The $2 million project, funded by BGCGTC and private donations, involved remodeling an existing space into a state-of-the-art production kitchen that will produce healthy meals and snacks for 3,500 members each day. The Blue Door Kitchen initiative also serves as a training ground for Club members interested in a career in culinary arts and will eventually offer nutritious, low-cost meals for Club members’ families and the surrounding community.

Daphne Barlow Stigliano, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County CEO and president, said the idea to create a modern commercial kitchen emerged from the challenges in helping kids succeed during the pandemic. BGCGTC is able to enhance the quality of the food it currently serves children through U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) funding and provide healthier meals at significantly lower cost.

“Creating happy, healthy kids really starts with happy, full tummies,” Stigliano added. “Blue Door Kitchen allows us to deliver quality meals and snacks to the young people we serve every day. And because we can now do that very affordably, we will reinvest those savings to support the mission of our organization — which is to provide a positive environment, supportive relationships, and opportunities to nurture academic success, character, and leadership.”

Renovation efforts began earlier this year and were funded in part by Jackson-Shaw, a national real estate development company headquartered in North Texas, with support from the Amon G. Carter Foundation and private donations. The Ladies Auxiliary of Arlington also contributed a commercial truck to transport meals to BGCGTC’s Arlington locations. In all, three delivery vehicles will be used to carry meals and snacks to 25 BGCGTC facilities each day.

“We are thrilled to see this dream become a reality for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County,” said Michelle Wheeler, Jackson-Shaw president and CEO. “Our team is passionate about helping young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their potential. This investment also allows us to support the development of a pipeline of future talent in the hospitality industry that we serve.”

The kitchen also supports one of BGCGTC’s newest workforce development programs — Culinary Connection, which introduces youth age 13 and older to various cooking techniques and provides students the knowledge and skills needed to work in a professional kitchen. Participants work under the tutelage of executive chef Chris Hallowell, who leads seasonal menu creation with fresh, locally sourced ingredients and scratch-cooking principles.

Blue Door Kitchen also equips BGCGTC with space to fulfill community food needs as they arise. Barlow says the organization plans to offer carry-out meal opportunities by fall 2023.

“To our knowledge, this type of venture has never been attempted by a Boys & Girls Club,” Barlow said. “I’m proud to say that our organization is capable of handling the complexity of managing the facilities and the volume of meals that this will entail. The young people and families we serve will benefit from this exciting venture for years to come.”

The post Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County Launches Kitchen first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.

Photo courtesy of BGCGTC

On October 1, 2018, two beloved youth development organizations with roots dating to 1926 and more than 150 years of community service between them became one. In one of the most influential mergers in Boys & Girls Clubs of America history, the Board of Directors of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Arlington and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Fort Worth united to become Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County (BGCGTC).

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County (BGCGTC) serves youth in schools and community sites located in some of Tarrant County’s most at-risk areas. Our target neighborhoods are historically low-income, with low educational attainment, high unemployment rates, and associated high rates of illegal activity, including gangs and alcohol and other drugs. In 2018, the Club served more than 23,000 youth throughout our 26 branches in after-school and summer programming throughout Fort Worth and Arlington. According to membership data, the median household income for our members is $33,913, which means 35% of our member’s families are living at or below poverty level.

More than half of our members come from single-parent homes, and 78% qualify for the free or reduced lunch plan. Research has clearly shown that kids who grow up in poverty have fewer opportunities than their peers who live in higher income areas, but this often boils down to not having opportunities to create meaningful relationships with adults. BGCGTC directly address this deficiency, offering judgment-free and caring relationships with kids that allow them to feel empowered, have a sense of belonging, and a way to build positive interactions.

The Club is also committed to ensuring at-risk youth have access to the arts – specifically music. In partnership with the non-profit Music & Youth, BGCGTC opened the first Music Clubhouse outside of the Boston area in 2015. This collaboration has established a high-quality music education program on-site at two of our branch locations.

Photo courtesy of BGCGTC

The Clubhouse provides disadvantaged youth, ages 10-18, with free music lessons, an opportunity that target area youth would otherwise not experience. Our Music Clubhouse attracts youth to a safe place to learn and grow, away from the culture of drugs, gangs and violence that is all too prevalent on the streets of their neighborhoods. In addition to increasing self-confidence and self-esteem in young people, the purpose of this program is to expose youth to a world outside of their own experiences. Many youth never leave their neighborhoods; much less participate in music-making. This initiative allows members to express themselves creatively while being mentored by staff and volunteers with the program.

As Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County has experienced, and continues to experience rapid growth, more resources are needed to continue to offer the Music & Youth Program. Could you partner with us to impact the lives of youth in Tarrant County? A financial contribution can be made by visiting www.bgcgtc.org/ways-to-give . You gift today will help us get the following important equipment and supplies for the Music & Youth Clubhouses:

• Computers for staff
• iPads for beat making and production activities
• Microphones
• Headphones
• Software subscriptions
• New instruments
• Instrument maintenance
• Instruction materials

The Music & Youth program is providing the most vulnerable members of our community with an added opportunity to be engaged in positive developmental activities. Youth contribution will allow the Club to continue impact Tarrant County’s hardest to reach youth.

Photo courtesy of BGCGTC

Carol Noel is the Senior Vice President of Advancement of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County which is committed to to enabling all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens. Visit www.bgcgtc.org to learn more.

The post TWM Gives Back: Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County first appeared on Tanglewood Moms.