Dozens of young boys spent the afternoon Nov. 5 dribbling and dunking on a state-of-the-art basketball court inside the newly opened Wilson Park Community Center. Those not interested in the game typed away on keyboards in a computer lab at the center on the grounds of the low-income housing development at 25th and Jackson streets.
The youths are benefitting from a partnership between the Philadelphia Housing Authority and Boys & Girls Clubs of Philadelphia, the former providing the facility, the latter running two after-school programs with a staff of seven. The educational and recreational programs are free to 19145 ZIP code residents, but space is limited to 50 first- through fifth-graders in the afternoons and 50 kids ages 11 to 18 in the evenings, center Director Harold Reed of Boys & Girls Clubs said.
"This is a great opportunity for us to help these young people out and their families. The families are going to benefit greatly from this program," Reed said.
Since its opening earlier this month, 24 kids, like 7-year-old Kamron and 10-year-old brother Kadava, both of Wilson Park, have already signed up for the 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday program. "I think it’s a place where people can go to stay out of trouble and give you something to do instead of staying home in the house watching TV or going outside being bad," Kadava said.
Alex Aquino, 11, also of Wilson Park, hit the courts as soon as he registered. "I think it’s beautiful and all the kids are going to have fun here. Let’s enjoy it while we can," Aquino said of the facility, adding it gives him an alternative to staying home with his brothers and sometimes playing football.
Another 33 boys and girls like 13-year-old Shaheed were on board for the evening agenda from 6 to 8 Monday to Friday.
"It’s a good thing for young kids to come around and play basketball because kids don’t have nothing to do after school. It’s the only thing that they can do in the winter," he said.
With 3-year-old grandson Tyron in her arms, Genniece McLamb was all smiles after a tour of the spot. "I’m enthused and I’m grateful that they thought about the kids, even though I’m not in the heart of Wilson, but on the outskirts of it," she said.
While McLamb’s younger grandson is not old enough to partake in the programs, his 9-year-old brother Tyquan will be at the center. "I’m just excited because it’s about time that the kids have something to do other than hanging on the corners or being in their mom and dad’s business [after school with no other place to go]," McLamb said.
At the unveiling, Boys & Girls Clubs and PHA officials offered remarks before dozens of children decked out in red Boys & Girls Clubs T-shirts — including Kamron, Kadava and Alex — gathered for a ribbon cutting.
"PHA has been waiting for the day we could open our arms for a club that we wanted to have that was going to bring high standards and quality — as Philadelphia Housing Authority does [to its complexes] — and we think we found that with the Boys & Girls Club," Linda Staley, PHA’s executive general manager for operations, told the crowd.
Two members of Boys & Girls Clubs board of directors were in attendance, including Richard E. Wegryn Jr., an attorney with Cozen O’Connor in Conshohocken, who addressed the crowd. "On behalf of the board of directors of Boys & Girls Clubs of Philadelphia, we would like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for this opportunity to work with and serve your children. And, on the day before the election, when everybody is running around trying to figure out who they are going to vote for, we’re making the real news here. We’re investing in our children. Our children are our future," Wegryn said.
After remarks, the $3.6 million community center that houses a basketball court/gym, kitchen, dance and exercise studios, two computer labs, an arts-and-crafts room and an audio/visual studio was available for tours. Though completed a year-and-a-half ago, PHA had not opened the center until now. According to PHA spokesman Kirk Dorn, it took that long to find a suitable partner to operate the space with close to 100 proposals submitted.
"Boys & Girls Club — with their track record, their reputation — they fit the bill and it was a great fit for us. If you look at the curriculum that the Boys & Girls Club offers, you can’t help but be optimistic that you’re going to get a positive outcome. The character building, the stressing of your obligations and responsibilities to society — somehow mix all those lessons in with fun — we feel that combination is going to lead to great things," Dorn said.
The afternoon program for the younger children is very structured, giving them strong reenforcement in addition to fun. "It has to be," Reed said of the activities. "Most of these children, their lives are unstructured."
More than 27 activities, ranging from educational to recreational, will be going on simultaneously in each of the center’s nine rooms including the basketball court, Reed said. Reading time, computer usage and homework assistance and completion make up some of the serious stuff, while the fun includes dodge ball, flag football and basketball in the gym, and arts-and-crafts such as acrylic canvas painting and bead-making in other rooms. Dance and exercise classes also will be available. Continuing the fitness theme, a black-belt level instructor will teach kung fu in the evening program, which Reed said will be "physical," while kids not pursuing the martial art can join a basketball league, weight-lifting classes or other activities.
The 57 kids that have signed up for both programs that began the moment the ribbon was cut are having a blast. "They come religiously. It’s really good to see them when they get off the school bus and the teens, too, at night," the director said of involvement thus far.
Right now the program capacity is 100 total — 50 in the afternoon, 50 in the evening — but Reed has a feeling that will increase by 25 in each since there are hundreds to serve in Wilson Park alone. "But that would require more funding and staff," he said.
Current monies for the programs comes from a federal grant, corporate and individual donations raised by Boys & Girls Clubs and The Office of Juvenile Justice Prevention.
"With these two programs [afternoon and evening] alone I think the impact that we make will be large for the parents and the young people’s development. We wanted to create a program that will be here for the community and can be used in the years to come by the community. We’re here for the long haul," Reed said.
