About Lake Oconee news. (Greensboro, GA) 199?-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 15, 2017)
Friday, December 14,2017 Lake Oconee News Page A3 Contributed Mackey celebrates a night of fund-raising at Dancing with the Madison Stars with Kim Lucas, center, and Karen Robertson. Clubs Continued from A1 been active in its communi ties for more than 10 years. “The Madison club was started 10 years ago,” he said. “The Pete Nance Club formed seven years ago. We’re work ing on expanding in Newton County, and we have the 21st Century Partnership in Putnam County.” The Walton County Boys and Girls Club is also under BGCNCG. “We’re the area’s youth development agency,” he said. “We’re here to protect the community.” Rebuilding “We had no reserves in May,” Mackey said, com menting on the state of the organization when he was promoted to CEO. “We’re becoming financially stable with the help ofthe corporate board.” He said the goal of the organization is to serve more kids more often. Mackey pointed to the success ofMadison’s Dancing With the Stars event as an example of the momentum built by BGCNCG. “We had record-breaking numbers,” he said. “People buy into what they believe in. Our focus is to serve the kids in the counties we serve.” In addition to local fund, raising, the CEO said funds received from the Department of Human Services has also increased. “We’ve also partnered with corporate sponsors like Lowe’s,” he said. Mackey also listedNovelis, A2B Fulfillment and Walton EMC as corporate sponsors. “Before, we had no support from a corporate entity,” he said. “Now we have a real sense of involvement.” Mackey credited Vice President of Marketing Rachael Ward with adapting the national organization’s catchphrase into a slogan for BGCNCG - great futures start together. “We have to make it work,” he said. “If you want to know what the economy will look like 10 years from now, what neighborhoodswilllooklike, look at the kids we serve. Look at the schools. The kids are our future.” Mackey said the organi zation took a problem with a person and turned it into opportunity. ‘We recovered some funds through insurance, and the remainder willbe made good by corporate board mem bers,” he said. “The problem nowis containing excitement about what we’re doing for our kids.” Success and reform Mackey outlined key suc cesses this year that show the organization is leaving its past behind. “We partnered with FISH in Walton County to donate 100 bikes,” he said. “That’s heartwarmingfor us and the community.” Mackey said the Youth of the Year event last week shows people how kids have made strides to overcome challenges. “Because of our volunteers and our staff, they can see beyond their circumstances,” he said. The CEO said every club has its own advisory board. We’ve gotten stronger to the point that we can’t be broken,” he said. We’re not goingto allownegative news to stop what we’re doing.” Mackey said the corporate board has put new policies and procedures into place, especially for procurement. We have a new board chair, new treasurer, as rotation positions,” he said. We have new leaders at our corporate office. We have strengthened our relation ships with our auditors.” Mackey said the organi zation has moved to using credit cards with spending limits as opposed to debit cards. “The level of approval is very tight,” he said. We need two to three signatures before things are improved. The CEO is included.” Mackey's history The CEO began working with the Madison Boys and Girls Club when it formed 10 years ago. He has also worked with the Walton and Greene County clubs. “I’ve been a part of every advisory board,” he said. “Before that, I worked as a probation and parole officer with the Department of Juvenile Justice.” Mackey said he saw kids in his caseload benefit from the Boys and Girls Club. The CEO is the first to rise to that position out of a group of top 10 emerging leaders in Georgia. After leading the Pete Nance Club in Greene County, Mackey saiditwas aperfectfit toleadthebiggerorganization. “I’ve found such a love for it,” he said. Mackey said he can relate to kids involved with the Boys and Girls Clubs because he was once a troubled teen. “I was told I wouldn’t be anything,” he said. “But, I’ve found that two things can change - statistics and children.” Moving forward Mackey said the organi zation is above the national average in the National Youth Outcomes Initiative as com pared to other clubs. We have zero pregnancies for teens who are involved in the clubs,” he said. “Kids are also exposed to tobacco, alco hol and drugs, but we teach them about making better decisions.” Mackey said the organiza tion has also made a differ ence in ensuring participants graduate from high school. “Kids who stay involved three times a week or more have alOO percent graduation rate,” he said. “We’ve gradu ated more than 60 kids in the last three years.” From his experience with the DJJ, Mackey said kids sent to the Boys and Girls Club have shown they do not get back into trouble. “They don’t have struc ture,” he said. “We give support, encouragement, a sense of accomplishment to ensure kids recognize their own strengths.” Mackey pointed to Greene County’s First Tee program as an example. “Over four years, we’ve exposed more than 150 kids to golf,” he said. “We’re also bringing lacrosse to the Walton County club.” Mackey said that every thing done to help kids involved in Boys and Girls clubs makes a difference. “Thekids we serve matters. Community support mat ters,’”hesaid.“Whetherit’s $1 or $1 million, we appreciate all of the support we reserve. We appreciate it because we can’t do it alone.” Mackey said the number one focus is on kids and encouraged communities to get to know their local clubs. “Come by and see your club,” he said. “Seeing is believing.” More Listings. More Sales. TOP COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE FIRMS Coldwell Banker Lake Oconee Realty/ Lake Country Algin Realty Coldwell Banker SSK Keller Williams Madison Realty Kim & Lin Logan Real Estate LAKE COUNTRY 2017 YE Market Share for Commercial units sold. WWW.CBCLAKECOUNTRY.COM • 706.252.8020 Can YOUR BANK This? BUSINESS SERVICES Everything You Need. United Bank Business Services customers can expect all of the essential financial tools a small business requires, plus many additional electronic banking features to help you save valuable time. 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