Christmas will arrive on Tuesday, December 22nd for twelve twenty four children from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Annapolis & Anne Arundel County, as well as one lucky child who placed his wish at Westfield Annapolis’ Santa’s Workshop. During a “Wishes and Dreams” Ceremony at 7pm at Westfield Annapolis, the actual wishes of these children will be granted...and excerpts from their letters will be shared. Santa will be on hand to spread his holiday cheer and take pictures with all of the recipients.See the article in The Capital.

Help us make sure every child has a happy holiday. The Young Advocates and Stoney River Legendary Steaks are hosting a Toy Drive through December 18th. Donate a new, unwrapped, toy to the toy box at Stoney River and they will be distributed to children in the Annapolis area. Toys can be dropped off from 11:30 a.m. - 9:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday, until 10:30 p.m. Friday/Saturday and until 9:00 p.m. on Sundays.

From December 4 to 27, Punk’s will donate $0.15 for each beer, specialty cocktail, and glass of wine purchased. After making a beer, wine, or cocktail purchase, guests will “donate” the used bottle cap or cork to one of the three charities to receive their portion of Punk’s pledged donation. On December 28, the bottle caps and corks “donated” to each charity will be tallied and Punk’s will present each charity with the full contribution.

Support our Clubs while shopping for the holidays. BGCAA will earn 25% profit from all purchases made by shopping AVON via: www.youravon.com/mjones1522. When you go to the site, just click “online events”, then select Boys & Girls Clubs and start shopping! At check out enter the coupon code “BOYSANDGIRLS”. You’ll benefit by getting a product that is 100% returnable, products that are exclusive to AVON, and no door-to-door selling by our Club members. Please forward the information to your family and friends all over the United States so they can help BGCAA earn needed money. With every purchase of $30 or more you’ll automatically receive FREE shipping.

In late November the Bates neighborhood was filled with the sound of drums, pipes and cheers as a Victor, New York marching band practiced their routines on the Bates ball field. Thanks to the quick thinking of Barry Valentine the Bates field was used as a contingency plan when a local Community College decided at the last minute that the NY band, practicing for an upcoming competition at Navy Stadium, could no longer use their field. Bates was the perfect fit, and happened to be available on that Saturday afternoon. The band was very grateful and thanked our team for their last minute efforts. Then, a month later, BGCAA received two checks in the mail. One from the Marching Blue Devils Booster Club, and a matching check from Skip Lehman of Mack2 Management. Three cheers for the Marching Blue Devils. Go Team!

It's that time of year again, when your spare change could change a life! When you shop at JC Penney in the Annapolis Mall between December 4 and December 19 and round your purchase up to the next whole dollar, the JCPenney Afterschool Fund will donate the difference to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Annapolis & Anne Arundel County to provide children in this community with access to life-enriching afterschool programs. So, from December 4 through 13 remember to Round-Up for kids at JC Penney in the Annapolis Mall.

Results are in from the Regional tournament and all five Clubs sent very impressive teams. One team from the Bywater Club even earned a berth in the State Championship this January. Check it out.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County (BGCAA) and The Maryland Food Bank are working together in a pilot five-week BackPack program, and an ongoing Hot Meals initiative. The mission of the BackPack program is to help alleviate child hunger by providing hungry children with nutritious and easy-to-prepare food at times when other resources are not available. The program provides backpacks filled with food that is child-friendly, nonperishable, healthy and easily consumed. Backpacks are discreetly distributed on Fridays, for a five-week period, at each Boys & Girls Club to children at-risk of hunger and intended for preparation and consumption at their place of residence. Backpacks maintain a level of confidentiality by not making the food visible to other children, which helps to protect the dignity of the children. The Hot Meals initiative kicks-off on January 4th and will provide a hot, nutritious, meal to all Club members from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. These meals, provided by the Maryland Food Bank, will allow members of the Clubs to focus on programs which enrich their lives and not the basic necessities of life.

On Wednesday, December 9th The Master's Club of Anne Arundel County presented a check for $1,000 to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Annapolis & Anne Arundel County. The presentation took place at the Chart House in Annapolis. Special thanks to Dee Dee Miller, President of The Masters Club. In photo: (L) Lisa Jacobs - Development Director BGCAA; (R) Dee Miller, President of The Masters Club.

The party was jam-packed with activities, food, fun, entertainment and lots of great raffles. Mark your calendar for November 6, 2010.Photos by Beverlee Bartel are here.

Come one...come all! On Thursday, October 29th, the Young Advocates are hosting a Halloween Happy Hour to benefit the Boys & Girls Clubs of Annapolis & Anne Arundel County. Don your favorite Halloween costume and head down to Armadillo's from 6pm - 9pm for a goulish good time! $20 donation includes appetizers and drink specials. Prizes awarded for best costume.

On Thursday, October 29th, The Boys & Girls Club at Freetown Village will be hosting the Maryland Food Bank's Produce Give-Away Program. Maryland Food Bank delivers fresh produce directly into communities acrosst the state. Each delivery is geared toward 200 families and consists of approximately 6,000 pounds of produce. For more information contact Angela White at 410-437-0880.

On October 22, more than 7,500 local Lights On Afterschool events will be held in communities throughout the country, involving more than one million people. Each of our clubs is participating in the October 22nd Lights On Afterschool event. Join us as JCPenney celebrates ten years as the leading corporate advocate for afterschool. According to a new survey, sponsored by JCPenney Afterschool Fund and organized by the Afterschool Alliance, there’s good reason to celebrate. America After 3PM, a survey of nearly 30,000 households across the United States, shows that 8.4 million children are now attending afterschool programs, up from 6.5 million in 2004.

The Capital featured BGCAA's LET'S GO program on the front page of the local newspaper. LET'S GO is an acronym for Leadership, Engineering, Technology & Science Generating Opportunities. It's the Club's version of the public school's STEM program - Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. "We're testing the model here," said Dr. Clark "Corky" Graham, who retired recently as senior vice president of Northrop Grumman Ship Systems. Graham is spearheading a pilot program at all five of the clubs in Anne Arundel County. If it is successful, he hopes to eventually roll the program out to all 4,300 locations nationwide, which serve more than 4.5 million youth.

Your spare change could change a life!When you shop at JC Penney in the Annapolis Mall between October 16 and October 25 and round your purchase up to the next whole dollar, the JCPenney Afterschool Fund will donate the difference to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Annapolis & Anne Arundel County to provide children in this community with access to life-enriching afterschool programs. So, from October 16 through October 25, remember to Round-Up for kids at JC Penney in the Annapolis Mall.

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