Boy and Girls Club

I would recommend anyone who want to get experience or volunteer to work with Boys and Girls Club of Durham.  It is highly recommended!!!  I love working at Boys and Girls Club because it is very rewarding and with the training I learn a lot.

I think it is great to have an after school program as children do computers, crafts, gym, games, they have Healthy snack.  We have safewalk when we pick up the kids to take them to the centre.  We also have swimming for the kids.

I fine the afterschool program is great to keep the kids/ youth off the streets while parents are working and to know their kids are safe.  We have special events such as Halloween activities and during Christmas Holidays such as Deck The Halls.  

The staff I work with are great and very supportive.  The staff treats children also youth as well as staff equal and non judgemental.  Everyone is accepted.  

My typical day is always busy but I love working with the children that I am supervising from day to day basis.  It is always a pleasure to see a smile on the children's faces and to make a difference in their lives. The management is great and supportive and again treats everyone equal.  

The hardest part of the job is when dealing with a lot of children In a group to get them to listen but with being a patient person also caring, understanding is what I need to get through it.  I am very good at what I do as I started working at Boys and Girls Club since 2010 and I started volunteering with them in 2007 before I got hired.

The day began at 8:30am, other staff and myself would have to prepare activities that would be done throughtout the day, and we would have a brief discussion on what the day would consist of. Children arrived around 9am, we would play some indoor "icebreaker" games for the children to mingle with one another. At 12pm the children would break for lunch, and afterwards participate in a high energy activty. Closer to the end of the day we would prepare snacks, and a outdoor activity depending on the weather. Camp would finish at 3pm, and children were montitored until parents had picked them up or they were given permission to leave. In addition we had the younger campers ages 4-8 in the morning and the 9-12 in the afternoon, unless it was a trip day.

My favorite part of the job was making the campers smile, and being someone they could talk to when they had questions or concerns. The most difficult part of the job was trying to get everyone to be involved in certain activities, or dealing with complaints from childrens parents.

My co-workers were very enthused about working which made things a lot easier in terms of work flow; however, there were a few that weren't as motivated and this showed in their overall performance.

Management was very disorganized and this effected how each camp site worked. They also had a lot of favoritism which segregated many of the staff.

However I've gained a lot of knowledge working with not only children but the community and my coworkers. It is always good to hear both sides of a story before jumping to a conclusion, and patience is a virtue.

I found my skill, talent and passion for cleaning with the support of the Youth Workers through The Boys and Girls Club they were my management. It was a wonderful opportunity that has shaped my future in a very positive way. There were up to 10 plus split level units for two young adults to share. When one moved out, it was my job to clean and prepare the living corridors for the next potential tenant. A typical day at work would include washing walls, bathrooms and the kitchen area and making sure all kitchen appliances were clean. I would vacuum the carpets and draperies. I would than sanitize the area. I worked independently and therefore did not have any co workers. The most challenging part of the job was the physical labor. I than found it necessary to make sure, I had a healthy balance in between shifts. I would take good care of my physical health. The most enjoyable part of the job was learning new things about cleaning such as easier and more effective ways to provide and result in a satisfactory job well done. Immaculate Mermaids was just a personal name. I gave to my personal clients. I cleaned the home of a senior citizen to help provide him with a tidy and clean home to live happily in. I also cleaned for a hard working business woman and provided her with less to do by taking up all chorus within in her home. So she could have the relaxation time she deserved in a immaculate living area.

The way i was treated here was beyond awful, I was at this company for years and because my supervisor did not personally like me I was targeted and bullied. This company tends to operate in a reactive short sighted way. There is a reason there is currently over 20 jobs posted for this agency. This is an amazing place to start and get some experience because they will hire green staff. Just be warned that you will learn just as much about how not to do things as you will about how to actually function as a healthy organization. Some of the supervisors are great and if the luck of the draw means that you end up under a strong leader then you are lucky, but there is no quality control for the supervisors and they are allowed to run free with little supervision. Power hungry leaders that make a habit of favourites and targets are more common than they should be and often the people that get ahead are the ones that brown nose, not the ones that are competent. I have seen people be con-sequenced for burnout and vicarious trauma instead of supported through it. If you are the sort of person that speaks up for injustices I would steer clear of this agency as at some point the injustices will likely come from your leadership. The word accountability very rarely exists in managements vocabulary.

