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     HISTORY OF THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF AUSTIN COUNTY
     HISTORY OF THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF AUSTIN COUNTY
It all started in 1998 with several women meeting for lunch at a Chinese Restaurant on the square. The ladies setup a community meeting at the Lutheran Church to talk about the need for more for kids to do in Bellville. It was suggested by Austin Whitt, around 9 years old that they needed a community center. 

During this time Ellen Lancaster heard that the city of Brenham was opening a Boys & Girls Club in an old high school building. At the time she had only heard of the “The Boys Club” when she was a little girl and watched wrestling on t.v. in Houston, not the “Boys & Girls Club”.

So Ellen dropped by the Club in Brenham and was amazed at what she saw: Lots of kids, all engaged in some activity, and several adults keeping watch, or involved in whatever activity they were needed. She found out a little about the set-up there. She left there excited. Soon afterwards, she met with the ladies again and started the discussion of having a Boys & Girls Club in Bellville. Not knowing the huge undertaking, they began planning to setup a Boys & Girls Club in Bellville, TX. Ellen and Mason Lancaster, Linda and Tom Feux, Don and Patsy Lawrence, Bill and Brenda Hardt, Norma and Rob Hardie, Gwen Diggs, Naomi and Jim Rosborough, Wayne Johnson, and more, were all involved.  

They began having fund-raising parties and suppers, and any kind of activity they could think of to raise money. Ellen Lancaster had lunch with Mike Aldridge, who handed her a Check for $5,000. Ellen told Linda Feux about Mike’s Check and Linda then provided her a $5,000 check too! With that money, Ellen and the group contacted the national organization of Boys & Girls Club of America, and started the ball rolling. Bellville ISD School Board gave them permission to use one of their temporary buildings “the shack” at the old high school. They started out only using half of the “shack”. They received many donations of toys, art supplies, books, balls and bats, etc. for the kids they expected to attend to use. They also got snacks donated by various organizations.  

Before they ever opened, the school board had decided to send school buses to the Club for kids who were going there after school. During this time they had brought in Nick and Deena Jackson to be Club Managers. In 2000 the Boys & Girls Club of Bellville officially opened. By the second week after opening they had to expand and start using the other half of the Shack and find a way to get more snacks and supplies. More than a 100 kids were coming to the Club every day. Many of the original “founders” came and volunteered their time. Churches, fraternal organizations, etc. – were all pitching in to help.  

The Boys & Girls Club of Bellville went on to open extension sites in the surrounding areas in Hempstead, Sealy, Industry, TX. In 2010 the Club changed their name to Boys & Girls Club of Austin County!

It all started in 1998 with several women meeting for lunch at a Chinese Restaurant on the square. The ladies setup a community meeting at the Lutheran Church to talk about the need for more for kids to do in Bellville. It was suggested by Austin Whitt, around 9 years old that they needed a community center. 

During this time Ellen Lancaster heard that the city of Brenham was opening a Boys & Girls Club in an old high school building. At the time she had only heard of the “The Boys Club” when she was a little girl and watched wrestling on t.v. in Houston, not the “Boys & Girls Club”.

So Ellen dropped by the Club in Brenham and was amazed at what she saw: Lots of kids, all engaged in some activity, and several adults keeping watch, or involved in whatever activity they were needed. She found out a little about the set-up there. She left there excited. Soon afterwards, she met with the ladies again and started the discussion of having a Boys & Girls Club in Bellville. Not knowing the huge undertaking, they began planning to setup a Boys & Girls Club in Bellville, TX. Ellen and Mason Lancaster, Linda and Tom Feux, Don and Patsy Lawrence, Bill and Brenda Hardt, Norma and Rob Hardie, Gwen Diggs, Naomi and Jim Rosborough, Wayne Johnson, and more, were all involved.  

They began having fund-raising parties and suppers, and any kind of activity they could think of to raise money. Ellen Lancaster had lunch with Mike Aldridge, who handed her a Check for $5,000. Ellen told Linda Feux about Mike’s Check and Linda then provided her a $5,000 check too! With that money, Ellen and the group contacted the national organization of Boys & Girls Club of America, and started the ball rolling. Bellville ISD School Board gave them permission to use one of their temporary buildings “the shack” at the old high school. They started out only using half of the “shack”. They received many donations of toys, art supplies, books, balls and bats, etc. for the kids they expected to attend to use. They also got snacks donated by various organizations.  

Before they ever opened, the school board had decided to send school buses to the Club for kids who were going there after school. During this time they had brought in Nick and Deena Jackson to be Club Managers. In 2000 the Boys & Girls Club of Bellville officially opened. By the second week after opening they had to expand and start using the other half of the Shack and find a way to get more snacks and supplies. More than a 100 kids were coming to the Club every day. Many of the original “founders” came and volunteered their time. Churches, fraternal organizations, etc. – were all pitching in to help.  

The Boys & Girls Club of Bellville went on to open extension sites in the surrounding areas in Hempstead, Sealy, Industry, TX. In 2010 the Club changed their name to Boys & Girls Club of Austin County!

It all started in 1998 with several women meeting for lunch at a Chinese Restaurant on the square. The ladies setup a community meeting at the Lutheran Church to talk about the need for more for kids to do in Bellville. It was suggested by Austin Whitt, around 9 years old that they needed a community center. 

During this time Ellen Lancaster heard that the city of Brenham was opening a Boys & Girls Club in an old high school building. At the time she had only heard of the “The Boys Club” when she was a little girl and watched wrestling on t.v. in Houston, not the “Boys & Girls Club”.

So Ellen dropped by the Club in Brenham and was amazed at what she saw: Lots of kids, all engaged in some activity, and several adults keeping watch, or involved in whatever activity they were needed. She found out a little about the set-up there. She left there excited. Soon afterwards, she met with the ladies again and started the discussion of having a Boys & Girls Club in Bellville. Not knowing the huge undertaking, they began planning to setup a Boys & Girls Club in Bellville, TX. Ellen and Mason Lancaster, Linda and Tom Feux, Don and Patsy Lawrence, Bill and Brenda Hardt, Norma and Rob Hardie, Gwen Diggs, Naomi and Jim Rosborough, Wayne Johnson, and more, were all involved.  

They began having fund-raising parties and suppers, and any kind of activity they could think of to raise money. Ellen Lancaster had lunch with Mike Aldridge, who handed her a Check for $5,000. Ellen told Linda Feux about Mike’s Check and Linda then provided her a $5,000 check too! With that money, Ellen and the group contacted the national organization of Boys & Girls Club of America, and started the ball rolling. Bellville ISD School Board gave them permission to use one of their temporary buildings “the shack” at the old high school. They started out only using half of the “shack”. They received many donations of toys, art supplies, books, balls and bats, etc. for the kids they expected to attend to use. They also got snacks donated by various organizations.  

Before they ever opened, the school board had decided to send school buses to the Club for kids who were going there after school. During this time they had brought in Nick and Deena Jackson to be Club Managers. In 2000 the Boys & Girls Club of Bellville officially opened. By the second week after opening they had to expand and start using the other half of the Shack and find a way to get more snacks and supplies. More than a 100 kids were coming to the Club every day. Many of the original “founders” came and volunteered their time. Churches, fraternal organizations, etc. – were all pitching in to help.  

The Boys & Girls Club of Bellville went on to open extension sites in the surrounding areas in Hempstead, Sealy, Industry, TX. In 2010 the Club changed their name to Boys & Girls Club of Austin County!

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