What’s Happening at the Braintree Community Youth Center?

There have been and are some exciting things going on at the Braintree Community Youth Center (aka “Youth Center” and BCYC) this Fall and Winter.

First up, our 2nd Annual Halloween Dance on was held in October. Over 50 kids attended, which was great considering all of the Halloween events taking place
the same night around town. Second, Arts & Crafts (A&C) has been taking place once a month, usually on the 3rd Saturday. This Fall, the A&C projects were a big hit. You can see our Halloween Craft project on our Facebook page. We will be posting some of our past A&C projects on our Facebook page over the winter. Be sure to check it out.

In December we had 3 fun events. First up was an Ice Cream Party. Then we had a Cupcake Decorating Contest. Finally, we ended the month with our 2nd Annual Holiday Party. I suppose it’s an Annual Holiday Party since it’s the 2nd time in a row we’ve hosted it. All of our events were well-attended and most of the kids participated. We hope to offer more fun events in 2013.

Our Volunteers help make the Youth Center successful. We do not have any paid staff so we rely on our Volunteers to ensure we open and have fun things to do for Braintree’s teenagers. There is more to do than just spend a few hours at the Youth Center on a Friday or Saturday night. We have several volunteers who coordinate and assist with Arts & Crafts, nearly our entire Board volunteers at least once a month, a couple of volunteers assist with volunteer coordination, we have a group of 3-5 co-workers who volunteer once a month, we have several graduates (former members who have since graduated from high school) who have given back and returned to volunteer, and we have met many neighbors and made new friends and strengthened friendships.

Our first Volunteer Information and Open House Night in November was a success. We will be hosting our 2nd VIOHN on Saturday, February 9th @ 4:30-6pm. This is open to all adults interested in finding out about volunteer opportunities at the Youth Center as well as all current volunteers. A
number of Board Members and Lead Volunteers will be on-hand to meet you and answer all of your questions.

The format of the evening is as follows. We will have “open house” and tours from 4:30-5pm. The slot from 5-5:30pm will feature a presentation and Q&A. The presentation will include the history of the Youth Center and all of our volunteer opportunities, both during regular hours of operations and off-hours. The time from 5:30-5:45pm will be dedicated to signing up new volunteers for a volunteer night and filling out volunteer applications. Refreshments will be served. Current volunteers, groups, individuals, couples and friends are all welcome to join us. Please let us know you are joining us by registering @ http://bcycviohn.eventbrite.com.

Our 3rd Annual Cookout in January Fundraiser is on Friday, January 25th, 2013 @ Emerald Hall in Braintree! Tickets will be $30 and are now available for purchase @ www.bcyccookout.eventbrite.com or by at Friends Automotive (M-F 8am-5pm) on Route 37 in Holbrook or at the Youth Center on a Friday or Saturday night. We’ll be having a cookout, dance and silent auction. Join us for a fun night with friends on a cold winter’s night in January.

The Braintree Community Youth Center is open to all Braintree residents in grades 6-12. Membership is $36/year which can be paid semi-annually. This works out to $3/month, which is a great deal considering the guest fee is $3/night. The BCYC is open Friday nights from 6-9pm for all grades and

Saturday nights 6-9pm for grades 6-8 and 6-11pm for grades 9-12. It is requested that a parent or guardian accompany their child when signing them up the first night for the minutes it takes to sign-up.

Our website is www.braintreeyouthcenter.org and our Facebook page is www.facebook.com/braintreeyouthcenter. You can email us at volunteer@braintreeyouthcenter.org.

–Angela Nuss, Volunteer Coordinator and Board Member