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News & EventsAugust 2014
In This Issue
August 21 Aberdeen Open House
Featured Youth of the Month
Kiss-A-Pig 2014
Camp Hidden Valley 5K Run
Win the IronRam!
GRAND OPENING of New Field
Badges for Baseball
Oriole's Draft Pick Visits Aberdeen Club
Visiting the Estuary Center
Young Leaders Academy
STARS 2014
Great Futures Campaign
Summer Meals for Hungry Kids
This Door Transforms Lives
 ...Take the Tour and find out how 
Interested in learning more about Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County?

Join us at our Aberdeen Club  Thursday, August 21st, at 4pm for a tour during our free open house event.

Find out how you can help create a great future.

RSVP at: 
http://www.bgcharfordco.org/tour/
100 E Bel Air Ave. Aberdeen, MD 21001.
Join Our Mailing List
Featured Youth of the Month
HAVRE DE GRACE CLUB
Youth of the Month
**Imani C.**
 
Imani has been a Club member for 7 years at the Havre de Grace Boys & Girls Club. This summer Imani has been an active member of our Young Leaders Academy, where she encourages other young leaders to make wise choices. She is always ready to lend a helping hand when needed without being asked.

When Imani joined the Club in 2007, she was very shy and stand-offish. This summer Imani has made a great transformation into a more social individual. She enthusiastically participates in a lot of activities, and shows much interest in helping our younger club members.

"Club membership has positively impacted me- forcing me to step out of my comfort zone and learn new skills. I have never had to adjust as quickly as this before, so I have had to improve my social skills. I have been going to the Boys & Girls Club for seven summers and it is a comfortable environment that means a lot to me." -Imani 

Kiss a Pig!


Kiss-A-Pig was a PIG-A-RIFIC success!  We gathered together to celebrate at the MD State BBQ Bash on Friday, August 8th, where Harford Mutual was named Most Valuable Puckerer (MVP) for raising over $6,000 dollars for the Clubs.

Haford Mutual named MVP!

All together our Pig-Kissers raised over $36,000 for Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County, showing they truly have what it takes to make a lasting impact on their community and support #GreatFutures.

Thank You Pig-Kissers!

Thanks to Howard McComas, our event chair, for all his hard work. Special shout out to Paula Cassagrande at Big House Signs for the amazing promotional materials she created throughout the summer!

Get in on the challenge! The course includes some pavement, mostly trail. Many segments are very technical with significant uphill and downhill sections. 

DATE
Saturday, August 23rd
Registration: 7:00-7:45am
5K: 8:00 a.m. 
1 Mile Trail Walk: 8:30 a.m.

LOCATION
Camp Hidden Valley
4722 Mellow Road
White Hall, MD 21161

COST
$30

FEE INCLUDES:
-Breakfast after race
-Post-race refreshments
-Technical t-shirt

PACKET PICKUP & LATE REGISTRATION:
Fri Aug 22nd, 4:00pm-6:00pm
Bel Air Boys & Girls Club
525 W. MacPhail Road
Bel Air, MD 21014

Register early to be guaranteed a shirt

REGISTER AT: WWW.ACTIVE.COM
(Hidden Valley)

*PROCEEDS BENEFIT OUR CLUBS & CAMP HIDDEN VALLEY
You Could Win the IronRam!
Official Community Truck of the Aberdeen IronBirds
Cook Auto is giving you the chance to win the IronRam!

Visit the IronRam table during any IronBirds home game this season and make a $1 donation to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County. Your donation enters you into the IronRam raffle.

One lucky winner will be drawn from the raffle and invited to Ripken Stadium for the final game of the season on September 1st, where they'll have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to drive home the IronRam*.

*Restrictions apply. For full contest details, visit the IronRam table at any IronBirds home game this season.

Quick Links...


August is here, and our Clubs are teaming with activities, trips, and fun!  We have lots to celebrate this month, including the launch of our Great Futures Campaign, the success of our Kiss-A-Pig fundraiser, the grand opening of our new field at the Aberdeen Club, and the great accomplishments of our Summer Enrichment Program members.  Our Summer has been filled with lots of excitement, and we are giving no signs of slowing down. Check out all of our highlights below to learn more about what we are doing to encourage, inspire, and support #GreatFutures.
 
GRAND OPENING OF 
Vi Ripken Field at Ollie's Bargain Outlet Park
Cal Jr. addresses crowd at ribbon cutting.
On August 11th, Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County gathered with the Ripken Family and friends of our organization to celebrate the grand opening of our newest facility. The Vi Ripken Field at Ollie's Bargain Outlet Park is a state of the art multi-purpose field and baseball diamond located at our Aberdeen Club, and it is beautiful! The field is a wonderful addition to the community as a whole, and our Club members are already enjoying their new turf.  If you or your company is interested in renting time on the field, contact us at 410-272-0010.  


Vi Ripken Field at Ollie's Bargain Outlet Park
Aberdeen Boys & Girls Club
100 E. Bel Air Avenue
Aberdeen, MD 21001
 
BADGES FOR BASEBALL GRADUATION
Jeremiah D. happily accepts his Badges for Baseball award
On August 5th, our youngsters wrap up another successful year of their Badges for Baseball Program sponsored by the Ripken Foundation. They ended the day with a BBQ, a visit from the local police helicopter, and a graduation awards ceremony.  

