CLUB NEWS

The grind doesn’t stop in the summertime. For some Benton Harbor students, it actually ramps up. At the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Southwest Michigan, kids are getting a closer look at what their futures could hold — and it goes far beyond the dream of going pro.

Children from southwest Michigan gathered Thursday for STEAM Dream, an event focused on science, technology, engineering, art and math. Students participated in experiments led by community members and heard from experts in each of the STEAM fields. One station gave kids the opportunity to learn how to fly a drone.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich -- While graduation rates in Benton Harbor are on the rise, Benton Harbor High School is still nearly 20% below state average graduation rate.

Groups like the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Southwest Michigan are working hard to change that by instilling a love of learning in students, especially in the fields of science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics, collectively known as STEAM.

The club hosted their third annual STEAM Dream event, immersing youth in interactive activities centered around STEAM while introducing them to local professionals and industries, shaping the future of the region.

BERRIEN COUNTY, Mich. (WSBT) — Hundreds of kids spent the day getting hands-on experience with science, technology, engineering, art and math in Benton Harbor.

The Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan hosted its third annual STEAM Dream event. It gave students a chance to explore future careers through interactive activities.

BENTON HARBOR — Four Benton Harbor teenagers are learning about future job possibilities through hands-on activities with engineers, architects and surveyors at Abonmarche.

On Thursday, students surveyed the area by Hole 10 at The Golf Club at Harbor Shores in the morning and entered the measurements they took into a CAD system in the afternoon.

“We did a lot of walking, but it was fun,” said Savanna Bates, 16, who will be a junior at St. Joseph High School this fall.

She said her favorite part was using the total station, an electronic instrument used in surveying.

“You can see all the way from here to the gas station,” she said while standing near Hole 10.

BENTON HARBOR — The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan recently received a sponsorship contribution from United Federal Credit Union in support of Unity Day 2026, a regional celebration that brings together club members from across Southwest Michigan.

According to a news release, Unity Day includes a focus on teamwork, leadership, friendship and community. This year’s event will take place in Benton Harbor at the Club’s Fettig Youth Campus at the end of July.

Representatives from United presented a check to Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan, reaffirming the organization’s commitment to investing in local youth and creating opportunities for young people to learn, grow and succeed.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (WNDU) - The Pathways to Peace Youth Gun Violence Summit took place in Benton Harbor on Friday afternoon, they brought together dozens of people.

Community members gathered at the Boys and Girls Club to learn about gun violence prevention through workshops and discussions.

Topics included conflict resolution, gun safety, and strategies for promoting safer communities.

The keynote speaker, Pastor Taurus Montgomery spoke about the importance of caring adult mentors.

There were also opportunities to learn what resources the Benton Harbor community offers.

“Whether if it’s housing, whether if it’s workplace development, whether if it’s mental health. This is men’s mental health awareness month, right. We have resources available for you to where you can navigate those situational circumstances,” said Diandre Hureskin the director of Teen Tech Center for Benton Harbor.

BENTON HARBOR — The lives of young people growing up in difficult situations can be transformed if adults show them a different way, said Pastor Taurus Montgomery during the Pathways to Peace Youth Gun Violence Summit on Friday in Benton Harbor.

Montgomery – who grew up in poverty in Mobile, Ala. – said he understands what many youth in Benton Harbor are going through because he went through it.

During his talk, called “Crazy Enough to Care,” he said when he sees young people in trouble, he sees himself.

“There are (young people with) gifts, talents and abilities that are in prison or that are going to early graves and it’s because many of them don’t have adults in their lives who are crazy enough to care,” said Montgomery, who was the senior pastor of Harbor of Hope Seventh-day Adventist Church in Benton Harbor for 11 years before taking a position almost a year ago as a pastor at Berean Seventh-day Adventist Church in Atlanta.

Since the summer of 2025 Jonathan Garcia, lead pastor of the Harbor of Hope Seventh-day Adventist Church in Benton Harbor, Michigan, United States, has taught computer science to young students at the local Boys and Girls Club chapter. Having previously worked as a computer science instructor in New York for more than a decade, Garcia now serves students at the Benton Harbor Boys and Girls Club’s Joel E. Smilow Teen Center (also known as Teen Tech Center), which features an array of technology used for education and creativity. Through this service, Garcia has combined his interests in spiritual ministry and computer science to provide an impactful resource for participants.  

