5 MY DAY ON THE HILL

YOUth in Office in the voice of a Club member

6 GREAT FUTURES START HERE

Behind the scenes making our new PSAs

10 HEART OF GOLD

Olympic medalist gives back in Summerside

2 WINTER 2015 www.bgccan.com

In the words of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, a goal without a plan is just a wish.

l think the author of The Little Prince would have liked our goal of providing a safe, supportive place where young people can experience new opportunities, overcome barriers, build positive relationships, and develop confidence and skills for life.

To make this goal more than just a wish, Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada has been working over the past 12 months to prepare a new strategic plan to guide us for the next 4 years. We looked back at the implementation of our 2009 – 2014 plan, which resulted in increased support to local Clubs, new programs based on the latest research, expansion of service to new communities and helping effect changes to public policies that benefited children, youth and families. We also looked ahead at emerging trends and changing demographics; we talked to young people, our Clubs and our supporters and then developed a plan to accomplish our goals.

Going Strong 2018 focuses on helping our Clubs across the country to create environments and experiences that allow young people to thrive and to have the best opportunities to achieve personal success. Strong Clubs delivering the highest quality programs tailored to a community’s needs have a huge impact on the lives of children, youth, families and the community as a whole. BGCC will continue to help Clubs help young people achieve greatness.

Standards for excellence, combined with

tools and training for reaching and surpassing benchmarks, are central priorities in Going Strong 2018, which is currently featured for download on our website.

We will continue to develop and support national programs with research-based core features and measurable outcomes. Initiatives will focus on quality, building capacity and expanding service where we are needed most. We will build on our expertise in youth engagement at the same time as we speak together with children, youth and families for policies that improve the lives of young people.

Thanks to the support of our corporate, foundation and individual donors, we will continue working behind the scenes to train, equip and inspire the Boys and Girls Club movement in Canada. We will also build on our successful nation-wide fundraising event, Capital One Race for Kids, to raise funds and visibility to support these priorities. We are proud of what we have accomplished and know there is much more to do.

And as we work toward these goals, we will tell the story about the impact of Boys and Girls Clubs and spread our message so that more children and youth have the opportunity to play, learn and develop essential life skills in safe and caring environments.

Pam Jolliffe

STRONG CLUBS, STRONG VOICE, STRONG TOGETHER

FROM THE PRESIDENT AND CEO

IMPACT IS PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS OF CANADA AND DISTRIBUTED TO MEMBERS AND STAKEHOLDERS NATIONWIDE. WE WELCOME YOUR COMMENTS AND INQUIRIES.

PRESIDENT AND CEO PAM JOLLIFFEDIRECTOR OF MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS MATHIEU CHANTELOIS EDITOR SUSAN SULLIVANDESIGN/LAYOUT VENTURE DESIGNBOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS OF CANADA 2005 SHEPPARD AVE. EAST, SUITE 400TORONTO, ONTARIO, M2J 5B4TEL.: 905-477-7272 EMAIL: INFO@BGCCAN.COMWWW.BGCCAN.COM

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

OFFICERS CHAIR, ROBERT LIVINGSTONPAST CHAIR, DANIEL LAPRADEVICE-CHAIR, JILL BREWERBGCC FOUNDATION CHAIR,PETER WALLACETREASURER, PHIL MCDOWELLSECRETARY, TAIWO BAH

DIRECTORS WANDA THOMAS BERNARDJO-ANNE CAZATIM FLEMMINGLORRAINE LECLAIRDAVID INGRAMAMANDA WORM

BGCCAN BGCCAN

www.bgccan.com WINTER 2015 3

4 WINTER 2015 www.bgccan.com

HERE ARE 7 FUN FACTS ABOUT OUR PROGRAM THAT MAY SURPRISE YOU.

ROGERS RAISING THE GRADE

THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT

WE JUST TURNED 41!The 41st RRTG Tech Centre

opens in Victoria, BC in January. Rogers builds these designated rooms in Boys in Girls Clubs with computers, high-speed Internet, and hardware and software to support learning. Even the table and chairs are provided to make all Tech Centres welcoming places to relax and learn with peers. BADGES?

In fact, we DO have badges! RRTG youth can

earn these validated indicators of accomplishment and skill for various subject areas learned in their Club’s Rogers Raising the Grade learning environment. These badges can be electronically placed wherever a university, college or prospective employer can see it, such as a LinkedIn profile, Facebook page or personal website.