A signature program of the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation, Badges for Baseball, was created in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice as a juvenile crime prevention initiative. It's a simple concept- pair police officers and club kids together in a fun recreational way to build positive relationships. We work to enhance the relationship between law enforcement and kids in under-served communities using baseball as the hook. The work is not easy, but THE RESULTS ARE REMARKABLE. Law enforcement officers become the coaches, using team sports to teach important lessons about teamwork, communication, respect, and leadership that can be used both on and off the field.

*Program description from ripkenfoundation.org
Oriole's Newest Draft Pick Visits Aberdeen Club
Baltimore Orioles Draft Pick, Patrick Connaughton, visits our kids at the Aberdeen Club. Connaughton is a recent draft pick of the Baltimore Orioles and is currently playing with the Aberdeen IronBirds this summer. He also currently plays basketball at the University of Notre Dame. Connaughton got a chance to play some kickball with our Red Group kids (6-7yr. olds).  The game had just started when he arrived, and he didn't have a problem jumping right in; the more the merrier!  Especially when you are a professional athlete! He also had a Q & A session with our Blue Group (10-12yr olds). After that session, he signed autographs and took a couple of pictures before he had to leave.

 Check Out Our Photo Album!
Aberdeen Visits the Anita C. Light Estuary Center

Aberdeen's Red Group attended the Anita C. Light Estuary Center for our Summer Enrichment Program's "Going Green Week". The group was introduced to the various animals that could be found throughout the estuary like snakes, frogs, a box turtle, and more. They went on a scavenger hunt to find different items like certain leaves, rocks, flowers, tree roots, and other items in nature. The group then learned about water pollution and what they can do to help prevent pollution in the water and the environment.
Young Leaders Academy
YLAs Visit Washington D.C.
Our summer Young Leaders Academy (YLA) has been filled with exciting opportunities for fun and learning. These aspiring leaders have been spending time gaining life skills, developing career goals, and getting job experience. Our YLA participants have also been working to collect 300 volunteer hours throughout the summer.
 
Financial Literacy is an important topic for teens that is often overlooked in High School curricula. Sue Manning from Freedom Credit Union launched our financial literacy sessions with a Money Matters tour of the Bureau of Printing & Engraving in Washington, D.C.
YLAs get down to business at Mad City Money, sponsored by APGFCU
APGFCU sponsored a Mad City Money workshop, where our YLAs were each given unique profiles that laid out their profession and budget, then they traveled around to different vendors where they had to make important life purchasing decisions like buying a house, car, and furniture, while paying for monthly bills. Each YLA had to end the day with a balanced budget!
 
The YLA is a teen career explorations program focused on preparing youth for jobs in the future. Through this program, teens, ages 13-16, have the opportunity to create a portfolio including a resume, cover letter, and goals for the future. During the summer months, they spend time shadowing Club professionals, visiting local companies and listening to guest speakers.  
STARS 2014
Thirty-six Boys & Girls Clubs kids from Harford and Cecil County spent last week at Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) doing science experiments and learning more about how STEM professionals help the US Army. STARS (STEM for Academically Rising Students) is a new program developed through the collaboration of AFCEA, APG STEM Outreach, and i3STEM at the Clubs. The kids had an engaging week exploring SugoBots, making batteries, extracting DNA, working with Blender, and each day was filled with awesome activities to excite and engage them in STEM. Many thanks to AFCEA and to Dr. Sandy Young of APG for making the week so incredible for our kids!


AT 3PM SCHOOLS ARE OUT, AND CLUBS ARE IN!
On July 31st, we particpated in the national launch of the Great Futures Campaign, which brings awareness to the fact that every day, 15 million kids nationwide leave school with no place to go, putting them at risk of being unsupervised, unguided and unsafe. During the summer, an alarming 43 million American kids lack access to summer learning programs, increasing their risk of learning loss and putting them at a disadvantage before the school year starts.  In Harford County, we provide nearly 4,000 kids with a safe place to learn in the after-school and summer hours, but there are many more thousands of local children who are not taking advantage of our services.  Join us in our movement to spread awareness about our Club services, and make a donation to help support the growth of our organization.  Together, we can make a difference that lasts for generations.

It's 3:00p.m. Open the Door to #GreatFutures
It's 3:00p.m. Open the Door to #GreatFutures

Summer Meals for Hungry Kids
When school is out, children are still hungry. Did you know that The Summer Table Program provides children 18 and under with breakfast and lunch for FREE! Our Aberdeen, Havre de Grace, and Edgewood Clubs are serving meals at 8:00am and 11:00am. You do NOT need to be enrolled in our summer programs to eat! The Summer Table Program runs through August 22nd at our participating locations.

Click HERE for more information.

 

FEATURED WISH LIST ITEMS FOR AUGUST

This month while you are cleaning the house or shopping for back-to-school supplies considering donating some much needed items to your local Boys & Girls Clubs.  

August's Featured Items: 
BATTERIES - PING PONG PADDLES/BALLS- CONSTRUCTION PAPER - BAND AIDS - TAPE
To See Our Full Wish List CLICK HERE