The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Houston recently held a special program to allow their youth to celebrate and commemorate Black History Month.
The roughly 130 youth and their Boys & Girls Club staffers gathered at Emancipation Park in Houston’s historic Third Ward for the festivities that operated under the theme, “Here’s to Black History: Past, Present and Future.”
“We thought it would not only be fun but be necessary to bring our kids to a historic place in Houston, in their own backyard and really have a place to celebrate their culture, to explore their culture, to learn and to grow with their peers. And Emancipation Park has been very gracious in providing that for us,” said Nikki Dupard, the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Houston’s program manager of academic success.
The day was filled with interactive learning and nonstop fun, including live musical performances of all kinds, line dancing and more according to the local Boys & Girls Club’s Director of Program Services Michael Ewing.
We had leadership here from several different community organizations, including the Boys and Girls Club, and about 120 to 130 kids,” said Ewing. And while celebrating Black history, we witnessed kids’ artwork, spoken word poetry and more. We got to hear some career development panel guests and celebrate our history with just some good food and fun.”
Ewing, who commended Dupard on her leadership in coordinating the event, said the festivities aligned perfectly with the mission and purpose of the Boys and Girls Club.
“Our mission starts with family outreach. We have several pillars, including academic success-related areas, healthy lifestyles, sports and nutrition and academic success in STEAM. And part of our culture is understanding where we are and how we impact the community. So. when we talk about Black history, we have a duty and a mission to expand in outreach and make sure kids understand the history of African Americans and how we got here and our contributions to the world.”
