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Phaedra (age 12) and Gabriel (age 11) moved to Lewiston to live with their aunt about 4 years ago. The adoption was just finalized this past year.

They joined the Club at the beginning of summer last year after growing out of the local daycare they were attending. They were in desperate need of some social activity around kids their own age. While Phaedra quickly fit in and made new friends, Gabe struggled a bit. Gabe started at the Club wearing a helmet to protect his head from any falls due to poor balance. 

The Club and their aunt worked together to arrange for Gabe to participate in weekly social services while at the Club. Gabe was able to continue receiving these much-needed services throughout the summer. Gabe also needed help with his social skills. He was having trouble making friends and getting along with the other Club members. Once again, the Club and his aunt worked together to arrange for Gabe to have a 1:1 worker with him to provide cues and redirection. Having these additional supports in place helped Gabe to have a positive experience at the Club. 

Today, he continues to have support from the club and others but no longer needs to wear the helmet. Yes, he still needs occasional reminders about personal space and boundaries but overall, Gabe is doing really well at the Club. 

Both he and his sister look forward to spending time at the Club and hanging out with their friends. In fact, sometime usually over the weekend, Gabe asks if it’s Sunday yet? Because he can’t wait for Monday, so he can attend the club -- a place he knows cares for, loves and supports he and his sister. They enjoy the activities the Club has to offer and the Club enjoys having them at the Club each day.

This is Natalie and Nora. They have had some challenging life circumstances and have had to deal with some very difficult things in their young lives. These girls are Resilient and are still learning everyday.
Their Dad was incarcerated and has since returned, straightened out his life and has established a strong bond with the girls.

Natalie says she and her sister Nora used to live with their mom and now live with their dad.
When they were younger They were on their own a lot. They live with mom some of the time and with dad most of the time. Natalie is excited to have all the stuff back that was at their house. The Boys & Girls Club has helped both of the girls when they needed it most.

Nora says once they started going to the Club, things started changing for the better. Because everyone (staff members and club members) would help them when they were upset. The Club staff always helped and they really like being part of the club. The Club has assisted with equipping Natalie and Nora with different ways to deal with big emotions and empowered them to begin to use those tools in their everyday life.

They used to get upset very easily, Club staff helped them calm down and do their best. Their dad started to help them correct their bad habits and helping them become what they are now. They still have challenging times and are learning and growing daily.

The Club has provided them with stability and positive role models at a time when they needed it most. They have lived through some very challenging times with family.

They say their life has been changed by the club and they are thankful for the club. They feel safe and supported at the club and glad to be here.

Gabe is a Senior at Clarkston High School and has been a club member for years. He is an only child and lives with his mom. He describes himself as incredibly shy and quiet. He did not have a lot of friends and was nervous about attend the club and getting involved. Over the course of months and years – Gabe started to create relationships with both Staff and other club members. He was accepted and began to come our of his quiet shell and open up. He was approached about being involved in our Youth of the Year Program and put in the work. His first year in the Competition he learned a lot and was encouraged to work at his speech and also share his story.

He did just that and over 2 years he put in the time and effort to be the best he could at school and in the community and with his friends and others at the Club. Last fall he went thru the Youth of the Year Competition and did incredible. He has chosen as the Boys & Girls Club of the Lewis Clark Valley’s Youth of the Year and went on to the Washington State competition where he traveled to Olympia and Seattle (His first time every there) and did very well. He has since had the opportunity to share his story and is still learning more about how to overcome his shyness and finding opportunities to grow. With all of his club experiences, he has a lot of friends now and that they have all been kids that he met at the Club. He has gained so much confidence in himself and is looked up by the younger Club members. Gabe has helped to continue new programs here at the club and is currently working as a Junior Staff member. Over the past few years he has developed relationships with staff members and club members that have been incredible and positive. Gabe has given his time back to the club and you can find him most days somewhere engaged in an activity with others, working on his next project or helping others.

Gabe now considers the club a second home and loves to show up and is well loved when he is there by both staff members and club members. He is in the process now of writing a Novel based on his Club experiences. He is planning to attend college and study literature and creative writing and hopes to inspire others to pursue their hopes and dreams and look for opportunities to grow from their life experiences.

Corbin & Olivia are siblings, and their Club journey started, in July 2021. They were kids on our waitlist, due to capacity – and one of the first that I called as soon as I had two spots open up. Grandma did not hesitate, she was at Booth Hall within 10 minutes to fill out the paperwork and get them registered – Challengers was the only Club they could attend due to transportation barriers. They qualified for a scholarship, but as a single grandmother raising 3 of her children’s kids, finances are tight. Grandma pulled out money from her stimulus checks she was receiving monthly to pay the bill. That’s when we knew something wasn’t right... she proceeded to ask “how much”, “will it be cheaper if we only do two days a week”, so I cut the free lunch price in half again, and told her they can attend any day they needed/wanted. She left, and told me that she would bring them back the next day for their first day of the Club. 

They came back the next day, and I told her that all of the activities they chose for the rest of the summer would be covered – because of a $300 donation that a parent made for a deserving family. She broke down – she had told me that Olivia hadn’t been in school for the last 10 months – and was in between different homes due to her finding her father dead from a drug overdose. She also shared that Corbin had been in her custody since he was 6 months old because his mom was in prison at that time. They experienced a lot of firsts over the summer, going to places for activities that they had never gotten to do before. Their story didn’t stop after Challengers... they started utilizing our Athletic Programs and both played Soccer for the first time.

Due to generous donors during the holiday time, we are able to bless around 20 kids with items they need, and I knew that they would be on that list. After the Christmas event, Grandma took forms to register the two kids for our Basketball Clinic and League. When she came in the next day with the forms – she handed us a check and asked us not to cash it until the following Monday. We scholarshiped all of their fees, which would not be possible without the help of our community & generous donors.

Grandma does everything she can for the two of them –and they all recognizes how important the Club is to provide these experiences for the two of them.