Girls Club increase its impact.”
Additionally, the new Stevens Point facility will include a “Delta Dental” room dedicated to providing onsite dental screenings, preventive oral health programs, and education. “At Delta Dental, we are committed to supporting oral health initiatives from around the state. We are helping fulfill their need for expansion while executing part of our mission, to help improve access to oral health care,” noted Delta Dental of Wisconsin’s President, Dennis Brown.
With assistance from Delta Dental of Wisconsin and Bob & Mary Berard, the Boys and Girls Club of Portage County will be able to reach more children in this community, especially those who need it the most. “We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of our Pacesetter Donors as well as our other early contributors during our first-ever “Building Great Futures” Capital Campaign. This momentum they have provided will help us achieve our goals and create the best facilities we can have for children,” added Kevin Quevillon.
The Boys & Girls Club still has $400,000 to raise by the Fall of 2015. The Club is hoping that individual and business donors will follow the lead of the Pacesetter Donors and other early contributors to achieve its full goal of $4.2M for the “Building Great Futures” capital campaign.
For more information on the “Building Great Futures” Capital Campaign and to see progress being made toward the goal, visit www.NewDoorsGreatFutures.org. To stay connected to the Boys & Girls Club, visit www.BGClubPC.org, like the Boys & Girls Club on Facebook www.Facebook.com/bgclubpc and follow @bgclubpc on Twitter.