This holiday season I look forward to giving our children a gift they can use. With stories of bullying, incivility, and wrongful use of social media bombarding the airwaves; when images of fallen idols are the norm-from our favorite entertainers to our public officials-it seems to be a good time to talk to our kids about character.

Bullying is an old story-many of us have experienced it in our lives, both growing up and as adults. I think what makes it new, is the variety of media that can now be used to perpetrate it and how, through that media, you can be harassed even in your own home.

Another kind of bullying our children are subjected to is the type adults show each other with increasingly reduced boundaries: the trash talking, negative rants we used to see only at forbidden times or in places where we knew we shouldn't be, are now readily available on the news, the internet and television 24 hours a day.

We need to show kids there are real life heroes and she/roes in our communities. People they can look up to, people who are not perfect and may not have their own reality show but who are reliable, dependable, honorable people. As role models, mentors, parents, and adults, it is up to us to do more than talk. We must have high expectations and behave in the same ways we say we expect.  

At the Boys & Girls Clubs this is what we aim to do everyday. Teach the value of being a good citizen:  of respect, of teamwork, of telling the truth, of character. You can't wrap it up in a box and tie it with a bow, but if we get it right, it will be the best present any of us could give or receive.

Thanks to each and everyone who has contributed to our Clubs this year, be you Club Member, parent, teacher, staff, volunteer, funder or friend. Let us work together to make sure that in 2011 Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington is a safe place for kids and one where great futures begin!

Happy and peaceful holidays to you all.

Pandit

The Education Director (Orr Elementary School Branch)oversees the planning, implementation and ongoing evaluation of quality and developmentally appropriate education programs, activities, services, and special events that reflect Core Programs in clubhouse education program areas for youth ages 6-18. 

President Obama with FBR Branch members

Last week at FBR Branch @ THEARC, President Obama welcomed the Los Angeles Lakers to Washington, D.C. to honor their 2009-2010 season and their second consecutive NBA championship.

Lakers Kobe Bryant and Ron Artest and BGCGW's Pandit Wright and Neal Owens create care packages for wounded soldiers with FBR Branch members.

 During this community service event, FBR Branch members, President Obama and Lakers coaches and players created care packages for wounded warriors at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and toiletry kits for homeless men and women that will be distributed throughout the District by BGCGW Keystone and Torch Club members. 

President Obama, Lakers Ron Artest and FBR Branch Director Tammy Mujica look on as members decorate care packages.

The President also visited with the kids and personally congratulated the team for their achievements on and off the basketball court.  When the Lakers previously visited Washington, they conducted a basketball skills clinic for elementary school kids.  This visit to Washington continues the tradition begun by President Obama of honoring sports teams for their efforts to give back to communities as well as for winning championships.

D.C. Mayor-Elect Vincent Gray and BGCGW ICONs

After months of competition at local and regional levels, and a final performance at the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage, four acts or "ICONs" performed and received scholarships at the ICON 10 Dinner & Talent Showcase Benefit Gala following cocktails, dinner and silent and live auctions at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington, D.C.

BGCGW ICONs performed before an audience of over 300 guests including D.C. Mayor-Elect Vincent Gray, D.C. Councilmember Tommy Wells and Ambassador of Jamaica to the U.S. Audrey Marks. The four performances were a historic speech from Frederick Douglass, an original hip-hop tribute to ICON, a rousing comedic sketch, and a unique vocal and acoustic guitar composition. They 2010 ICONs are:

• Tiffany Greene, Age 9; Trinity Greene, Age 7 and Adiah Johnson, Age 9 (group act) George M. Ferris, Jr. Clubhouse 6
• Brandon Kelly, Age 17, FBR Branch @ THEARC
• Kaitlyn Meyers, Age 14, Fredericksburg Branch
• Sandra Stevenson, Age 9, Orr Elementary School Branch

Presented by BGCGW's Women's Leadership Group (WLG), ICON 10 Dinner & Talent Showcase Benefit Gala generated nearly $300,000 of vital financial support for Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington's performing and visual arts programs and activities.  WLG has raised over $4 million in eleven years to support BGCGW's cultural arts initiatives and is steadfast in promoting opportunities for self-expression and creativity through the advancement of performing and visual arts.

Each year since 2003, ICON Talent Showcase program inspires, motivates and builds the self-esteem and confidence of our members while providing an opportunity to develop and showcase their many hidden gifts and talents. With ICON, all kids are winners!

Orr Elementary School Branch Director Marquitta Johnson with one of her students.

As one of her last official acts as D.C. Schools Chancellor, Michelle Rhee honored Orr Elementary School Branch Director Marquitta Johnson for excellence in after-school programs.   

