Page 8 - BGC prototype

A Safe Place Matthew and Jason, BGCD members Matthew and his younger brother, Jason, had chaotic early lives; their mother was absent, their father was incarcerated, and their grandmother was overwhelmed. Their aunt and her husband volunteered to raise the boys for the foreseeable future, moving in together, just up the street from Boys & Girls Clubs of Dorchester. Matthew loved school at first but abruptly didn’t want to go and began having serious outbursts at home that caused unhappiness for the whole family, especially his little brother. His aunt, Sam, discovered two boys in school were bullying and hurting him. One day she marched down to the club and said, “I need to talk to someone about my kid coming he re for afterschool because I don’t know what else to do.” She sat down with Mary Kinsella, VP of Education, who wrapped up the meeting with this, “He’s going to start here on Monday.” The difference in Matthew’s life, and in his family’s life, since becoming a member has been dramatic. He loves gaming, swimming and music. But most of all he likes that the club “is a bully-free zone. And I like that it’s a boys and a girls club. That means all kids can come. 6