The Boys and Girls Club of Lenoir County is out of money and forced to close its doors.
For the next 8-weeks, board members will work to figure out how they can streamline their operation but still provide kids the outlet they desperately need.
On a normal day the hallways and class rooms would be full of students in the Boys and Girls Club after school program.
On Friday, the club was forced to close.
"We've basically been operating on a shoe string with minimal funding coming in," said Rogers.
And now club director Robert Rogers says the money has run out. "We plan to open back up. We are taking this 8 weeks to basically regroup, to raise funds, to come back and provide the same service at the same quality but to basically streamline what we're doing here."
Financial problems have plagued the Lenoir County Boys and Girls Club for the past year.
They have already cut staffing, field trips, programs and asked parents to pay a program fee.
“The majority of the children and families we serve can not afford to pay, so therefore we depend on the kindness of the community to support the programs and in supporting the programs, you also support your community,” Rogers said.
The solution may sound simple, but getting people to donate is not. Unfortunately, the kids are caught in the middle of the budget battle.
Rogers says, "We do worry about them being out of here for 8 weeks because things can happen quick, not just 8 weeks, things can happen in 8 days."
That's why Rogers hopes they can figure things out fast and get these kids back sooner than later.
"The need is definitely here, the need is not going anywhere. The funding is dwindling, but the need is becoming greater and greater,” he says.
The Boys and Girls Club has programs running year round, and Rogers says they have 75 kids currently enrolled in the after school program.
The average cost for one child for a full year is $1,000.
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