I ran the youth drop-in centre at the Boys and Girls Club of Yukon. My typical day started at 2pm and ended at 10:30pm. I was responsible for cooking, cleaning, programming, maintenance and everything else pertaining to the running of the centre. The BGC allowed me to gain experience in all the above skillsets, and to meet a wide range of youth in the Whitehorse community.

The hardest part of my job was having to constantly switch modes from cook to carpenter, to youth counsellor, to janitor, etc. Easily the most enjoyable part of my job was being paid to hang out with kids, and the feeling at the end of each day that I had done meaningful work.

Youth work generally attracts fun-loving individuals, and spending time with like-minded co-workers was definitely a plus. Money is not great when you work for a non-profit, so most of my co-workers were there because of the other rewards the job offered.

There were definite financial stressors associated with working for a non-profit, and some instability in staffing stemming from this. All in all though, one of my best work experiences, and the from which I benefited the most in terms of personal and professional growth.

A typical day at work at Boys & Girls club was to come a half hour early and plan the program for the day. At my program, we would play about 5-6 games in a span of 40 minutes and the last 20 minutes was snack time and "The Talk" where we would have a topic of the day and ask questions about that topic. At the end of program, the kids would then go home and the Group Leaders would evaluate and reflect on how the program went hoe the child participated games, activities and how they worked with other child and the leaders. Also, we would evaluate how the leaders worked together. The co-workers would really well together, it was like one big family or a group of people who had been friends forever. Majority of the workers went to the club themselves when they were young. The hardest part of he job is getting the kids to settle down and to participate in all games. The way our group overcame this was by making a "call" which was a phrase we would say and it would mean for everyone to quiet down. The most enjoyable part of the job is playing games with the kids because as leaders, we must also play and it is amazingly fun, let's the leader gain a better relationship with the children and also gives the leaders a chance to let out their inner-child.

Boys & Girls Club was an amazing place to work at for a season. I was in charge of planning and running my own programs for the kids. That would include sometimes working from home as well as researching different activities that the kids would like. Since it was primarily a smaller group, I was able to form relationships with the kids and formulate some of the things they like to have a better understanding of what we could run programwise. 

During my time with BGC, I definitely had a lot of time to grow. I learned how to work in a team environment but I also learned a lot about myself in terms of personality and behavior management style. Going into the job itself, I was quite unsure of myself but I had amazing management who would back me and support me, giving constructive feedback if need be. 

Perhaps the most challenging part of the job was setting aside things that are going on outside of work such as school, family, etc. These things would definitely play a factor in the way you would interact and engage with the kids. Nonetheless, I had to be really stretched out in this particular department to ensure that I was creating a healthy and safe environment for the kids.

Typically you start your day walking in to kids being beyond excited to see you. Running to you to hug you. Smiles, laughs, and sometimes tears. It really was a job that you get to have fun and get paid for it. 
I really learnt how to care for others, yet still having a backbone and not let others walk all over you. 
Management was the best part of this, I was involved with the others in the company, keeping parents in the knows, and being in contact with the community. Doing the paperwork, the phone calls, pretty much everything to keep a daycare running. It was a lot but great. 
My co-workers were always happy and easy to talk to, we all enjoyed our jobs and got to do what we all enjoyed. 
The hardest part of this job was trying to tell kids the answer "no" because many would get upset and you wanted to just keep them happy. 
The most enjoyable part of this job was literally getting paid to play.

I only worked at the Boys and Girls Club for a short time in the pool as a lifeguard, before I had to leave due to a health issue, however throughout the time I did work with the B+G Club of Niagara Falls, I loved it. The children I instructed on a daily basis were bundles of joy and so much fun to interact with. Management was very laid back and easy going. Extremely easy to interact with and communicate with. Finding coverage for shifts was easy as 1-2-3, and they were always understanding when you were sick. 
Found the job was very laid back and fun, a bit stress-full at times but what job isn't. 
Fellow lifeguards and employees were always friendly and easy to approach and get along with.
Would recommend this job/ company to anyone who loves kids or interacting with children/ having fun for work. 
At the B+G Club of Niagara, you are paid to have fun.

Management is great, and working there helped me find new and creative ways to reach the students. When I first started, and was having trouble, my manager (who left soon after) literally told me "Just do what you think is right!', when asked for advice. The atmosphere was beautiful! Organization & good communication are key in order to be successful. Kids and co workers were extremely friendly and fun to work with.

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