Program directors with the Waco Boys and Girls Club said their organization is something the community desperately needs.
"A lot of kids come from harder backgrounds, they don't necessarily have the positive adult role models that they need," said Boys and Girls Club Development Assistant Taylor Turpin.
The Boys and Girls Club serves kids ranging in ages 6 to 18-years-old. The club focuses on providing kids with positive role models.
The club's focus is not just about keeping kids occupied during the summer months, but it's also about exposing them to a world outside of their community.
The exposure comes through programs covering the stem subjects of science, technology, engineering and math, along with working to develop character and leadership.
"They're able to see what they can do when they get older. They're able to develop their dreams, figure out what they can do and how we can help them get there," Turpin said.
A perspective these kids might have never experienced if it wasn't for volunteers like Andrea Arias, a high school sophomore, who said volunteering is just as beneficial for her as it is for the kids she serves.
"It kind of helps take your own personal worries away, so you can focus on their worries and just help them out in whatever problems they're having," Arias said.
The Boys and Girls club isn't just for the summer. The program is available to kids after school once the school year starts, and they are always in need of volunteers looking to make a difference in a child's life.
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