Inspiring & Enabling Youth to Realize Their Greatness!
Our History
The idea of bringing Boys & Girls Clubs to Thurston County first originated in the late 1990s through a vision and dream held by a group of community leaders, some of whom had positive associations and affiliations with Clubs from their youth. They kept asking the question: “How could we have a state Capitol without a Boys & Girls Club?”
By the year 2000, significant fundraising efforts and the formation of the first Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County Board were complete. With guidance and initiative from Steve Boone; Lacey Youth Task Force; Colleen Gillespie; Community Foundation of South Puget Sound; local physician and former Boys & Girls Club of America national Youth of the Year, Dr. Tony Agtarap; Jamie Will and many other community leaders, feasibility studies and fundraising efforts intensified.
In 2001, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County was born and has been a premiere youth-serving organization ever since. With eight sites located in Tumwater, Rochester, Lacey, Olympia, Tenino, Yelm, RMAC and Griffin, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County serve over 3,000 youth in grades K-12 every year.
Throughout our history and with help from local business leaders, committed community members, passionate volunteers and staff, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County continues to grow and provide excellent programs to help youth realize their greatness.
In the fall of 2021, Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County celebrated 20 years of service to the youth of Thurston County.
Learn more about the Boys & Girls Clubs of Thurston County!
Academic Success
We want every child to graduate from high school with a plan for the future. Our members have resources such as:
- Homework help in the education center
- Reading and writing clubs
- Programs in the tech lab and various art projects
We also have many volunteers who help mentor our club members.
Character & Citizenship
Every day, our members are taught about:
- Being respectful
- Being responsible
- Having integrity in their lives and interactions with others
We maintain these expectations not just for our kids, but also for our staff and volunteers, whose leadership and mentoring help guide our young people by example.
Healthy Lifestyles
We want children to live healthy, active lifestyles and practice making good decisions for themselves. In order to achieve this, we:
- Serve nutritious food for snack sand dinners
- Encourage kids to play sports and be active
- Help them find new ways to communicate in the art and music rooms
- Make sure they are surrounded by great mentors