At BGC, we know that Opportunity Changes Everything!
Since 1938, BGC has been providing safe, supportive spaces where kids and youth can experience new opportunities, overcome barriers, build positive relationships, and develop confidence and skills for life.
We meet kids, youth, and families where they are, and provide support in ways that work for them through our prevention streams (Clubs and Camp Potlatch), and intervention streams (Counselling and Employment Services).
Prevention Programs
At BGC South Coast BC, our professional (and cool!) staff offer programs for kids and youth at 10 neighbourhood Clubs (soon to be 11!) and at our one-of-a-kind wilderness summer camp, Camp Potlatch. Clubs and Camp give them a place to belong when they aren’t at home or at school.
Clubs are open every day after school and during school closures. During this time, kids and youth can explore their interests and discover what makes them amazing, all in a place that feels like THEIR place. A place where they don’t feel like they’re being supervised (but they are), and a place where they CHOOSE how they spend their time. That can look a little different for every kid! That’s why we’ve got something for everyone, from sports, physical activity and games to creative arts, STEM, homework help, leadership programs, cooking and SO much more.
When summer rolls around, thousands of campers make their way (by boat!) to the shores of Howe Sound for the adventure of a lifetime. When kids come to Camp, they have the opportunity to do things that they might never have done before. Things like sea kayaking, rock climbing on a natural rock wall, and singing campfire songs with their friends. But what they are really doing is learning to challenge themselves, experiencing success, and developing lifelong relationships.
Our prevention programs are open to ALL kids and youth, and we hope to reach as many of them as we can! We know that when kids and youth spend more time at BGC, our impact in their lives is GREATER.
Intervention Programs
BGC’s intervention programs are funded by government contracts and are meant to reach kids, youth, and families that need additional, or a different kind of support than our Clubs and Camp.
Through our counselling programs, BGC’s highly trained team of youth workers, family workers, and counsellors support youth and families through:
And, BGC’s employment programs help youth and young adults build skills, gain work experience, and find meaningful employment in our communities.
The world needs more BGC South Coast BC
Grow, increase, strengthen, expand, develop, maximize, cultivate – whatever you call it, what we know is the world needs MORE BGC.
So…Enter BGC’s Strategic Framework. It provides clarity and focus for our biggest goal, and that goal is clear: bring the world MORE BGC. Get MORE kids into MORE clubs and camp for MORE of their childhoods, because that means even more human impact right here in our communities. It’s important to share that BGC’s prevention programs are largely funded through our fundraising program, with smaller contributions from participation fees, rentals and miscellaneous revenue.
When families register for BGC programs, they are invited to pay what they can. We know that families WANT to contribute because they value the benefits their kids and youth receive, and so they do. That can be a few dollars a week, or a few hundred dollars over the year (and for those who need a lot of help or can’t pay at all, we believe them, because asking them to prove it causes harm to them, and what’s MOST important is that their kids get to participate with BGC!).
This approach is possible because BGC raises between 3 and 4 million every year so no one is ever turned away because of money or fees. In short – we can’t do what we do without the support of our community.
Wanna help us bring MORE BGC to the world? Consider making a gift! We promise, it will have BIG impact on kids, youth, and families right here where we live…and we can prove it!
