The Boys and Girls Clubs of the Big Bend closed seven locations in the past year and a half, but club directors hope a creative fundraiser — raffling off a $1.55 million beach house — will help fill in the financial gaps.

Amber Waves, a Birmingham couple's $1.5 million beach house in Seaside, Fla., is a top prize in a charity raffle organized by a Boys and Girls Club in the Tallahassee area.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Faced with difficult and uncertain economic circumstances, nonprofits must continuously work to identify creative means to sustain valuable programs. Here in Tallahassee, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Big Bend is no different.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Big Bend recently awarded four-year tuition scholarships to qualifying state universities to three deserving Jefferson County Club members.

If you think now is a tough time to be in business, try being a kid. Our children today are caught in a perfect storm of inopportunity. Schools are slashing programs and services, while the community organizations that have traditionally picked up the slack are beset with the same economic challenges that have brought whole industries to the brink of collapse...

The Boys & Girls Club of Chattahoochee planted a budding cherry tree this Arbor Day during a remembrance ceremony honoring two former members...

The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Big Bend is now enrolling kids ages 5 to 18 in its full-day summer programs. The Clubs offer two, three-week summer sessions. Session I runs June 8-26, and Session II runs July 6-24.

As of Feb. 1, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Big Bend will no longer operate three Leon County after-school and summer program sites, including the Frenchtown, Ft. Braden and Miccosukee Clubs.

Resulting from a lack of donations, rising expenses, and a delay in receiving committed funding, the Club closures are part of a proactive approach to ensuring the sustainability of the organization in future years.

Jefferson County High School student and Boys & Girls Club member, Eric Evans, was recently named the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Big Bend’s 2008 Youth of the Year. As the highest honor a Boys & Girls Club member can receive, the title recognizes outstanding contributions to a member’s family, school, community and local Boys & Girls Club, as well as personal challenges and obstacles overcome.