SHOW ME THE MONEYThe RRTG website (raisingthegrade.ca) has a fun new Financial Literacy module that’s all about good money management and

financial concepts. Many teens have never been told about the concepts and skills needed to make good financial decisions. This course introduces the modern financial world and helps youth learn how to make and manage money and personal finances, laying the foundation for the financial challenges and opportunities of adulthood. The module was developed with Social Research and Demonstration Corporation and Radii Production and funded by Prosper Canada.

WELCOME TO THE WORKING WEEKRRTG introduces young

people to a whole range of possibilities that are available through different careers, jobs and life outside of school. The World of Work module includes job shadowing events, resume building tips and a chance to meet potential employers.

IF YOU WANT IT, COME AND GET ITRRTG’s educational resources are freely available online at my.raisingthegrade.ca. This website has several tantalizing

pathways to the arts and sciences. There’s a chance to contribute to cancer research, take a computer course from M.I.T.— even to design and play video games. These resources encourage self-directed learning through the exploration of personal interests.

ROGERS IN DEMANDOver 1,000 young people are officially registered

in Rogers Raising the Grade programs across the country and nearly twice that number drop into the Tech Centres every week to talk to mentors, do their homework, relax with their friends and plan their futures beyond high school.

WHO ARE YOU CALLING JUNIOR?Seven Boys and Girls Clubs are now running Junior RRTG programs due to popular demand. While Rogers Raising the

Grade is designed for 13- to 19-year-olds, Junior RRTG offers younger youth a sneak peak at the program and will help make an easy transition to the regular RRTG program and starting high school.

www.bgccan.com WINTER 2015 5

was curious when my Twitter feed practically exploded last year with tweets and photos of Boys and Girls Club youth I knew with Members of Parliament (MPs) and even the Prime Minister. I had discovered YOUth in Office, the job

shadowing event on Parliament Hill organized by Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada with Big Brothers Big Sisters Canada.

I was determined that I was not going to miss out this year. Recently, I’ve been digging into politics and attending various events and realized this is something that I’m really interested in. I think more young people should get involved in the political process and, as a public relations student, government PR has career potential.

I was ecstatic when I was accepted for YOUth in Office this year and found out I’d be paired with MP Justin Trudeau. The Liberal Party Office has a strong public media campaign and as a future PR professional, that really piqued my interest.

I arrived in Ottawa the day prior to the event with 100 other youth from across the country and we spent the evening preparing before tucking in to rest up for the big day. The next morning, we were greeted bright and early

in the Speaker’s Lounge on Parliament Hill by Jason Kenney, Minister of Employment and Social Development. He gave us a warm welcome and joined us along with a group of MPs and staffers for breakfast. Afterwards, everyone headed off with their assigned MPs and Mr. Trudeau’s assistant led me to the Liberal Party offices on Sparks Street. We tested our skills at figuring out what the big political news of the day would be relevant to the Liberal Party and then went back to the Hill for a press conference, followed by a private tour of the Parliament buildings.

It was a busy day of back and forth between Parliament Hill and Party offices. I was fascinated to see everything that the media and the staffers were doing—even how the questions are developed for Question Period. Mr. Trudeau was great. He spent a significant amount of time talking with me and answering my questions and then I watched him in a media scrum.

It was a wonderful learning experience and has only piqued my interest in the world of politics further. I believe more strongly than ever that more young people should be aware and involved in what goes on at Parliament Hill. What a day!

MEANWHILE, ON TWITTER…

Mitchell Kutney @MKutney Full house at #YouthInOffice this morning, with a great

speech by Minister @kenneyjason

Boys and Girls Club @BGCKingstonONOur Kingston Youth up bright and early! Excited to job shadow

Members of Parliament!! #YOUthInOffice

Stephen Harper @pmharperIt was a pleasure to have Lacey & Jonathan join me at work today.

