Boys and Girls Club for Brighton
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver have been helping young people since 1961. The clubs are community based organizations that provide young people with a fun, safe and constructive environment when they are not at home or school. Like other communities in the Denver metro area, Brighton has experienced rapid growth in recent years and has a significant population of "latch-key" kids who spend after-school hours at home alone. Boys & Girls Clubs provides positive activities for young people during critical after-school hours.
Sept. 28 was the official ground-breaking for the Robert Shopneck Boys & Girls Club of Brighton. It has been a goal of Brighton's Mayor Pro-Tem,
Dick Hodge to see a club in Brighton come to fruition. Mayor Pro-Tem Hodge began this quest two years ago by working with several agencies and negotiating with Denver's club for support. He succeeded in getting that support from many sources.
Robert Shopneck, for whom the facility is named, launched the fundraising efforts by donating $800,000. To date over $2.5 million in funds has been raised towards the $4.2 million dollar project. Generous donors, too numerous to mention, have contributed gifts ranging from $10 to $100,000 in support of the fundraising campaign.
The Brighton Boys & Girls Club will be located at 19 th Avenue and Longspeak St. just across from Northeast Elementary School. The 22,000 square foot facility will house a learning center, technology center, arts/crafts room, kitchen/dining area, games room, full gymnasium, teen center and outdoor playing field. Boys & Girls clubs are open to youth ages 6-18 and membership dues are only $2.00 per year to ensure that no child is turned away because of an inability to pay. The Brighton facility is the seventh Boys & Girls club in the metro area and will meet a huge need for youth in the community.
The Brighton fundraising Committee's Honorary Co-Chairpersons are
Jan Pawlowski, Mayor Brighton and Skip Fischer, Adams County Commissioner. Adams County District Attorney
Don Quick is Chairman of the Committee that includes
Skip Fischer,
Beth Hackenberg of Metalwest;
Dick Hodge, Mayor Pro Tem of Brighton;
Pascual Huerta, Community Leader;
Dick Johnson, Johnson's Auto Plaza;
Linda Jones, Key Properties;
Ernie Lopez, School District 27J Board of Directors;
Terry Lucero, School District 27J;
Dave Rose, Northeast Elementary;
Chris Schoeneck, Brighton Police Department;
Fred Steele, Brighton Municipal Judge;
Gary Wardle, Brighton Parks & Recreation Director and
Susan Worth, Worth & Associates. These enthusiastic supporters of the club in Brighton continue to seek campaign contributions at the local level while the Capital Campaign Committee, Co-Chaired by
Steve McConahey, SGM Capital, LLC and
James Mulligan, Fairfield and Woods, P.C. continue to seek funding throughout metro Denver. A unique way for local contributions to the campaign is to purchase a "brick paver" that would be engraved with an honorary or memorial message. These "pavers" will be installed at the entrance to the new club.