(Riverton, WY) – The Boys & Girls Club of Riverton celebrated its new location grand opening event yesterday, October 10th, where attendees got to see the “drastically increased” square footage of the new facility, as well as just some of the smiling faces of the kids and staff.
The new spot opened its doors back in August following the purchase of the former Ashgrove Elementary building this summer, but yesterday marked the official grand opening, complete with snacks, heartfelt speeches from those who made it possible, music from folks at the Sunnyside Church, and tours of the new space.
Kip Post, who serves on the Board of Directors for the Boys & Girls Club of Central Wyoming Foundation, acted as MC for the celebration, and kicked things off with the Pledge of Allegience conducted by Boys & Girls Club of Riverton Junior Youth of the Year Ari E., and an invocation from Sunnyside Church Pastor Doug Hammer.
Fremont County School District (FCSD) #25 board member Jody Ray, who shared that she began her education at Ashgrove Elementary as a child, then spoke to the crowd.
“The mission of the Boys and Girls Club of Riverton is to inspire all youth, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens,” Ray shared. “I can’t help but reflect on the first conversations surrounding the need for the Boys and Girls Club here in Riverton. What began as a temporary location has now grown into a permanent home for our youth.”
“We are all so blessed to have a positive place where our children can go after school. A place built for our youth, where they can have caring mentors, engaging activities, and of course, free snacks,” Ray concluded to cheers from the snack-loving kiddos in attendance.
Club Director Jacque Stoldt was the next to speak, and was met with a roar applause from the crowd, which prompted Post to remark, “I think the kids like her.”
“You guys don’t like me, do you?” Stoldt joked when she took the mic, and an audible/excited “We love you!” could be heard in response from one of the youth Club members in the front row.
Stoldt said it was “overwhelming” to see such a “great response” to the new location, and later shared that they have already seen a “big jump in attendance.”
“Last year, at the beginning of the school year, our average daily attendance was about 40; we were sitting right at about 40 kids a day,” Stoldt informed. This year they had over 70 kids on the first day, and the average right now is “sitting right at 60.”
“So we have jumped at least 33% just this fall. It is amazing and we couldn’t do that, of course, without all of this space.”
Stoldt went on to share how that space it being utilized, which includes the gym, a game room, an art and science room, a room just for Lego creations, a tween room, and a full library.
“We were operating out of a four foot wide by six foot tall bookcase at Rendezvous and now we have a full library,” Stoldt said of the upgrade.
Stoldt also shared that the Club is planning on more upgrades, including the addition of a technology center and a team programming space.
“The future is bright for the youth of Riverton and the surrounding communities.”
Stoldt then brought Junior Youth of the Year Ari E. back to the mic, who Stoldt shared has been coming to the Club for over two years and represented Riverton at the Wyoming Junior Youth of the Year program last month.
“She embodies all the values of a club kid. She’s kind, caring, creative and an all around amazing kid.
Ari endeared herself to the crowd immediately when she let them know that she didn’t didn’t win the final Junior Youth of the Year award, but maintained appositive attitude all the same.
“Just last month I went and I competed for Junior Youth of the Year for the whole state. Sadly, I didn’t win. But that’s okay, I’m gonna read you guys my speech,” Ari said to cheers/chuckles from the attendees. She then shared her speech, which can be read in full below.
“What my club means to me is that it’s a place where I can stay safe, where I can go with my friends, to stay safe, study and have fun. It means I can stay safe from people who want to hurt us, like kidnappers or drug users, so I don’t get peer pressured. Club is a place where I can take a break from my school, from school in my home life, because I have a noisy baby brother. At the club, we have a tween room where we can go read, do homework, build with Legos, or go to the game room. I love the option to read or do homework. Some of my favorite books are the Harry Potter series or the Princess Academy series also. Believe it or not, I love doing homework, mostly math homework, though. We have the option to do homework during our power hours so I can have more free time at home. We have three ways to get to Club. The first is to ride the bus. We have two routes, either the bear bus or the turtle bus. The second one is that we can walk to the club from whatever school you’re at. The third is our parent pickup. Our parents can pick us up and drop us off at the Boys and Girls Club. Club is a place where not only I can be myself, but also my friends. Thank you for your time.“
Next to speak were Mary Margaret Stockton, founding member of the Boys and Girls Club of Riverton, and Ashley Bright, CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of Central Wyoming.
Stockton shared some history of the Boys and Girls Club of Riverton, which opened its doors in the fall of 2021 inside Rendezvous Elementary as a part of a partnership with FCSD #25, after community members reached out to the Boys and Girls Club of Central Wyoming. “In 2023, the club served 777 youth through daily attendance and outreach programs,” Stockton later added, the highest number since opening.
Bright shared that when folks first reached out to Boys and Girls Club of Central Wyoming about starting some local programs, he still remembers his conversation with Mary Axthelm with R Recreation when he let her know they were planning on opening a Club location in Riverton.
Bright teared up when he recalled how Axthelm’s immediate response was, “How can I help? What can we do?”
“They wanted to invest in our community,” Axthelm went on to share. “We were going to do everything we could to get them here. And it’s just been ordained.”
After a few more remarks from Bright, members of the Riverton Chamber of Commerce conducted the official ribbon cutting to celebrate the occasion, complete with an assist from some of the Club youth.
To learn more about the Boys & Girls Club of Riverton, visit their website or Facebook page.