Stafstrom, Moore Tout State Funds For Boys And Girls Club

Development and Zoning, News and Events12 Comments

Rendering of new facility

From State Rep. Steve Stafstrom:

The construction of a state-of-the-art Wakeman Boys & Girls Club on Madison Avenue has long been a priority of mine and I am thrilled to have been able to secure the critical state matching investment needed to make this $23 million project a reality. The 44,230 square foot facility will provide three meals a day, nutritional counseling, a learning center, three-court field house, performing arts space, technology room, teen lounge, STEM learning and licensed day care center offering thousands of children in our community an unparalleled positive, safe place to play, learn and grow. I want to extend my thanks to Governor Lamont, Speaker Ritter and commission members for understanding this project’s significance and value and their work to move it forward.

From State Senator Marilyn Moore:

Today, state Senator Marilyn Moore (D-Bridgeport), Chair of the Bonding Committee, is supporting expected bonding that will be awarded to the Wakeman’s Boys & Girls Club in her neighborhood. The Boys & Girls Club provides young people with opportunities including academic, health, and wellness programs, while preparing them for a successful future.

“I am appreciative of this funding that will help rebuild the Boys & Girls Club in Bridgeport and am thankful for Governor Lamont’s approval of this request,” said Sen. Moore. “Providing a safe place for children to go after school will help eliminate youth gun violence. Kids will have positive influences and resources to gravitate toward. This Boys & Girls Club will help engage our youth in programs that will take them away from negative influences and activities.”

The Wakeman’s Boys & Girls Club located on Madison Avenue in Bridgeport is expected to receive $3 million. This funding will help assist with construction to rebuild the center in Bridgeport. The new center will serve 2,000 new youth, ages 3-18, and provide academic support, health and wellness support, and other programs.

Senator Moore is a huge advocate to putting an end to gun violence that takes place across cities in Connecticut, specifically the young children who are in the crossfire. Sen. Moore has worked throughout this year to implement gun violence intervention programs across the state that will help minimize youth gun violence. This Boys & Girls Club will help  put future generations on the path to success.

The Bond Agenda is set to be approved next Tuesday, December 21.

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12 comments

  1. A Bit of Background

    The Jerome Orcutt Club for boys and girls is one of the leading youth organization in the Greater Bridgeport, CT area- inspiring young people to embrace their true identity while discovering their inner potential. Our programs are designed to teach and assist all young people with all the tools, resources and support they need in order to involve into the confident leaders of tomorrow. We welcome you to learn more about how The Jerome Orcutt Club for boys and girls make a difference in young peoples lives.

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          1. Lennie, Even the the Jesse P. Sanford Boys & Girls Club of Redding-Easton Ct. love Bob Keeley!
            I heard it was open, you most be getting your information from Brian Leakhard!

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  3. Jimfox, in the late 1950’s my brother and I would go to summer camp at Middle Boys Club across the street from Bridgeport Fire Department Headquarters on Middle St. At one o’clock five days a week for one hour we would walk over to Jerome Orcutt Club to go swiming and we had a great time.. Orcutt at one thing that none of the other boys club had that we all loved, Jimfox can you tell me what it was?

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  5. Power fights over who will provide services in parts of the community have been ongoing for years. To the extent that those disagreements halt funds to renovate, rebuild, or establish state of the art youth programs equivalent to those in the suburbs, why do we let them continue. One focus I looked at last year is the lack of programs and facilities in the City so that youths may become educated in water safety and skilled in swimming such that courses from Beginner to Advanced Life Saving may show up for Bridgeport young residents. Swimming is a life skill and too many in the minority population raised in Bridgeport have never been exposed to community wide programs. Why is the community aware of the pleasure and joy youngsters participate in at the variety of water parks established in the City in recent years? Why is no one asking what do they do as they grow older to learn skills around water in a community with ponds, river and salt water beaches and shoreline?? Why is it OK for former locations with pools to be razed without plans for pool replacement or no longer serve older or younger populations? Time will tell.

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    1. @JML
      I was born and raised in New Haven, lived there my first 34 years then 16 years in Hamden before coming to this area.
      Every public high school in New Haven had a swimming pool and swimming instruction was required in all 4 years of high school.
      There were also swimming pools in several K-8 community schools. Every 4th grader was bussed to a school with a pool for compulsory swimming lessons once a week. This is/was a matter of public safety.

      Hamden has a swimming pool at the high school. Every high school student has instructional swimming as one of their three years of PE in high school.

      I was shocked when I moved here and found no swimming pools in the high school in Bridgeport or Trumbull. Trumbull has an inoperable pool in a middle school, and when it was open it was not used for instructional swimming for school children.

      You and I both spent time at Blackham School in Bpt about 5 years ago ( I would see your name in the sign in log), there is a pool there but the students are not all taught to swim.

      RIDICULOUS

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      1. Marshall,
        Sorry for a delay in response. Thank you for the personal info.
        My previous time at Blackham five years ago was to meet a student as a mentor in the SVA program. At the time I knew nothing about the pool at the school or its use. I have reflected on this recently and written on more than one occasion about the failure in the State’s largest City to have the attention of Youth programs to create a very basic skill set and safety training for all young people (especially when they ‘graduate from’ the relatively ubiquitous summer water playgrounds; and a public safety department with marine personnel and equipment but no public program for swimming and boating; and no CC member for whom knowing how to swim and overcome natural fear personally or with friend or family made a difference between life and death.
        Let’s have a cup of coffee over the holiday. My oft published business phone is 203-259-9642. I grew up in New Haven (5 years) and then Hamden as public school base and college (17 years) until moving to Fairfield (22 years) and now Bridgeport (35 years). Perhaps we put our thoughts together, and experience and come up with a change, including a challenge to those who think their budgeting power is more important than extending learning and skills to all? Time will tell.

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