After a seven year partnership with BGCGW and D.C. Public Schools, Rhee cited the Orr Elementary School Branch as a model for collaboration with community based organizations that work together to make a difference in the lives of our children.

Through signature Boys & Girls Clubs programs and activities such as Power Hour, Orr Elementary School Branch members complete their homework and many teachers even extend their work day to give students the extra help they may need. 

In addition to receiving a nutritious after-school supper, members participate in programs promoting the arts, fitness, and health and life skills.  But perhaps most importantly, many students connect with caring mentors.

"Many of our kids here have so many inconsistencies in their lives," said Johnson.  "I'm just glad we can be a resource for them, and they know they can always count on us here at the Club."

To replicate the success at Orr Elementary School, BGCGW continues to partner with several D.C. Public Schools for its Reaching Beyond Our Walls initiative. Beginning in January 2011, BGCGW clubs and sites within the District will provide resources, programs and activities to schools and the community groups. Two days each week, Reaching Beyond Our Walls, will supplement the curriculum with programs and activities based upon the needs of each school. 

"Greater Washington Boys & Girls Clubs are a resource for the community," said BGCGW District of Columbia Regional Director Neal Owens.  "Reaching Beyond Our Walls is another great way to put our mission into action and increase our capacity to impact the communities we serve."

FBR Branch Family Wins Boys & Girls Clubs of America's First-Ever Triple Play Fit Family Challenge

The Humphries Family of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington, D.C., are congratulated (from l-r) by Leslie Billinger, The Coca-Cola Company; Dr. Ian Smith; and Wayne Moss, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA), for winning the first-ever Triple Play Fit Family Challenge.

 After months of competing in a fitness challenge to improve their overall health, the Humphries Family of BGCGW's FBR Branch @ THEARC was named by New York Times bestselling author and medical diet expert Dr. Ian Smith as the winners of Boys & Girls Clubs of America's Triple Play Fit Family Challenge.  

As Triple Play Fit Family Challenge participants, the families were judged on how well they incorporated the principles of Triple Play into their lives. As the winner, the Humphries - consisting of Dana, 42, Caprice, 12, and Clifton, 11 - will receive an "active, healthy vacation," including an experience at a U.S. Olympic Training Facility. The other two families - The McIver's from Boys & Girls Club of Venice, Calif., and the Rochelle's from Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston - also received prizes, including Microsoft's new Xbox Kinect system.

Created in 2005, Triple Play: A Game Plan for the Mind, Body and Soul is BGCA's proven health and wellness program to encourage Club members to eat healthier (mind), become more physically active (body) and increase their ability to engage in healthy relationships (soul).

BGCGW's Germantown Branch unveiled its new AMD Technology Center complete with 10 new computers outfitted with state-of-the-art technology.  To celebrate the opening of the new center, Germantown members demonstrated the Club Tech: Game Tech digital game development program to special guests: Steve Robinson of the White House Domestic Policy Council, Ann Humphrey of Congressman Chris Van Hollen's office and Maryland State Delegate and Montgomery County Councilmember-elect Craig Rice.

Through AMD's generous support and a partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America, this new technology center will benefit more than 130 youth in Germantown who have limited access to computers and paves the way for the Club to introduce its members to technology while bridging the digital divide.

Geico Presents $50,000 to Support BGCGW
Programs & Activities

Celebrating Geico's support (left to right) Cheryl Ibnez, Geico, Pandit Wright, BGCGW, Paul Alagero, BGCGW and Rynthia Rost, Geico

Geico Philanthropy Foundation, a long-time BGCGW supporter, presented $50,000 to support programs and activities for the youth on the National Capital Region.  Through Geico's continued generous support, BGCGW will continue to provide high-quality programs to promote pathways for young people to gain confidence, self-esteem and motivation.

D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, D.C. Mayor-Elect Vincent Gray and Jelleff Community Center members celebrate the re-opening of the Georgetown Neighborhood Library.

 Jelleff Recreation Center members, City leaders, parents and educators celebrated the grand reopening of the new Georgetown Neighborhood Library. 

Originally destroyed by fire more than three years ago, the new facility features a new teen area, outdoor reading terrace and children's story time room.  The library is also the home of the Peabody Collection of rare historical Georgetown photos, documents, artifacts and paintings. 

BGCGW is proud to support our precious community learning spaces and congratulates the Georgetown community for this wonderful new community resource. 

Over 50 positive-minded, energetic, creative, fun-loving teens from the Washington region assembled at the Silver Spring Branch to participate in this year's community service conference. Participants were also engaged in learning sessions focusing on financial literacy, academic success and career exploration.