Message from the Executive Director
Lou’s Letter
“Treat someone as they are and they
will remain that way. Treat them as
they can and should be ……”
Walk of Hope
Tour
Curious about life on our campus
and in our cottages? Would you
like to see first-hand the warm,
family-oriented home your support
makes possible?
Come join us for a tour of our campus and
cottages. It’s an hour of wonderful stories,
great information and an inside look at where
our children live. This is not a fundraising
event. Bring only an open heart and a friend.
Below are the dates for 2016. You can find
more information on our website.
Saturdays at 10 a.m.
•September 3
•October 1
•November 5
create a supportive but challenging
environment. We care about our kids’
futures, not just sometimes, but all the
time. We tell our kids we will guarantee
them an equal opportunity but not an
equal outcome. Sometimes they make
an excuse instead of a result, and sometimes our kids are not willing to work
for results. Yet, when they are ready to
re-commit, we are here for them. Your
investment in Boys and Girls Country
provides these precious opportunities.
Each time I meet one of our kids arriving on their first day, I see such promise
in their faces. When we complete our
initial admission interviews and hear
their backgrounds, we come to realize
there are dozens of
reasons why our kids
You have been there for our
We teach our
should NOT be doing
children for 45 years. With
kids to be the
well. A study from the
help from friends, neighU.S. Department of
bors,
churches, our Board
best they can
Health and Human
of Directors and the entire
be, right now. community, you continue to
Services revealed that
kids from out-of-home
make life better for our kids.
placements, like our children, are less
That’s why, at Boys and Girls Country,
likely to graduate high school (54%),
tomorrow will always be better than toare usually unemployed (51%), and are day. What we do here today will change
living at a cost to the community (40%
a life forever. You see evidence of this
are in adult programs or incarcerated). in Alex’s story on the next page.
Only 17% of those in the study were
described as “self-supporting.” With
Last year our last living founder, Mrs.
your support, we are turning those
Jean Robinson, celebrated her 100th
numbers upside down for our children! birthday. Recently, we mourned Ms.
Jean’s death. She and her husband
We base our strategy on high expecTommy knew the value of challenging
tations, low tolerances, Christian love
our kids to be the best they could be.
and encouragement. We teach our kids They started BGC by focusing on Christo be the best they can be, right now.
tianity, education and self-sustaining
Every day, each of us is being “interskills. With your investment and God’s
viewed” and observed for our next
will, we continue to challenge our
position in life. In a competitive world,
children to imagine themselves in
the smallest thing can set us apart.
different and better circumstances.
When people meet our kids, they tell
us about how they noticed their eye
“Treat someone as they are and they
contact, their handshake or their man- will remain that way. Treat them as
ners. They tell us how easy it seems
they can and should be, and they will
for our kids to pray or talk about God.
become as they can and should be.”
These skills promote excellence and
high expectations. Preparing our kids to
become contributing adults is the goal.
One of life’s important lessons is that
our actions have consequences. We
Lou Palma
Executive Director
Make your contribution online! Give securely online at www.boysandgirlscountry.org/donate
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Boys and Girls Country News | Summer 2016