B and G Club promotes activity

By Jane DeGeorge
Eagle Reporter
Published: June 19, 2008

Four square, tetherball and “capture the flag” are classic summer camp activities.

While the Boys and Girls Club of Madison County’s summer program offers most of these things, its opportunities reach beyond what you would expect of a typical day camp.

The club – which first started its after school program in March – has expanded its summer hours to 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.

The local program – which costs families $35 per year to attend (including summer and throughout the school year) – is open to middle school age children who would otherwise spend their days possibly unsupervised and most likely bored, according to the Madison club’s director, Rae Parker.

“The majority of these kids would just be at home…but home is not always an interesting, fun place,” Parker said. “This is a place where you can get a little bit of guidance and have fun at the same time.”

Besides participating in a variety of sports and arts activities, club members are also given the opportunity to study guitar, choir, Spanish, sewing, gardening and legal topics.

The Madison organization is developing a program called “Judge Madison,” which aims to familiarize teens with the legal field by hosting speakers, including area judges, lawyers and law students.

“We would eventually like to have the kids have mock trials to resolve their own disputes,” she said.

With the assistance of Madison County’s Master Gardeners, the club also offers teens opportunities to garden at Madison Primary School, the club’s director said.

This summer, the students will harvest the vegetables that MPS students planted earlier this year. Following the harvest, the rest of the summer months will be dedicated to tending to the garden and then planting their own seeds for the younger students to harvest in the fall.

Some tech-savvy club participants have been learning how to use a Global Positioning System, or GPS, device in order to pinpoint the physical location of certain longitude and latitude coordinates, Parker said.

Eventually the children plan to go on “geocaching” field trips, which are treasure hunts that involve the use of GPS devices to locate hidden presents and gifts.

The Boys and Girls Club of Madison County may eventually offer additional activities depending on the interests and skills of its volunteers. For information about the club, call (540) 948-5521 or (540) 407-1294.