Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County Implement Ambitious Plans during COVID-19

24 July 2020

Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County operates 13 clubs and serves more than 8,000 children ages 6-18. During the COVID-19 pandemic, BGC has transitioned to offer new services to its community – more than 420,000 meals and snack to children, weekly groceries to 54,000 Club family members, and most recently, summer camps that include extra safety measures and social distancing.

“It was imperative for us to make sure that our employees could keep working. We also felt it was important to do our part to help stabilize the economy. To ensure employment, our Clubs transitioned overnight to become a major food distributor for families in need,” said President & CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County Jaene Miranda.

Below is an excerpt from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County website about their summer programs and the extraordinary staff that makes these programs possible. Read the full article here.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County built a new 13,000 square-foot Smith & Moore Family Teen Center in Belle Glade with financing through Florida Community Loan Fund’s NMTC (New Markets Tax Credit) program. Learn more about FCLF & Boys & Girls Clubs here.

CLUBS BOOST RECOVERY EFFORT WITH AMBITIOUS PLAN AND EXTRAORDINARY STAFF

Jr Staff at Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County June 26, 2020

These days, 17-year-old Tatiana Roland of the Neil S. Hirsch Boys & Girls Club has a small but crucial role in allowing the facility to reopen for direct service for children for summer camp. She’s one of about 50 teens that Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County hired through the Junior Staff program to assist the other 300 staff members to reopen 13 Clubs during a global pandemic. Extra staff is crucial for Clubs to meet CDC COVID-19 guidelines to allow for lower than normal staff to child ratios due to social distancing.

“I’m the environmental specialist, making sure that all of the Club members social distance, wear their face masks and of course, wash their hands. I do whatever is needed, so I also help with our Farm to Family grocery distribution program. I’m so glad to have this job. Otherwise, I would be just sitting at home,” said Roland. “I use my paycheck to save for college and to help my mother pay for some of the bills since she is a single mom.”

In addition to hiring extra staff to meet COVID-19 guidelines, Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County made it a priority that no employees were laid-off while the Clubs were closed for direct service for three months. This was essential for the Clubs to reopen to children as quickly as possible, and was a priority from the organization’s corporate board and staff leadership.

It was imperative for us to make sure that our employees could keep working. We also felt it was important to do our part to help stabilize the economy. To ensure employment, our Clubs transitioned overnight to become a major food distributor for families in need,” said President & CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County Jaene Miranda.
Since the transition, Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County has given out more than 420,000 meals and snacks to children across Palm Beach County, while also providing a week’s worth of groceries to 54,000 Club family members through the Farm to Family program with partners like Fresh RX Kids and Living Hungry.

“It’s been a lot of mental and physical hard work to accomplish what we’ve done in a short period, and our staff has met every challenge placed before them. Our Clubs opening for summer camp doesn’t mean the need in our community has diminished. As such, we are committed to continuing our emergency food programs while operating our summer camps,” said Miranda.

The cost to reopen during a pandemic and added expenses to continue large-scale food programs comes with a hefty price tag. For information or to contribute to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County’s summer campaign, contact Jaene Miranda at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 561-683-3287.

Read the full article here: https://bgcpbc.org/2020/06/26/clubs-boost-recovery-effort-with-ambitious-plan-and-extraordinary-staff/

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