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March
4, 2005
“Not
just an Internet café” By
Connections
Café is “not just an Internet café” we are told in a brochure.
In fact, customers can get far more than Internet access on The
Café is a Foundation Enterprise of the Boys & Girls of Those
employed at Connections also are learning how to run their own online
auction business, called Auction N. This
is a pipeline supplying But
Connections is just one of the many initiatives the Boys and Girls Club of
Lancaster has undertaken to improve The
organization’s housing rejuvenation program serves as a kind of
apprenticeship program. Using
public and private resources to rebuild rundown houses and neighborhoods,
professional tradesmen teach their skill to young people while working on
the homes together. Of
course, the Boys and Girls Club of Lancaster performs many other
invaluable services. From drug
elimination initiatives to residential care, camping and community service
programs, these programs help the Boys and Girls Club fulfill its mission
of helping “youth develop into productive, caring, and responsible
adults through neighborhood based services and programs, prioritizing
services to at-risk youth and families.” These
types of services are invaluable to our area, to any area in the nation.
Too often, we look to government to do everything. Working
alone, the federal government has achieved mixed results in fighting
poverty and caring for at-risk youth.
Many have been helped. But
too often, government assistance means long lines, impersonal bureaucracy,
a meager check to make ends meet. If
anything, the federal government’s effect on poverty has proven a blunt
weapon against a disease that requires surgical precision.
The
Boys and Girls Club of Lancaster is a sterling example of those community
organizations working to focus attention on those youth and families who
most need it. They do what
government cannot. Over
the last few years, Washington has awakened to the fact that community
organizations offer what it cannot – effective, efficient, compassionate
services to those in need. They
do not just offer a meal, a prescription, and a place to stay.
They also offer also a listening ear, counsel to make positive
choices, and support for those who need to make radical lifestyle changes. Generally,
local citizens, who know the area and the people, staff and volunteer at
these organizations. Budgets
are not controlled by faceless bureaucrats, but by homegrown local leaders
familiar with the community and what it needs. They are able, by virtue of
their structure and position in the community, to offer personalized care
in a timely fashion. And they
do more with much less, relying on donations and low overhead to care for
as many people as possible. All
of these organizations should be commended for the hard work they do.
And they should be supported by those of us who care about making a
true difference in the life of our community.
They offer far more than an Internet café or a job training
program. They offer the help
people need to get through tough times. #
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