By Maria Caceres
Knocking day after day in hopes to earn the trust of a mother to let her son join The Bristol Boys and Girls Club is what Jay Maia did as part of his job at the club earlier in his career.
Maia, the current President and Chief Executive Officer of the BBGC, in recalling the effort said he met the then 8-year-old David Casanova at Cambridge Park. He said it took multiple visits to earn David’s mother’s trust just to get her to tour the club.
Maia said this is the type of effort BBGC staff put in to try to get members engaged because a lot of them come from single-parent and public housing sites around Bristol. Cambridge Park is public housing community that is managed by the Bristol Housing Authority and participates in HUD’s Public Housing program.
“It takes a village,” Maia said. “You have to let them know we’re a team. We’re all in this together.”
The Bristol Boys and Girls Club with roots going back to 1907 was founded to help children and teens of all ages to gain skills that will help them in the future.
In Bristol, the BBGC oversees programming at its Don Tinty Boys & Girls Club of Bristol on West Street, Imagine Nation, Cambridge Park satellite, Future Champions Gymnastics, before and after school school-based clubhouses and a summer camp.
After joining the club, Maia said, Casanova, who had been struggling, did better in school and eventually was accepted into and graduated from Trinity College. He said Casanova eventually has become a good realtor in another state.
“So, what it took was multiple times for me to walk over,” Maia said, “knock on the door, introduce myself, be kind, and have something in writing on what the program is all about and the impact that it would have on David.”
Building trust is the first step to building a relationship, Maia said. From there, it’s a matter of introducing the young people to the type of activities the children would engage in while attending.
It is this relationship building that the club staff prides itself on.
“It has to be a world-class fun experience as soon as they come in the door,” Maia said. “Before that, you have to make sure that you cover all bases when it comes to safety.”
In addition, he said, since much of the funding for the club comes from community support, one of the activities members engage in is a volunteer experience to “pay it forward.”
“[They, the community] are helping us out by providing field trips and healthy snacks [and] homework help,” Maia said. “So, it’s important that we go out and we help others.”
Maia said that the members of the club typically volunteer when the opportunity comes up.
“You know who your top players are, and then those are the kids that you bring out in the community to make the club shine,” he said.
For example, Maia said, members of the club volunteered at the Juneteenth event at the Carousel Museum earlier this summer. On a more regular basis, members volunteer at elderly complexes where they host bingo games and help with arts and crafts.
He said volunteering and being part of the community and club is good for members to help them feel like they are part of something and to help them in their future.
“The only way we could do that is as a village [and] do it together,” he said.
The BBGC website states its motto is “Great Futures Start Here,” and the organization aims to create safe and positive relationships for everyone and to create confidence and self-esteem.
Its mission is “to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to realize their full potential as productive, caring and responsible citizens.”
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