The boys and girls in the Jane Street and Finch Avenue area had something to cheer about Wednesday, Nov. 25, stomping their feet and shouting in anticipation of a big announcement at the St. Alban's Driftwood Boys and Girls Club.
The crowd of young children grew silent as RBC Royal Bank regional vice-president Gurinder Singh Hundal stood at the front of the main room in their 30A Driftwood Ct. location.
"You might think because I'm a banker that I don't like to give money away, but it's actually one of my favourite things to do," said Hundal. "That's why I'm so happy to be here today to give $40,000 to the St. Alban's Boys and Girls Club."
An oversize cheque was brought out of the back room as the crowd broke its forced silence and again erupted. Those children, aged six to 14, had been coming to the centre after school to vent their energy since its doors opened in April 2008 to provide arts, health, entertainment and recreation programs in an area where few community supports of that type were available.
Support from the Toronto Raptors and Toronto Community Housing had ensured a strong start for the non-profit club, but executive director Chris Foster was preparing for what looked like a bare-bones stretch of operations.
"We were able to take an unused space and with the help of the Raptors Foundation and turn this into a space for children in need," said Foster. "We anticipated we would be able to find funding to continue the program, but were unsuccessful until this year when RBC stepped in."
Without the grant, the Driftwood location would be forced to survive off a $10,000 budget, which would only allow for two hours of simple programming delivered by two part-time staff members. Now that the club has 400 per cent of its anticipated budget to work with, the staffing levels will be doubled and the quality of the programming can be dramatically increased between now and next June when the money will expire.
"It was difficult when you see the number of shootings going on right outside the building," said Foster. "We have started a program that will provide opportunities to make better choices. It's a safe place to be where they can be inspired and succeed."
To help inspire the full house of youngsters, RBC Olympic basketball player and former Toronto Raptor Rowan Barrett made an appearance with an Olympic Torch. He grew up in a rough area in Scarborough, but never lost sight of his dream to compete at the highest level.
"Even though you have big dreams, you need to know that it's not going to be easy," said Barrett. "Don't let anyone tell you what you can't do because you have everything you need to succeed already."
Barrett brought out a replica Olympic torch and handed out chocolate Olympic medals to the kids.
For more information on how to get involved with the St. Alban's Boys and Girls Club, visit www.stalbansclub.ca