The
Little Rock Boys & Girls Club began in 1912 as the Citizenship Club formed
by a group of Little Rock newspaper carriers. In 1917, with 700 members,
they became the Little Rock Boys club. The first permanent facility was
constructed in 1931. Membership was opened to girls in 1971. Membership
has grown to 4,200 boys and girls ages 6 to 18 in five units. The units
are located in predominantly low-income residential areas in southeast,
central, southwest and near-west Little Rock. Seventy-five percent of club
members are considered at-risk. The Little Rock Boys & Girls Club has a
proud, 88-year tradition of developing boys and girls into well-rounded
adults and productive, responsible citizens. We have an outstanding record.
Over the years we have adapted to meet the changing needs of youth in a
changing, increasingly hazardous society. Today the Little Rock Boys & Girls
Club is as relevant for the positive development of kids as it was in 1912.
The Boys & Girls Club has developed solutions and alternatives to many of
the pressures and problems today's kids face. We intervene with positive
life-shaping programs, producing the direction so many need. We provide
the only family relationships and positive role models many will have and
give them positive alternatives to neighborhood gangs and destructive personal
behavior.
Help
young people 1) avoid drugs, alcohol, and premature sexual activity; 2)
reject gangs and delinquent behavior; 3) resolve conflicts peacefully; 4)
adopt fitness as a way of life; 5) build better relationships; 6) develop
leadership skills; 7) explore their own creativity; and 8) pursue education
and career aspirations.