After-school clubs help children thrive
BY LAYLI WHYTE
Staff Writer

Above: Red Bank's Javion Harris, 8, scores a touché against Arianna Morris, 9, Red Bank, during a fencing class offered in an after-school program at the Salvation Army, Red Bank, Feb. 26. At left: Harris, along with other youths, practices his stance.

RED BANK - Fencing, cooking and photography are just some of the after-school clubs offered by The Salvation Army's borough chapter for area children.

Tammy Briggs, public relations officer for The Salvation Army, on Newman Springs Road, said there are currently 40 to 50 children between the ages of 6 and 12 who take advantage of the after-school program.

"It's really a unique program," she said. "We're trying to build character in the kids. We want to teach them leadership and to do service within the community. It really makes them feel like they're a part of something. It's so important."

The new clubs, which also include a guitar club run by a volunteer, are in addition to the existing after-school program, which includes access to a computer lab, collaboration with the Monmouth County Mobile Recreation program and Prevention First, a program to teach young people about the risks of abusing drugs and alcohol.

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Briggs said that the after-school clubs are run by volunteers.

"Jessica Cichalski runs our photography club," said Briggs. "She has a master's degree in education, and she went and got cameras donated for the kids to use. They're disposable cameras, but she's teaching them how to take pictures."

Debbie Barker, the after-school program director, said volunteers like Cichalski really make the programs unique and fun for the children.

"There is an amazing commitment level among the volunteers," she said.

Briggs said there are about 28 volunteers who assist with the after-school program, and of those, 23 are teenagers.

"We have 14 volunteers from CBA [Christian Brothers Academy]," she said. "They are great, but we really need more adult and college-age volunteers. We'd also really like to see senior citizens come and work with the kids. It's about doing service."

Briggs said that when the children age out of the after-school program at 13, they are encouraged to come back and volunteer with the younger children.

"We want them to become the best people they can be," she said. "We want them to succeed and to give back to the community. A program like this can sometimes be their only shot at that, at feeling like they have something to give back."

Briggs said 90 percent of the students who attend the program come from working-class families, some with single parents working several jobs to support them.

"We've got some great kids," she said. "In a program like this, you don't see immediate results, but when you're patient, over the years, you can see the kids building self-esteem, confidence and character."

The program reaches beyond the borders of Red Bank, said Briggs, and some children from Tinton Falls also participate.

"We also have a place in Keansburg," she said, "and although we don't have the clubs there, we have an after-school program there."

Briggs said that children from all over the area are welcome to come to the Red Bank facility to participate in the clubs.

The fencing club takes place on Mondays 4-5 p.m., photography club takes place Thursdays 4-5 p.m., and the guitar club meets on Thursdays at 3:30 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Children are not the only group who can take advantage of The Salvation Army's programs.

Monday evenings the facility offers free English as a Second Language classes to adults.

"We have done a lot of outreach in the Hispanic and Latino community," said Briggs. "It was a little tough at first, but they've really come to trust us. They know we're here for them."

Briggs said there are other clubs that would begin in the spring, including golf and gardening - as long as volunteers come forward.

Barker said she thinks a gardening club would be really helpful to children.

"It will teach them patience," she said, "and responsibility."

Anyone interested in volunteering for an existing club, or who has an idea to start a new one, can contact Barker at (732) 747-1626.