Columbus needs Club Kids to fight the city’s challenges. | Opinion
Columbus, Georgia faces real and urgent challenges — from declining academic outcomes and health disparities to workforce readiness gaps and poverty rates well above state and national averages.
Thankfully, Columbus and community leaders have plans and are working to overcome these difficult (and embarrassing) realities. Fortunately, there is some good news. The first step to even attempting to tackle these complex problems already exists: the Boys & Girls Club.
The Boys & Girls Club has been a staple of this community for more than 85 years, and now, more than ever, Columbus needs the Boys & Girls Club. More specifically, Columbus needs the children of our community to participate and reap the benefits that come from being a “Club Kid.” Columbus needs Club Kids.
Columbus needs Club Kids because Columbus has ambitious goals — and none of them can succeed without the Boys & Girls Club.
For example, Columbus, the United Way and a coalition of city power brokers want to reduce poverty by 50% over the next 10 years. This is an admirable, ambitious target and one we should all champion. The Boys & Girls Club wholeheartedly supports it.
However, we can’t reduce poverty if people can’t work, and many can’t work without safe, affordable care for their kids after school and during the summer. It does no good to spend millions on economic development activities to attract new businesses and jobs to the city if adults can’t fill those jobs because they have no one to watch their kids after school. That’s where the Boys & Girls Club steps in, serving hundreds of children during the critical hours when parents work and young people need support the most.
Columbus needs Club Kids because reducing poverty (plus crime and gang involvement) requires prevention, not just reaction. We need to engage our youth — especially teens — in positive activities and provide real hope for their future. At the Boys & Girls Club, they discover pathways to college, careers, and military service — rather than gangs, streets, or despair.
Columbus needs Club Kids because too many children in this community (and more than 60% of the Boys & Girls Club members) are living at or below the federal poverty level. Through job training, mentorship, internships, and academic support, the Club equips young people with tools to succeed — from resume writing and interview prep to FAFSA help and college application guidance.
By implementing these targeted actions, we remove immediate obstacles to success while establishing sustainable routes out of poverty for the youth we serve.
At the Boys & Girls Club, we see firsthand how enriching after-school experiences build essential skills and foster critical engagement that helps young people thrive. Here, Club Kids might be learning teamwork on our basketball court, practicing phonics with Ms. Sophia during Power Hour or setting foot on a college campus outside of Columbus for the very first time. These moments spark confidence and create momentum — especially for youth whose families, schools, or neighborhoods may not offer the same access to opportunity.
If we’re serious about tackling poverty, reducing violence, and building a stronger workforce, then we must be serious about supporting Club Kids. We can’t make progress on our biggest challenges without them.
How can you do your part? Many can help by volunteering. Come coach basketball. Read to a group of 8-year-olds. Pass out meals or help with an art project for an hour a week. Others can help by contributing and financially investing in the youth of this community. Public officials and business leaders must also prioritize support for youth in policies, budgets, school bus schedules after school and the many economic development and poverty reduction initiatives being considered. Because the truth is, Columbus cannot achieve our biggest goals without investing in Club Kids.
A generation of prepared and resilient young people with hope and plans for the future will strengthen our community for years to come – but it takes us all working together to support them today. Supporting them isn’t charity — it’s strategy. Columbus needs Club Kids.
Fred Maglione is the interim CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley, chairman of StartUP Columbus and the chair of the Enterprising Action Area for Columbus 2025. Individuals can learn more about the work of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Chattahoochee Valley by visiting www.bgs-colsga.org.