BGC Winnipeg @BGCWinnipegBGCW member Maria is in Ottawa today for #YOUthInOffice, job shadowing

MPs like Niki Ashton

MY DAY ON THE HILL

Justin Trudeau and Alyssa

A YOUNG PERSON’S TAKE ON YOUTH IN OFFICE ■ By Alyssa Frampton

6 WINTER 2015 www.bgccan.com

n a cold and snowy Sunday morning in November, 20 children and youth from Boys and Girls Club of East

Scarborough got out of bed at 5 a.m. and headed out to the Club. Now, they are the shining stars of Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada’s first public service announcement in 5 years!

In 2014, BGCC’s National Marketing and Communications team crossed the country and visited more than 30 Clubs from coast to coast. Everywhere, Club staff and stakeholders told us they faced the same challenge. Even if more people than ever know about our Clubs, the familiarity is low. Many Canadians have no idea what we do or what kind of impact we have on the lives of children and youth.

The more people understand and appreciate Boys and Girls Clubs, the more likely they are to trust and support our work. Volunteers, staff, and Club executives and directors wished for a few national spokespeople—recognizable faces and names to help tell our stories and strengthen our brand.

After interviewing the top creative agencies

in the country, we quickly recognized that the folks at DARE Toronto were the people to work with. An international agency with offices in London, Los Angeles, Vancouver and Toronto, DARE understood our values, mission and vision and came up with the strongest creative concept.

We asked them to illustrate the value and impact of the Boys and Girls Club experience. They pitched us a PSA campaign that does just that, and does it in 30 seconds!

“We knew that the Clubs in Canada have very successful alumni,” explains Paul Little, Executive Creative Director of DARE. “It would have been the easiest thing in the world to sit them down in a front of the camera and ask them to tell their stories. But this has been done so often and it’s hard for people to convey a robust message in just a few seconds.

We titled our campaign: Great Futures Start Here. These four simple words have been very successful with Boys and Girls Clubs of America, capturing the essence of the Boys and Girls Clubs’ vision and experience.

Three vignettes each feature one of our alumni: the award winning psychiatrist, Dr.

WHERE DO GREAT FUTURES START?

OUR GOALS � Increase brand awareness � Promote Boys and Girls Clubs as recognized youth development leaders� Illustrate our impact on young lives

Jean Clinton, NBA star Anthony Bennett, and NHL star Taylor Hall.

“We imagined them as children in a Boys and Girls Club and created stories around the little miracles that happen in Clubs every day,” Paul explains.

Paul Little is a bit of a miracle worker himself. His DARE Toronto team completed the creative work pro bono and brought in award-winning director David Hicks, along with Sons and Daughters Productions, all of whom waived their fees.

You can watch our PSAs at bgccan.com

SHARING OUR STORY WITH THE WORLD

A young actor gets ready for the shoot

East Scarborough Club members and the PSA film crew

8 WINTER 2015 www.bgccan.com

t wasn’t really cold. It was only about minus 10.”Dhruv sounds like a winter-savvy Canadian talking

about his first time on skis. You’d never guess that the 9-year-old had just moved to Edmonton from Bangalore, India a few months earlier.

Along with nearly 100 others from Boys and Girls Clubs Big Brothers Big Sisters of Edmonton & Area, Dhruv got an unforgettable introduction to skiing and snowboarding on the slopes of Snow Valley, thanks to Canadian Tire Jumpstart Get In The Game.

Most of the youngsters had little or no experience skiing and snowboarding but they all overcame the first-time jitters with encouragement from Club staff and a lesson made possible by the program..

Dhruv learned how to master the execution of a snow plow and navigate the snowy slopes—an exciting experience that would likely have been unimaginable a few short months before.

Going to a ski hill to rent equipment and take a lesson is beyond the reach of many families with children and some young people would never get this kind of opportunity without Get In The Game to help overcome barriers to participation in sports and recreation.

Clubs across the country offer this program to expand opportunities for young people, including for a growing number of newcomers to Canada, giving them a chance to try different types of organized physical activities.

In Moncton, for instance, recent immigrants represent nearly half the Club’s membership—up from less than 3 percent in 2008. The Boys & Girls Club of Moncton’s Learn to Skate program is one of the ways they help newcomer youth transition to a new culture and country while they learn to love winter.

In partnership with the Multicultural Association of the Greater Moncton Area, 50 youth a year are referred to the Club for support, connections and belonging.

Just like Dhruv, Moncton’s new members have fun and make friends as they also develop their language skills, confidence and understanding of their new home, which helps the whole family feel accepted and learn their way around.

