BRYAN, Texas — The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Brazos Valley is hosting its first Volunteer Appreciation event on Wednesday, May 1.
Volunteers are an essential part of the Boys & Girls Clubs by impacting the local youth in town through education and mentorship.
Gabriel Flores-Lovo is a junior computer engineering student at Texas A&M and a Boys & Girls Clubs volunteer.
“When I was a kid, I had to be at a lot of after school programs myself, so being able to give back in that way, being able to be the person that I liked to see when I was at those after school programs,” Flores-Lovo said.
Program Administrator Rodneshia Broades with the Boys & Girls Clubs helps coordinate the volunteers.
“We’ve had a great shift in getting volunteers to come out and dedicate their time to the kids,” Broades said.
She found a way to give thanks to the volunteers who show up on their own time to make a difference in kids’ lives.
“We realized that we needed to support them and give back to them in a way that just shows that we appreciate them, and we just want to extend our gratitude in that way,” Broades said.
She said volunteers will spend Wednesday being showered in appreciation and networking with the community.
Although the club sees 600 volunteers throughout the school year, she said there is still a big need for more.
“In the summer, we really need support from the community as far as volunteers,” Broades said. “We don’t have the volunteers here during that time because as you stated, most of them go home.”
While dedicating time to volunteer, Flores-Lovo said it’s important we focus on the youth.
“It’s the future of everybody right, being able to give back to communities, starting at the youth level is very important because of course kids are the most vulnerable group that we have in society,” Flores-Lovo said.
You can help make difference in your neighborhood by volunteering with the Boys & Girls Clubs as they are currently looking for more volunteers.
You can find the volunteer form here.