Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater San Diego (BGCGSD) serves more than 22,000 local kids each year through its programs, camps, and events. Its aim is to foster youth development, build character, and help kids achieve academic success via offerings like STEM and arts activities, fitness, nutrition education, and leadership opportunities.
BGCGSD has 23 sites throughout San Diego County, and puts an emphasis on underserved communities. BGCGSD’s youth engagement efforts are made possible by dedicated staff, volunteers, and community supporters committed to helping kids thrive.
Thomas Bancroft is a volunteer member of BGCGSD’s board of directors, and is event chair for its Evening of Changing Lives gala on September 13. He first got involved through his employer, DPR Construction, which has a longstanding relationship with Boys & Girls Clubs and donates capital projects at locations across the country. Here he shares more about his volunteer work.
What do you like best about volunteering with BGCGSD?
It comes down to maximizing opportunities for young people to grow into responsible, caring citizens, build themselves up, and reach their full potential. It’s not about where you come from, it’s about where you’re going, and that type of mentality is definitely a core tenet of Boys & Girls Clubs. It’s about giving each kid the unique opportunities that they deserve. That’s been really rewarding.
What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced?
Boys & Girls Clubs are closely tied with schools. Navigating school, local, regional, state, and even federal policies and funding—is a totally different world than where I come from. I’m with a private general contractor and we have rules, but we get a lot of freedom and flexibility. There’s an average daily attendance of 2,000-plus kids who are in these clubs any given day when schools are in session. BGCGSD is intertwined inherently with schools and how those are funded, organized, and administered. Luckily, we have fantastic folks at the Boys and Girls Club who know the ins and outs of all of that.
Courtesy of Thomas Bancroft
Can you describe your most memorable experience while volunteering?
Every year, DPR does a thing called Service September where we do a construction or renovation project for a nonprofit partner pro bono. The Linda Vista branch—the Ron Roberts Family Branch—is an older facility and needed some improvements. We found that their exterior area was being underutilized and there was a side yard and a backyard that weren’t living up to their fullest potential.
We ended up revitalizing that area and introducing a vegetable garden. I came back a couple months later and the kids had totally turned it into a thriving garden—it’s a place where parents and community members would be proud to send to their kids and to spend time. And then a full circle moment came when I visited, and the site lead handed me a cookbook that the kids had put together. There was an acknowledgement of the garden, and they were coming up with meal and snack recipes using the fruit and vegetables that they were growing. These kids may not have had access to a garden before, so to be able to get that up and running for them feels like we’re doing some good for the community.
Any advice for someone considering volunteering?
Start with your why and recognize the unique skills that you can bring to the table. Can you bring a specific skill or trade that you can teach youth, or, as a board member, strengthen ties between yourself and your industry and the community? We’ve got a wide variety of folks on the board, and everybody brings something different. And I think one of the best things you can do is getting others to participate as well. You don’t know what skills they need until you show up, so show up and be open to contributing.
Sarah Sapeda is San Diego Magazine’s Custom Content Editor. In her 15 years in San Diego journalism, she has covered charitable events, health care, education, crime, current events, and more.
