Kory Minor Visits the San Pedro Boys & Girls Club

It's always a great inspiration for our youth to meet a Boys & Girls Club alumnus who accomplished greatness in the face of adversity. Yesterday, entrepreneur and former NFL linebacker, Kory Minor visited our San Pedro Club to tell his story, starting with the decisions he made as a young athlete.
 

Kory Minor with some excited fans at our Club!

Kory is a former All-American football linebacker originally from Los Angeles. In his senior year of high school, he was named Defensive Player of the Year by USA Today. He went on to the University of Notre Dame where he was a 4-year star on defense and team captain. In his professional career he played for the San Francisco 49ers and Carolina Panthers. 

Like many of our members, Kory was faced with distractions while trying to accomplish his goals. He was raised by a single mother and, although he dreamed of one day playing for Notre Dame, he knew his family couldn't afford to send him to his dream school. Kory had two options: either give up on his dream or commit to it. Kory chose to commit and spoke to our young athletes about the importance of committing to a dream and working hard for that dream.

"Whatever you are dreaming now is possible if you commit to believe and commit to work."

Kory Minor speaking at the San Pedro Boys & Girls Club.

Kory also spoke about the friends he lost in high school because he was so focused on his goal. He stayed away from anything that could distract him like drinking, smoking or doing drugs and only spent time with people who didn't fall into those behaviors. When he was named Defensive Player of the Year by USA Today, he proved wrong everyone who didn't believe in him and was awarded a full scholarship to Notre Dame.

Today, Kory is a motivational speaker, business strategist and a five store franchisee of Domino's Pizza where he took his franchise company from $600,000 in sales to nearly $4 million as an owner. He motivates individuals and organizations as CEO of Kory Minor Industries. Kory spoke of the importance of valuing education as he did when he utilized his degree in business to create a legacy for himself.

Thanks to Kory for sharing the valuable lessons he learned on his journey from young hopeful athlete to NFL player and successful business owner.

School Club Sites Sweep Championships

Our Harry Bridges Span School cheer team with their first place trophies.

In addition to our three Club houses, we run 11 Club sites at local LAUSD schools where we implement enrichment programming in academics, arts and athletics. The competitive teams at our school sites are making major strides. Our Fleming Middle School dance team won the National Championship at the 2014 Jamfest Dance Competition in Las Vegas for the second straight year. Our Harry Bridges Span School cheer team won first place at the Sharp Regional Competitions and an invitation to advance in the national competition. The Wilmington Middle School robotics team, a school program that we facilitate after hours, won Best Overall Championship at the F.I.R.S.T. Robotics Competition at Legoland California.

Wilmington Middle School Robotics with their Lego trophy 

at the F.I.R.S.T. Robotics Competition.

Our school Club sites organize programming that our youth would not otherwise be able to participate in. We introduced and coordinate the dance and cheer teams at Fleming Middle School and Harry Bridges Span School and extended participation opportunities for the Wilmington Middle School robotics team. 

In many cases at our school Club sites, we step in to support and extend already existing programs. At Wilmington Middle School, Dana Middle School and Banning High School, we coordinate after school practice for marching band and drill team. This broadens rehearsal and performance opportunities as well as increases the number of youth who are able to partake in music education at the schools we serve.

Our School Sites Director Bryan Jebo and his team lead our school Club sites, making it possible for our youth to stay after hours and reach their full potential.

Our Fleming Middle School dance team participants are national champions for the 2nd straight year.

Introducing Our New Volunteer Outreach Coordinator

We are expanding and improving our volunteer opportunities thanks to longtime Board member, Tamara Powers who is volunteering her time in the new role of Volunteer Outreach Coordinator. Tamara has served on our Board since 2007 and is our Vice President of Development. An avid volunteer in the community, Tamara frequently visits our Clubs in San Pedro and Wilmington to assist with programming and events. From helping with art projects to serving at our Thanksgiving Dinners, Tamara contributes to our day-to-day activities in addition to fundraising initiatives for our organization.

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact (310) 833-1322 ext. 237 or email leilanis@bgclaharbor.org.

Tamara Powers (left) with our Fine Arts Director Sandra Avila at our Meet the Challenge mural painting project.

Partner Spotlight - Phillips 66

In 2007, when we first established our Corporate Giving Program, Phillips 66 – then known as ConocoPhillips – joined right away as a longstanding supporter.

One of our most generous, local patrons, Phillips 66 has been a major part of the expansion and improvement of our Clubs in San Pedro and Wilmington. They also provided our Clubs with summer interns to expand our work force, allowing us serve more youth. Refinery Manager Jay Churchill and Public Affairs Manager Betsy Brien have volunteered their time and experience on our Board of Directors.

