There is a new option for parents in Scotts Valley or San Lorenzo Valley who are looking for after school programing for their children. The Boys and Girls Clubs of Santa Cruz County (BGCSCC) is just about ready to open the new Joe and Linda Aliberti Clubhouse on Scotts Valley Drive.
Five years ago, the Aliberti’s along with other community members, decided to look at ways to best serve the youth in the two valleys. According to Bob Langseth, executive director of BGCSCC, the Aliberti’s purchased the property on Scotts Valley Drive which previously served as a RV repair shop, and donated it along with $1 million, to the use of the Boys and Girls Club.
The board of the BGCSCC acted within six months to ultimately establish the club’s third location in Scotts Valley. The first Boys and Girls Club in Santa Cruz County opened in 1969 in downtown Santa Cruz. In 2016, a second location opened in Live Oak.
According to Langseth, there was enough community support to reason the need for a third location to serve the valleys. The Scotts Valley location is the smallest of the three locations, at 3,000 square feet but it also has a large fenced in outside play area.
For Kathryn Montgomery, mother of three kids who go to school in Scotts Valley, the opening of the new club is “amazing.” Previously, Montgomery would drop and pick up her kids to the BGCSCC in Santa Cruz during her lunch break. The opening of the Joe and Linda Aliberti Clubhouse, makes it more convenient and community oriented.
“I love the community aspect,” said Montgomery. “I am super excited. I am really happy to have this in Scotts Valley.”
When the kids first come to the program after school they are allotted a certain period of time to decompress by playing outside or relaxing quietly. The kids then are divided up by grade group and enter “power hour” where they work on homework, school projects or read. After that hour, the kids are allowed to participate in arts and crafts activities, sport games, computer or technology programs, etc.
“Our goal is for parents to know there is a program for kids when they are at work or busy,” said Langseth. “In each of the three locations there is an educational director. He or she works with the school districts to know what school projects are being worked on and what is going on with the various schools.”
The Boys and Girls Clubs of America started many decades ago as a way to get young teens off the streets. The programs were geared towards academic success, leading a healthy lifestyle and developing citizen leadership. Since then the club has grown to expand the idea of including not only children from lower socio-economic backgrounds but to all children who may benefit from the programs.
“The program is really for every child,” said Langseth.
According to Langseth, he anticipates the Scotts Valley location to have an estimated 100 members for this year, with a daily attendance of 70 to 80 kids. A yearly membership for one child is $75 a dollars a year, which according to Langseth is an extremely affordable option.
“We as an organization are tremendously excited about this opportunity,” Langseth said. “If the community supports us, as I anticipate, we will just continue to grow.”
The clubhouse was open for spring break but the official opening day is April 16. Additionally, the grand opening and ribbon cutting will be on April 14 at 11 a.m. with clubhouse tours, youth bands, dance groups, a petting zoo, a bouncy house and information on programming and annual memberships.
“This is such a wonderful program and so welcoming,” said Scotts Valley resident and mother Sarah Mozelle. “What was once a dilapidated parking lot is now a buzzing community space where kids are thriving on day one.”
