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On October 4 of this year, the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Coastal Plain ceased operation of its Belhaven Unit. According to Mark Holtzman, president and CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Coastal Plain, there were a couple of reasons why the decision was made. 

“Over the years, we have seen a steady decline in the membership at the club, which dipped into single digits this year,” said Holtzman. “At a site such as Belhaven, we like to see 50 active members who attend at least half of the time. And even though we saw a slight surge in the numbers at the beginning of the school year, they started to dip again and were still well below our standards. During our board’s budget planning process, they decided the dollars needed to operate a club with just a handful of kids didn’t make sense from an economic standpoint based on the cost per child. The decision was then made to close the unit. We asked if we could stay until the first week of October, which was approved.”

On August 6, Belhaven Mayor Ricky Credle was notified by Holtzman of the decision to close the club. “He told me of the board’s decision but indicated they might reconsider their decision if we were able to get the numbers up, so we immediately got to work,” said Credle. “My wife, Onika, approached Shantel Russell, a native of Belhaven and longtime school teacher, and we put together an event to see how many kids we could get registered in the program. We were able to get 32 enrolled at that event alone. Same community and the same location. However, despite the increased enrollment numbers, Shantel was informed a couple of days later that they would be moving ahead with the plans to close the club. So now, what do we do with all of these kids,” 

“I immediately applied for and received a federal ID number and began the process of establishing a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Belhaven Community Afterschool Center, which was approved on September 20,” said Russell. “We officially took over operations on October 7. We now have a joint-use agreement with the town of Belhaven, allowing us to use the same building located at 225 W. Pantego St.”

Russell said the first task was to give the inside of the facility a bit of a makeover and make it more inviting to the children. This included painting the white walls with some vibrant colors and artwork, upgrading the kitchen area with more shelving for storage, along with a pizza maker and a popcorn maker, adding much-needed bookshelves, more books, and a gaming center complete with gaming systems, and traditional board games. “We have also added tablets loaded with educational apps for the elementary-age students,” said Russell. “We just wanted to include things that we knew the children would be interested in so they wouldn’t get bored.”

Russell, who has run similar programs in addition to teaching for nearly a quarter of a century, wanted to make sure the program they are running would be structured and fun at the same time. Each day, the students are required to do their homework, with assistance when needed. After the breakout sessions, there is time for arts and crafts for the younger kids and rec time in the gym or even being taught pickleball by some local volunteers, so they have plenty of time to “just be children.”

Mentors and role models are also brought in to speak with the children and show that their futures can be bright. And Credle’s wife, a LPN, is now on staff. “We also like to keep things very structured,” said Russell. “I have identified the students who need additional help with tutoring, spoken with their parents, and reviewed their Individual Educational Plan (IEP). This helps the parents understand what the school is doing and what we can do here. By law, schools have to provide certain services that parents oftentimes can’t afford, and that is where we come in. We are working on the whole child: social, emotional, educational, and physical. And not one parent pays a single dime for the child to be in our program.”

Both Russell and Credle emphasized that be it one child or several, their doors will remain open. “We are here to make sure the doors never get shut on Belhaven again,” said Credle. “This is a community that needs us; the children need us, and we are here to provide it to them, be it one child or several. Some of the kids are a little behind, and we can fix that. Each week, you see the progress they are making. We can provide the love they may not be getting at home. And when we see them walk in the door and have a big smile on their faces, that is a great thing.”

“The town and Mayor Credle were great partners with us,” said Holtzman. “I have nothing but good things to say about the town, the free use of the facility, and the partnerships we developed.

We are still committed to supporting the Belhaven Community in a practical way with our summer program if they are interested. If the numbers make sense we would entertain opening a club back up.”

The center is open from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. Monday through Friday for K-12 students. On teacher work days, they are open from 6 a.m. -6 p.m., providing breakfast, lunch, and snacks. “We make sure that we provide them a meal because it might be the last one they get that day,” said Russell. “We want to make sure no kids go to sleep hungry.”

Russell said a passing need is to acquire a base or van for transporting the students from school, STEM field trips, etc. They also need nutritional, healthy snacks and drinks, and, of course, dependable, dedicated volunteers. Monetary donations are also welcome. For more information, Russell or Credle can be contacted at: bcacenter@outlook.com and 252-548-7960.

Russell is the co-founder and CEO of the Belhaven After School Community Center, while Credle is a co-founder and COO. The Center currently has 44 students registered for the program, and on any given day, they average between 25-30 students, up from nine before its closing.