Dhruv is at the McCauley Clubhouse almost every night after school and the staff are delighted to see his initial shyness turn into confidence. His parents are also actively involved with Club activities and Dhruv’s mom is teaching the Club about the delicious variety of Indian cooking.

“Before, I didn’t know there are different types of snow and that you can only make a snowman with a certain kind,” he says sagely. This winter, Dhruv is ready.

BELONGING WARMS NEWCOMER’S FIRST CANADIAN WINTER

DHRUV’S SENSE OFSNOW

Dhruv's snow experience was made possible by Canadian Tire Jumpstart Get in the Game

www.bgccan.com WINTER 2014 9

THE LOGISTICS OF GIVING

or the past eight years, nothing has made Stuart MacLellan smile more than helping the Boys and Girls Clubs of Calgary.

“It’s such a good feeling to know we are doing something for the kids,” says the Logistic Support Manager at the

Calgary Sears Canada warehouse. “If they don’t have a lot of opportunities, we want to try and make sure they do.”

Stuart is known to be someone who always goes that extra mile. Take the Sears Tree of Wishes, for example. Last year, Calgary’s Penbrooke Meadows Club requested 40 gifts for children and youth during the holiday season but instead, they got more than 60 gifts, all delivered by Stuart himself.

Stuart stops by the Penbrooke Meadows Club every few months to ask what they need. When his wife’s school in Okotoks closed down, he helped get all of the children’s chairs donated to the Club. He has facilitated Sears Canada donations of built-in shelving

(complete with a work order to jackhammer them to the basement floor!), a Toshiba projector TV, a new vacuum cleaner and a portable stereo.

Sears Canada volunteers also host a pancake breakfast for the Club every summer during the Calgary Stampede and this summer, Stuart helped with the rental of three bouncy castles, setting up a massive game of laser tag in the Calgary warehouse and arranging an airbrush tattoo artist.

As a logistics man, it’s not surprising the Capital One Race for Kids is one of his favourite projects. This national fundraising event for Boys and Girls Clubs features an urban adventure race for grown-ups to act like kids at checkpoint challenges as they race to the finish line. Race for Kids has raised $1.5 million since its creation three years ago and in 2015, 30 cities will host a Race.

“From the beginning, we have been a Race sponsor and every year, people from the community see the Sears Canada checkpoint

and ask, ‘What’s going on?’ so we explain it to them. Ours was the only challenge that also got passersby donating on the day of the Race. We try to get people involved.”

Stuart is excited about the big milestone that Sears Canada and Boys and Girls Clubs are celebrating this year. “Fifty years is exceptional! I am very proud. Sears has a very long commitment to kids in the community and my bosses and the management in Calgary are really proud to be involved too. When the Club needs something, we always try to help them out.”

So what’s in store for 2015? “I’d like to see us get even bigger in Calgary.

I’d like to see our corporate retail partners joining in to see what we can do to make it really special for the kids.”

TO CELEBRATE OUR 50-YEAR PARTNERSHIP WITH SEARS CANADA, MEET A VOLUNTEER EXTRAORDINAIRE

50 YEARS OF GIVING1965 Sears Canada forms partnership with BGCC

1983 Sears Canada’s Edward Adolph appointed president of BGCC Board of Directors

1987 1st Annual Sears Canada Golf Tournament

1996 Sears Canada and Toronto Raptors partner with a $200,000 slam-dunk commitment to BGCC

1998 BGCC presents its Humanitarian Award to Sears Canada

1998 1st annual Sears Charity Bear boosts holiday giving for children and youth

2000 Sears Young Futures Program is launched to support after school programs

2001 Sears Canada receives Retail Council of Canada’s Socially Responsible Retailer Award

2003 Customers support after school programs though Sears Club Points program

2014 27th Annual Sears Canada Golf Tournament raises a record $495,000

Stuart MacLellan

10 WINTER 2015 www.bgccan.com

rop by the Boys and Girls Club of Summerside and you could catch a glimpse of one of the city’s most admired residents.

Heather Moyse made Canada proud winning gold medals in the

two-woman bobsleigh at both the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics. She is a huge fan of the Prince Edward Island Club, believing it offers the kind of caring support that can help make the dreams of its young members come true.

