The flood in July of 2010 effected many people in our community. The Battlefords Boys and Girls Club was no exception. Our basement had upwards of 18 inches of water and we had to close our club house and run summer programming out of the Don Ross building. Over the weeks of July and August we managed to get the needed repairs completed and reopened in September. This reopening was largely due to the hard work of staff and some helpers who organized, cleaned and toiled to put our club house back together.
Unfortunately we did not get to see the faces of many kids during this time. Our summer day camp kids went to the Don Ross and many neighbourhood kids were away. Although, as the summer waned, some of our regular children did come back around and many of them were willing to put long hours helping with cleanup for payment of a granola bar or juice box.
It was during one of our afternoons of cleanup that a couple of our "regular" children came out to help. They worked away for a couple of hours helping the office staff sort through boxes of donated craft supplies. It was about 3 p.m. when we had to get them to finish up so we could all leave the building and head over to the Don Ross for our daily visit.
I remember asking them to call their parents because they couldn't stay at the club. The older of the two took the phone and began trying to call home. After about 10 minutes there wasn't any success in reaching an adult.
I asked them if they knew where to find their mom or dad, and their response was the usual shrugging of the shoulders. So I probed further. "When do they expect you home?" I asked. The younger of the two looked at me and said, "they usually get up from bed and go to McDonald's." I thought wow this is pretty neat to get McDonald's today. "Shouldn't you go home and get your food, then?" I asked. They explained their mom goes when they are not home so she doesn't have to buy them any.
My heart sank to the very bottom of my chest. These two children had just worked for two hours to earn a granola bar and their mom was out eating a hamburger (according to them). Even if this was not the case it was what they believed was happening.
Having made plans with the summer children at the Don Ross we had to leave and hope they would be OK playing at the park while we didn't have staff there to supervise. I asked them if they could come back tomorrow. Both children agreed and went off to play.
The next day like clockwork the children showed up to help. We gave them some small tasks to do while we set up some things in our kitchen. Some of my staff members worked with them to make and cook some hamburgers of their own. They both got to enjoy the fruits of their labour and had a feast fit for kings made of hamburgers, cucumber slices and juice boxes; they even got to bring home leftovers for another time.
Part of the reason the Boys and Girls Club is so successful is due to the commitment and dedication of staff members. They made those two boys feel appreciated and special. For these two boys our club, even in the middle of repairs, is a good place to be
