It’s no secret that many students are involved in after school activities, but one outgoing senior has been involved in one particular club since she was in Kindergarten.

“I’ve been a member of [boys and girls club] since Kindergarten,” senior Trei Dudley said. “Then I continued until sixth grade when I couldn’t do it anymore because i went to junior high and then they had an after school program from seventh through ninth grade and then I started working there my sophomore year of high school.”

This club involves a large amount of time and dedication to make it the best it can be.

“There are certain activities that the group leaders are required to attain, like power hour which helps the kids with their homework and then the group leaders just plan activities such as arts and crafts time and gym time,” Dudley said. “It’s basically just a fun place for kids to hang out.”

Boys and Girls club meets every day after school and during summer and school breaks. Dudley used this time to her advantage and was able to get more involved throughout her own school breaks.

“Well I didn’t have anywhere to go over the summer because my mom worked and so it was just a fun place to go until my mom could pick me up and then once school started I just loved it and every year I wanted to go back,” Dudley said. “They gave a lot to me and if I was ever going through anything they helped me out.”

Boys and Girls club also offers scholarships for students who compete at state level competitions, although it is a lengthy process.

“Basically the process starts in October where you have to write eight essays about different things such as your life goals, school, and then you write about what boys and girls club means to you which then becomes the speech you present,” Dudley said. “Then you get judged on your essays, interview process, and your speech and then they add all the numbers up and announce the winner that night.”

Dudley won the Youth of the Year award where she received scholarship money.

“The further you go, the more money you get so if you won at state you would get $1000, then if you won at regionals you would get $10,000 and then if you won at nationals you would get $15,000, so overall you could get up to $26,000,” Dudley said.

Boys and Girls Club can often get ignored because it’s referred to as a club only for children. What many people don’t realize is that in many ways it can be a club for everyone. Boys and Girls Club was created to include everyone. Whether it is children or young adults, anyone can participate to have fun and even earn scholarship money along the way.