“I grew up in Summerside,” says Moyse. “It’s not a very big community and I know people who work at the Club. I started off by attending their charity golf tournaments and then I was asked to come in and say hi to the kids after my first Olympics, years ago. Going in, seeing the kids and talking to them—it became a regular thing.

OLYMPIAN HEATHER MOYSE SUPPORTS HER HOMETOWN BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB

“IT’S MORE THAN JUST BEING ACTIVE, IT’S A PLACE WHERE SOME KIDS CAN TALK TO SOMEBODY.”

“They now have an award named after me for good sportsmanship,” she continues, “so when I’m home I’ll go and present it. It’s been amazing.”

The Heather Moyse Good Sport of the Week Award is presented once a week to Club members who have demonstrated good sportsmanship, determination, respect and helping others. Every Monday, over

120 children gather in the gymnasium in anticipation of the Award announcement and presentation. It has become a remarkable celebration of outstanding behaviour.

For a woman who’s made a career in athletics—Moyse also played rugby for Canada’s national women’s team—she is quick to point out that the Boys and Girls Club is about more than just fun and games.

“It’s more than just being active, it’s a place someone can go to after school to do their homework and a place where some kids can talk to somebody. It’s really important to have an older person they can go and talk to if something is bothering them or if something is happening.”

One of the perks of winning two gold medals is getting the chance to share them with community members.

“I bring my medals to the Club and it’s pretty neat,” she says. “The kids’ eyes get really big and often when their parents pick them up, well the parents’ eyes get even bigger,” she says with a laugh. “They’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, you won this!’

“It’s pretty special for the kids to see an actual person who’s not just on TV, who came from their own community, who was able to have a goal and was able to pursue it and really take it to the next level. Knowing that if you have your heart set on something and you go for it, you never know what can happen.”

OF GOLDA HEART

www.bgccan.com WINTER 2014 11

ometimes, you’re surrounded by negative things and the tension just builds up.”

Shane, a Grade 12 student and long-time Botwood Boys and Girls Club member, is candid and open as he talks

about mental health issues. “School. Homework. Cyberbullying.

Bullying in general…”As he lists sources of stress for youth his

age, it becomes clear that teens experience

similar pressures, whether they live in a Newfoundland seaport town of 3,100 like Shane, or in a big metropolis, or somewhere in between.

“It can be hard. Everyone wants to fit in, right?”Shane is at ease talking about mental health

and illness and he credits his Club’s Flex Your Head program with raising his awareness and understanding.

“Without really realizing it, I learned a lot.” Flex Your Head is a national program

developed by BGCC and funded by

AstraZeneca’s Young Health Program (www.younghealth.ca). Youth and staff members were consulted to recommend fun ways to engage Boys and Girls Club youth in an exploration of mental health issues. The Botwood Club ran Flex Your Head as a pilot project in 2012 and about a dozen young people aged 12 to 17 met for two hours a week over several months.

The program takes a preventative approach to mental illness and creates a relaxed, social problem-solving space tailored to teens. Activities and discussions help young people talk about the stigma associated with mental illness. Flex Your Head is delivered in familiar Club environments and rooted in research and evidence of effective mental health interventions with youth. Young people have a safe place to think about their values, feelings and the kind of person they want to be.

“I am a person who doesn’t judge people,” Shane says. “But I learned how bad the effects of judging can be.”

“I got some of my friends to come, too, which was great. They were really open-minded about it.

“We all wrote down our ‘help lines’—the people you can talk to or even just send a text to when you’re angry or upset. I was surprised at how long the list was.

“Teachers, for example, aren’t just there to teach. I went to my guidance counsellor and that worked out really well. I’d drop in a few times a week and just talk about how I was feeling.”

Shane has been busy putting a lot of what he learned into action. He helped get a Gay Straight Alliance going at his school but says getting students comfortable with it took time.

“People are scared of being labelled. So I came up with an idea to expand it to anyone who feels like they don’t fit in. Maybe it’s their clothes or their hair, or their weight. Now, we call it the O-zone Layer because it’s like a layer of protection. The O can be for outreach, or opportunity or optimism.

“It’s good to have a place where people can just chillax.”

TEENS FLEX THEIR HEADS AND EXPLORE MENTAL HEALTH

“I LEARNED HOW BAD THE EFFECTS OF JUDGING CAN BE.”

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