Helping To Initiate ‘Generational Change’ Among Oshkosh Area Youth
Tracy Ogden knows that not everyone is blessed with the same opportunities in life.
As the CEO for the Oshkosh Boys & Girls Club, she sees first-hand the positive impact that community volunteers and staff at the nonprofit can have on a growing number of today’s youth, many of whom find refuge at the club after school, at night or on weekends.
“The Boys & Girls Club of Oshkosh has been around for 54 years, and provides a safe place for over 3,000 kids in Oshkosh and Winnebago County to learn and grow every year,” said Ogden. “We're very fortunate to be there to not only offer after-school support, including homework and basic needs, but making sure the kids have everything they need to be successful.”
Growing Community Impact
The club is in the midst of a five-stage expansion of facilities that will double its overall footprint and accelerate its positive impact on the community, enabling it to serve up to 450 youth per day (up from 300). Its core programming seeks to impact Oshkosh area youth in a variety of ways:
“We know our capital project will make generational change for not only club members and their families but the community as well,” said Ogden.
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On May 5, the community is invited to 501 E. Parkway Avenue (between downtown Oshkosh and Menominee Park) to celebrate with the Oshkosh Boys & Girls Club at an open house and ribbon-cutting on another phase of its $18.5 million capital expansion. Young people ages 6-18 are welcomed into the club for a low annual fee.
Thanks to many generous donors and supporters $17.8 million has been committed to the project, including a $1.5 million endowment to operate a new community center. Overall, the facility improvements provide a dynamic learning environment for age-appropriate programs led by caring adults and professional mentors advancing the club’s mission to improve the lives of children and families.
Favorable Loan Puts ‘Kids and Mission First’
Community First has been the financing partner for the Oshkosh Boys & Girls Club, helping with favorable credit to make the facilities improvements happen at a reduced cost for the nonprofit. The multi-purpose outdoor turf field (completed last summer) and the welcome center for the Hyde Family Community Center (opening soon off Monroe Street) will bear Community First’s name.
“Community First stepped up in a very big way for us and is making it possible for us to get through this construction and have the funds available to build our building while we finish our capital campaign,” said Ogden. The first year of the five-year loan has a zero percent interest rate, followed by below market rates as final pledges and commitments are secured, “allowing us to put our kids and mission first,” she said.
Community First Credit Union is glad to be part of the great things happening at the Oshkosh Boys & Girls Club. To learn more visit the Oshkosh Boys & Girls Club website or consider a donation to the Whatever It Takes to Build Great Futures cause.