FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS OF MARTIN COUNTY AUGUST 2025 Stuart, Fla., (August 1, 2025) – Boys & Girls Clubs of Martin County (BGCMC) proudly welcomed leaders from Boys & Girls Clubs across Florida for the 2025 Florida Area Council event, held June 11–13 at the beautiful Hutchinson Shores Resort & Spa. The annual convening brought together CEOs, board volunteers, and key staff from Clubs throughout the state for three days of collaboration, inspiration, and strategic planning. The gathering was led by Dede Brooks, former BGCMC Board Chair and current Florida Area Council Chair, whose motivating remarks set the tone for the event. Brooks emphasized the importance of board engagement, regional collaboration, and amplifying the collective impact of the Boys & Girls Club Movement. On June 12, attendees visited BGCMC’s Greater Stuart Club, which opened in Fall 2024 as the organization’s flagship location. Located on a 3.6-acre site behind the former Martin County School District headquarters, the 39,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility features a 15,000-square-foot public gymnasium, a performing arts studio, a commercial kitchen, and modern classroom spaces. In addition to serving youth, the Club now supports young adults up to age 24 through workforce credentialing and other career-focused initiatives. During a special luncheon, guests toured the facility and learned more about BGCMC’s innovative Workforce Readiness programs, Mental Health services, and creative youth development offerings. The event also celebrated excellence across the Boys & Girls Club network. BGCMC was honored to receive two prestigious awards: l Elizabeth Ainslie, BGCMC Board Chair, was recognized as the Beverly Burton Board Member of the Year. l BGCMC’s Readers Theatre Program was named Arts & Education Program of the Year. “We were thrilled to host our peers from across the state and share the impactful work happening here in Martin County,” said Keith Fletcher, President & CEO of BGCMC. “This event served as a powerful reminder of what’s possible when we come together to support Florida’s youth.” Participants left reenergized and united in their commitment to shaping great futures for the children and teens they serve every day. To read the full article and more, click here.

Keith Fletcher Boys & Girls Clubs of Martin County, President & CEO In about 10 years’ time, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Martin County (BGCMC) has exponentially enhanced the quality of our services, significantly expanded the number of children we serve, and consistently achieved improved outcomes for our members in academics, school attendance, overall behavior, graduation levels and workforce preparation. This is due overwhelmingly to the generosity of our community, the dedication of our staff and the skill of our grants team in attaining—and maintaining—applicable state and federal funding. One such funding source is 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC). Federally sourced and passed through the states, 21st CCLC funds are an excellent example of how to target grant assistance to those most in need, ensure local oversight and uphold accountability measures.  Administered with local oversight, 21st CCLC, broadly speaking: Empowers families to choose the afterschool program that’s right for their child, enabling BGCMC to provide nearly 700 children daily (and annually nearly 7,000 more through our outreach) with healthy meals and snacks, certified academic support, enrichment programs, field trips, workforce trainings and more—at no cost to the family. Improves learning by funding math, science and literacy teachings and academic enrichment opportunities—after school and over the summer— for students at lower-preforming Title 1 schools. Builds the future workforce through programs in conjunction with industry experts that prepare young people for in-demand professions such as HVAC, marine mechanics, drone piloting, construction, robotics, and computer coding—to name just a few. Locally, the numbers tell the story. Over 2023-2024, 21st CCLC helped BGCMC: Employ 43 certified teachers Provide 19,000 hours of instruction uniquely tailored to the students Serve 11 Martin County schools Teach more than 1,400 young people, of which 74 percent raised their attendance rates, 91 percent showed improvement in their grades, and 94 percent increased their English Language Arts scores on state assessments Support 135 positions More than 2,200 children all told benefit directly from the fund. Thank you for assisting us in delivering hope and help to our community’s most vulnerable children and families.