Booth Dinner to Highlight Salvation Army Boys & Girls Clubs

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to meet with the 2013 William Booth Society chairpersons, Charlotte and Wade Edmundson, and the remarkable dinner committee they have assembled to help make our 20th Annual Benefit Dinner a success. This year they will highlight our six Metro Tulsa Boys & Girls Clubs and I wanted to share some information about why our Clubs are essential for youth in our community.

I should also mention that this year we will have Bob Costas as our keynote speaker! As the face and voice of NBC Sports, Costas is best known for covering events seen by millions such as the Kentucky Derby, the Super Bowl and the Olympics.

Here are some interesting facts from a national Harris Survey conducted by Boys & Girls Club nationally.

Nationally, 1.3 million students in the class of 2010 did not graduate with a high school diploma: a graduation rate of 69%

Boys & Girls Club members graduate at a rate of 90%
15% higher average GPA than peers
87% fewer absences

Oklahoma spends on the average $36,500 per year for each child in juvenile detention

Boys & Girls Clubs spend $600 per child each year on programs and services that are proven deterrents to juvenile crime.

Check out this infographic with more: 

Source: http://bgca.org/whywecare/Pages/KidsInCrisis.aspx

The Salvation Army Boys & Girls Clubs in Tulsa serve more than 5,000 youth annually. Our programs focus on physical fitness, education and the importance of being a good citizen, among other things. Our staff is top-notch with a passion for ensuring the kids in our Clubs don't just do well, they prosper and succeed, understanding that if they work hard nothing is out of their reach! If you would like to support The Salvation Army and our Boys & Girls Clubs while also enjoying a fabulous dinner and world class speaker, call Nancy Lloyd at (918) 587-7801.

See you there!
~Lindsay