Built on more than 130 years of experience, Phillips 66 is a growing energy manufacturing and logistics company with high-performing Midstream, Chemicals, Refining, and Marketing and Specialties businesses. Headquartered in Houston, the company has 13,500 employees who are committed to operating excellence and safety.

Our Dance Students Meet Club Alumnus Misty Copeland

Misty Copeland with our San Pedro Club and Wilmington Club 

dance students and dance instructors Nathan Billingslea and 

Gracie Delgado at a recent promotional event for Misty’s memoir.

We aim to motivate our youth to break down barriers that prevent them from reaching their full potential. One of our most inspiring alumni, Misty Copeland, is proof that our youth, regardless of their beginnings, can overcome obstacles and accomplish greatness.

Misty Copeland as a soloist in “Le Corsaire” with the American Ballet Theatre.

Misty Copeland is the first black female soloist in the American Ballet Theatre in over 20 years and is only the second black woman to hold that position. She has her own line of dance wear, has appeared in commercials for Diet Dr Pepper and Coach handbags and is the national youth of the year ambassador for Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

In her youth, Misty and her siblings participated in after-school programming at the San Pedro Boys & Girls Club. Her recent memoir, Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, describes our San Pedro Club as one of the few places that she felt comfortable in her upbringing while dealing with financial and emotional struggles (Copeland, 2013 p. 30).

When Misty was 13 years old, she joined ballet classes offered at the Club. Although she was starting ballet training for the first time, she quickly showed amazing ability and grace. Misty’s training intensified and she was ultimately awarded a scholarship to American Ballet Theatre’s summer program. She joined the junior studio company in 2000 and then the senior troupe in 2001.

Earlier this month, several high school dance students from our San Pedro and Wilmington Clubs were given the opportunity to meet Misty and receive copies of her memoir thanks to Live Talks Los Angeles. Our youth heard Misty give a live interview and were able to ask her questions during a Q&A portion. One of our San Pedro Club dance students asked if Misty ever felt discouraged when faced with challenges in her neighborhood or at home. Misty immediately responded that facing those challenges only made her push harder to accomplish her goals and she found solace in dance.

Misty was able to start dance training due to the free ballet lessons offered at our Club to youth members who seek creative outlets and opportunities to develop their skills. We have expanded and improved our arts education since then, thanks to inspiring stories like Misty’s.

Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, was released in March and details Misty Copeland’s journey to dance stardom.

Wilmington Boys & Girls Club Celebrates Women’s History Month

Gabriela Medina, Cecilia Moreno and Lupe Lopez participating in our panel event.

March is Women’s History Month and our Wilmington Club celebrated by commemorating local female leaders in the Los Angeles Harbor area who inspire our youth. Our Keystone student leadership group coordinated a panel event with Cecilia Moreno, Port of LA Community Affairs Advocate, Lupe Lopez, United Way of Greater Los Angeles Administrative Coordinator, and Gabriela Medina, Field Deputy for Councilmember Joe Buscaino, as moderator.

Our Keystone created table center pieces honoring 

celebrated women throughout history.

Our Keystone group prepared the event with guidance from Wilmington Club High School Center Director Hilda Chacon. Tables were decorated with center pieces honoring famous women throughout history at this afternoon event for our youth, staff and board members.

Ms. Medina lead the panel asking Ms. Moreno and Ms. Lopez about the decisions they made in their youth to accomplish greatness. Both have strong ties to the Wilmington community and have each served as Honorary Mayor of Wilmington. They both expressed admiration for our Club’s College Bound program and stressed the importance of hard work in the face of adversity. They advised our youth to find what they love to do and develop their skills whether they choose to go to a traditional college after graduation or seek other paths.

Our youth thanking our guests for attending the panel.

After the final audience question, Keystone youth thanked our panelists and moderator for attending and serving as such great inspirations to our members. Ms. Medina closed the panel, speaking to the importance of community service organizations like the Boys & Girls Club that offer community youth opportunities to reach their full potential. We know that the girls and boys who attended left inspired after hearing the panelists’ stories of success.

Championship Win at March Madness Tournament

Our three Clubhouses organize their own sports leagues, but the Clubs were recently given the opportunity to collaborate for a Boys & Girls Club March Madness Basketball Tournament. We sent one team comprised of high school youth from our San Pedro, Wilmington and Port of LA Clubs to participate and we are proud to announce that they took first place in their division.

For the 12th straight year, Boys & Girls Club of West San Gabriel Valley held their annual March Madness Tournament for Boys & Girls Clubs in the Los Angeles County Alliance. Our Head Coaches Phillip Redd and Thomas McKenzie and Athletic Director Philip Jones organized a team from our three Clubs to compete and the collaboration was well worth the effort. Our LA Harbor boys were thrilled to represent our entire organization and take first place.

BGCLAH Basketball takes first place at March Madness Tournament.