January 2024
GREAT FUTURES START HERE
Road Code: A Virtual Driving Lesson
In November and December, the Morgan County Club let 34 teenagers get "behind the wheel" and practice safe driiving as part of the UPS Road Code Program.

UPS Road Code teaches safe driving techniques with the use virtual reality headsets. The program was designed to make learning to drive an immersive, fun, and educational experience.

The Morgan County teens, ranging in age from 14 to 16 learned to navigate the road based on the same safety training that UPS uses to train its own drivers. The program is a combination of classroom instruction and a virtual driving experience.
How Far Does a Dollar Go?
One of the goals of the Boys & Girls Club is to provide opportunities for our kids to learn skills that will help them grow into great citizens. We can't do that alone, so we count on our community partners to help. United Bank is one of those partners.

Employees from United Bank spent time with our Jefferson County kids in December doing "I'm a Grown Up" lessons. The kids received a "paycheck," cashed their "paycheck," paid a bill,and went grocery shopping without overspending.

"We love when local businesses and professionals come into the club and share their knowledge," said CEO Stacie Rohn. "One of the most important things we can do for our kids is to show them there are a lot of people who are cheering for them and think they are important enough to share their time and talents."
Behind the Blue Doors:
Meet Our Staff
Monica Addison came on board as the Jefferson County Unit Director in Februay 2023 after previously working part time as a Youth Development Specialist. Originally from Romania, Monica moved to Maryland when she was 24 years-old and moved to the Eastern Panhandle in 2008.
 
Prior to becoming the full-time director in Jefferson County, she worked for 11 years at Ranson Elementary Schoo as the Parent Involvement Coordinator.

With a background in science, Monica is always finding creative STEM activities to do with Club members. Monica says “I love working with the kids and their parents.”
 
Monica and her husband have two sons and one daughter, and she is well-known for encouraging all of them to volunteer for the Boys & Girls Club.
A Holiday Gift from Carter Myers Automotive
The Boys & Girls Club of the Eastern Panhandle received $25,000 from Carter Myers Automotive (CMA) Martinsburg and Winchester Dealers as part of the automotive group’s annual Orange Saturday event. During the month of November, local CMA dealers donated $25.00 per vehicle sold to the Boys & Girls Club of the Eastern Panhandle.

“This donation was a true holiday blessing,” said Stacie Rohn, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of the Eastern Panhandle. “As we wrap up 2023 and look forward to 2024, our number one goal is to ensure that we serve every child and family who can benefit from our programs. That costs money, and we appreciate businesses like CMA who understand the importance of investing in our kids.”

Toyota is a national partner with the Boys & Girls Club, and $15,000 of the donation came from CMA’s Toyota of Martinsburg. The remaining $10,000 came from CMA’s Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram (CDJR) of Martinsburg, CMA’s Honda of Winchester, CMA’s Subaru of Winchester, and CMA’s Hyundai of Winchester.

“We were very excited to rally together for such a great cause,” said Shamika Page, Regional Marketing Manager with Carter Myers Automotive. “Our dealers want to support our local kids and make a real impact in their lives.”
Lessons Learned

To start the new year off right, several members of the Boys & Girls Club staff participated in a training on January 3 to learn about youth and gambling.

Maricel Bernardo, Program Director with The Problem Gambling Help Network of WV, shared information about marketing and media that encourages youth to gamble as well as about strategies to teach them about the issues.

"We aren't against gambling," said Bernardo. "We just want people to do it responsibly. We also want parents and individuals who work with youth to understand how activities such as playing video games can trap young people into behaviors that will lead to gambling problems.

According to Bernardo, the problem of youth gambling is growing. Youth are two to four times more likely to develop problem gambling symptoms than adults. The Problem Gamblers Help Netwok of WV conducts surveys of WV middle and high schoolers. These surveys show that many gamble and are already exhibiting symptoms of problem gambling behaviors.

The Network has provided the Boys & Girls Club with activities to do with our kids to teach them about the issue.
Annual Presidents' Day Dance Tickets on Sale!
Frostyfest to Benefit Boys & Girls Club
Round Up For the Boys & Girls Club
Please remember there is an easy way to give to the Boys & Girls Club: round up!
 
A "Round-Up" is the term to describe the spare change captured by automatically rounding up your transactions to the next dollar when making a purchase with your bank card. Your bank account probably won't even notice the difference - but our club will!
 
Just use the QR code to link to our "Round Up" sign up or go to: https://bgcepwv.harnessgiving.org/campaigns/8859
Find Us on Social Media
The Boys & Girls Club of the Eastern Panhandle relies on donors to help us keep our doors open.

Our Mission: To enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.

For more information, contact our administrative offices at 304-263-1832 or visit our website at https://www.bgcepwv.net/.