Denise Gergley

Sports and recreation have been core programs since Boys & Girls Clubs were founded in 1906 in Massachusetts.

Nationwide, Boys & Girls Clubs have long offered a safe, supervised after-school outlet for youth sports long before AAU, travel ball and “elite” youth teams became popular.

The reason sports continue to be an integral part of Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide is not to build up a members’ skills so they can earn athletic scholarships or someday go pro. Rather, it’s to build life skills, which allow children and teens to reach their full potential as productive, caring and responsible citizens.

That lesson was on full display during Boys & Girls Clubs of Lee County’s second annual FGCU Basketball Clinic for members of the Summer Enrichment Program. Sure, players and coaches from the Eagles men’s and women’s basketball teams ran club members through basketball fundamentals like shooting, dribbling, passing, defense and footwork. While those skills are important, head coaches from both programs hoped the children and teens in attendance picked up some other key messages.

“We get to teach teamwork, effort, attitude and enthusiasm, and we just want everyone to have a good time and start to love the game the way we do,” said women’s basketball Head Coach Karl Smesko.

“It’s really about work ethic, it’s really about attitude and it’s really about ‘That person looks like me, that player looks like me… That could be me some day,'” added men’s basketball Head Coach Pat Chambers. “Have some hope, have some dreams and go try to achieve them. If you have a great attitude and work hard, you can achieve that.”

After-school and summer programs at Boys & Girls Clubs of Lee County focus on five core areas: education and career, service and leadership, health and wellness, the arts, and sports and recreation. Each program offers life lessons on top of the core programs. Ten life lessons from sports include:

• Teamwork – The ability to work collaboratively in groups and align with peers to pursue the same goal.

• Sportsmanship – The ability to handle defeat, as well as winning graciously.

• Ethics – The ability to follow rules and avoid cheating, even if the referee won’t notice. That’s integrity.

• Adversity – The ability to stay focused even when things aren’t going your way. A bad bounce or missed call cannot steer you off course.

• Coachability – The ability to listen and take direction, feedback and criticism. Even professional athletes recognize they don’t have all the answers.

• Discipline – The ability to grind it out when the going gets tough.

• Leadership – The ability to recognize when it’s time to step up and take charge.

• Conflict management – The ability to resolve disagreements amicably.

• Communication – The ability to connect with a diverse audience.

• Confidence – The ability to believe in your own abilities, skills and knowledge.

“I think the biggest part of basketball is knowing that you are going to mess up; you’re going to make mistakes,” said FGCU senior forward Kyle Riemen-schneider, a native of Fort Myers. “You just have to keep a good attitude and keep trying your best.”

Denise Gergley is CEO for Boys & Girls Clubs of Lee County, which operates seven community, neighborhood and school clubs in Fort Myers, Lehigh Acres, Bonita Springs, North Fort Myers and Cape Coral. For more information, please visit bgclee.org or call 239-334-1886.