Boys and Girls Club Looks to Expand

By Misty Cryer

Good things are happening at the Boys and Girls Club of Carlsbad for the benefit of kids in Eddy County. From adding new sites to strengthening programs, the nonprofit club aims to expand and improve infrastructure while ensuring the sustainability of the program.

The Boys and Girls Club of Carlsbad currently has two sites and is awaiting final approval for a third, with hopes that it will open this month, said Michelle Martinez, CEO of the local club. The main club is at 1602 West Fox St. “This is the one that’s been around since 1961, when the city gave it to us, so that’s been the staple,” she said.

The second site is located at Desert Willow School on Primrose Street. “We are on the third year at that location,” said Martinez. The third site is planned for Cottonwood Elementary, she said.

“I talked to Dr. Washburn, and we’re starting with Cottonwood, and then we’re going to move on to the other schools,” said Martinez. She said she is also collaborating with coaches to improve the opportunity for kids to learn the fundamentals of sports.

“Our youth in Carlsbad is in desperate need of education, of athleticism, of everything that kids are supposed to grow up with,” said Martinez.

Eventually, the club will probably be the Boys and Girls Club of Eddy County, she said. She plans to meet with Loving and Artesia to discuss partnering in the sports program. “We just want to make Eddy County better for our kids,” she said.

The Boys and Girls Club of America’s statistics say, if you do not have a kid productive by fifth grade, you will lose them to either drugs or violence, or they may just have a mediocre life, said Martinez. “We’ve got to step up as a town and be better for our children so we can have a better future,” she added.

The concept of the Boys and Girls Club has changed immensely, Martinez said. “People always thought the Boys and Girls Club is somewhere you can hang out; you can meet a tutor, basic things. We’re an enrichment program, so the kids that come here are required to participate. The whole focus is for kids to be kids and for them to grow up to be productive adults,” she said.

“After school, the kids go straight into Power Hour,” said Martinez, explaining that the kids get help with their homework and earn incentives. After Power Hour, she said, the kids rotate between art, STEM, the game room, and the gyms.

“We have the Torch Club here from ages 10 at 12 ,” said Martinez, explaining that it is a group that goes out and learns to volunteer in the community.

This is the first year the club has high school kids. “We are super excited about that because now, we can branch into workforce readiness,” she said, specifying that the students will learn how to do resumes, how to apply for jobs, etc.

“A lot of our funding comes in for specific projects. We are very thankful for it,” said Martinez. “My main goal for this year is sustainability,” she said, adding that about 90% of their funds are restricted.

Chevron helped change the culture of the club, said Martinez. “I’ve been here for almost two years now. They gave us $50,000 last year, $50,000 this year, pretty much for anything we needed. We were able to focus on school and Power Hour. They sponsor our field trips for the summer,” she said.

“We just reinstated bingo,” said Martinez. It is located at 206 E. Pecan St. and is now open on Sundays and Mondays. E-pull tab machines will also be added.

“We’ll open it Thursday through Monday,” she said. She said the Bingo Hall had been closed for four years, so the club has been lacking that funding.

Explaining that the Boys and Girls Club of Carlsbad is a closed, fee-based program, Martinez said about the after-school program, “The program at the main club is $200 a month, and Cottonwood is $200 a month.” The Desert Willow after-school program has a reduced fee of $100 per month, she said, because it is sponsored by Intrepid.

While historically, the program has been mostly fee-based, Martinez said, “We do have private donors. We’ve never really had state funding or federal funding.”

Now, the nonprofit organization has received mentoring grants through the state and the alliance, as well as food funding for its summer and after-school programs, she said. “We are working on getting state-funded so we can accept childcare. We’re trying to get all the programs in line,” she added.