What a thrill to be a part of our 106th National Conference in San Diego. The energy generated by more than 2,500 Club leaders made it clear that our Boys & Girls Club Movement is ready to move forward to a new day.
We spoke of the need to grow within our existing footprint by increasing average daily attendance, which is fed by youth served and membership. ADA leads to frequency, which is the gateway to outcomes. The Formula for Impact was a centerpiece of the conference, with many great examples reported on how it’s coming to life at local Clubs across the country.
"As citizens, we have to have a voice," said Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor (retired). "We have developed iCivics to teach young people how government works."
Our sessions were truly standout events. Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s presentation on the importance of teaching civics to children and teens was a real eye-opener. Another crowd-pleaser was “Rediscovering Play,” which examined the spirit of play and its ability to maximize personal and professional growth.
At last year’s conference, we celebrated 20 years of partnering with the U.S. military to serve the children and families of our brave men and women in uniform. This year brought another significant milestone: the 20th anniversary of Boys & Girls Clubs on Native American lands. This partnership has blossomed over the past two decades to serve some 88,000 Native American youth at nearly 200 Clubs in 25 states. In commemoration, we presented a resolution to Jackie Johnson-Pata, executive director of the National Congress of American Indians. We also recognized Jackie’s tremendous leadership of our Native American National Advisory Committee with the JM Medallion.
This year's Alumni Hall of Fame inductees were impressive in their achievements and humble in their remarks.
Our Alumni Hall of Fame ceremony reminded us of the power of the Club Experience. Nine former Club kids were honored for extraordinary success in diverse fields such as the military, the arts and athletics. Each shared how their great future started with the self-confidence instilled in them at their Club.
Of course, these stories were complemented by so many others. One was from a staff member at the hotel, who told us how the Club saved his life; that if not for the Club, he would have followed the path of friends no longer with us … a powerful message we must never forget.
Kudos to our current regional and national Youth of the Year winners, too. These terrific young people lent a huge hand – hosting sessions, conducting a roundtable and generally serving as ambassadors for our Movement.
The Grand Finale on the last night wrapped things up wonderfully. Clubs were honored for exceptional marketing efforts and program offerings. Gifted Club members sang, danced and entertained the standing-room-only audience. Those young people are great examples of how a Club can nurture, support and bring out the very best in kids.
Like all the professionals and board volunteers who were there, the conference left me inspired, motivated and more determined than ever to increase Clubs’ impact on our kids.