In the shadow of historic Walnut Street Stadium, itself being demolished brick by brick, smiling children and long-time supporters of The Boys & Girls Club of Hopkinsville-Christian County clasped golden shovels for a groundbreaking Tuesday afternoon — scooping fresh dirt off what will soon be a much-needed expansion to the Teen Center FabLab.
Once completed either late this summer or early fall, this $1 million 1,000-square-foot addition, according to Executive Director Terrence Davis, will give local students even more access to 3D laser printers, laser cutters, CNC woodworking, screenprinting, audio/video production and podcasting.
In an ever-changing world and career landscape, Davis noted children of South Western Kentucky will now have an even safer place to learn after school and between semesters.
Davis also noted that this project serves in part as a statewide initiative, in which the Kentucky General Assembly quickly learned that through the COVID-19 pandemic, Boys & Girls Clubs across the Commonwealth served as bastions for families in desperate need of food, clothing, household items, laundry services, and learning loss prevention.
Local legislators, he added, proved pivotal in making sure there was fair recompense for the non-profit organizations.
There’s also a unique floating idea of young adults learning the value of money and business.
Step two of this massive dream? For the footprint of the Walnut Street Stadium to eventually become an elementary-only wing — giving both the youths and young adults their own spaces with which to operate and grow.
The growth of the club, he said, has made this necessary. Anywhere from 100 to 140 teens are active daily inside its walls, and those aged 8-to-12 years old need supports, too, but with different measures in place.
Small bits of the stadium’s facing have been put in safe keeping for future artistic touches, including a few “H’s” for “Hopkinsville,” but Davis said its demolition has long been desired.
In 2022, more than 475 youths were served, and that number jumped above 500 in 2023. Club members spent more than 143,000 hours on the campus last year, enjoyed more than 28,560 meals — and all through the efforts of seven full-time staff, seven part-time staff, and 27 board members.
More than just education and learning, the program’s Family Impact Center gave out 300 pairs of shoes, 40 hygiene products, 4,000 extra meals and snacks and 2,000 pieces of clothing in 2023.
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