The Teen Tech Center is complete with a section for e-sports, with nearly a dozen computers and professional equipment on which students not only play games but also learn about streaming and other technical processes. A separate section is dedicated to 3D printing, sublimation, and virtual reality headsets that connect students with other Teen Tech Centers worldwide. Additionally, spaces for music production, podcasting, graphic design, and more are available in the state-of-the-art space.  

BENTON HARBOR — Creating a place where teens feel welcome and supported is important to Ashley Williams.

It's a big part of her role as director of the Joel E. Smilow Teen Center of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan in Benton Harbor.

"When I was younger, I was let down a lot and I just want to be that person that's dependable. I think every kid deserves that," said Williams. "I try to be someone that I wanted and that I needed when I was younger. That's what drives me every day."

BENTON HARBOR — Elisha Guidry has been named the 2026 Youth of the Year by the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan.

“Facing mental health challenges feels like screaming under water,” Guidry, the daughter of Easha Jones, told the audience Wednesday at the Joel E. Smilow Teen Center in Benton Harbor. “Your mouth is open, your heart is racing, but no sound reaches the surface.”

The 17-year-old junior at Benton Harbor High School said the pain is invisible because it doesn’t bruise or bleed the person who is hurt, and she learned to be silent because she felt ignored.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (WSBT) — Teens from the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Southwest Michigan are getting the opportunity to upgrade their professional wardrobe.

A $1,000 grant from Kohl’s allowed members of the Life and Workforce Readiness program to buy clothes for interviews, jobs, and leadership opportunities.

The shopping trip on Thursday set the teens up for greater success -- and it all begins with feeling and looking their best in a new outfit.

BENTON HARBOR — Carlton Burrel has been named 2025 Youth of the Year by the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan.

Burrel, the son of Tameka and Carlton Burrel, talked about the impact youth violence has had on him during an event at the Secret Garden at the Harbor in Benton Harbor, according to a news release from the club.

“The way that youth violence plays out across this nation makes places dedicated to learning feel like places designated for losing pieces of our humanity,” said Burrel, who is a 16-year-old junior at Benton Harbor High School. “Facing this reality daily reminds me to be thankful for the space and opportunities that the club provides for me to reclaim a safe haven for learning of my own. The violence among youth in my school tried to rob me of my safe space to learn.”

Carlton Burrel was named the Youth of the Year for Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan at an event held at the Secret Garden at the Harbor on Thursday, February 20, 2025.

Every year, Boys & Girls Clubs of America reaffirms its mission to inspire and empower today’s youth by celebrating exemplary youth in Clubs across the nation through the Youth of the Year and Junior Youth of the Year programs. The Youth of the Year journey begins locally when youth, nominated by Club staff and peers, accept the challenge to rise above and make positive changes in their lives, Club and community. The Youth of the Year program in Greater Southwest Michigan is supported by the American Electric Power Foundation.

Carlton is a 16-year-old junior at Benton Harbor High School. He is the son of Tameka and Carlton Burrel. Hisfavorite Club program is Passport to Manhood, a program designed to empower and educate young men, because it taught him the importance of education and becoming a responsible man.

Coming up this Friday, around 500 young people from all over Southwest Michigan will descend on the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan Fettig Youth Campus in Benton Harbor for the club’s fourth annual Unity Day.

Boys and Girls Club spokesperson Sherri Ulleg tells us the kids will be taking part in a field day.

“We have eSports, we have outdoor competitions, we have water slides, we have a no-bake contest,” Ulleg said. “So the events are really diverse to really try and engage our kids and keep them interested regardless of what their interest is.”

After nearly four years of planning and development, the Board of Directors and leadership team of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan (headquartered in Benton Harbor) have announced ‘Level Up at The Club’, an initiative to bring new life and workforce readiness skills programming to the Joel E. Smilow Teen Center in Benton Harbor.

Level Up at The Club will feature a Best Buy Teen Tech Center® in the Club’s lower level. This is a $1.29 million capital improvement project that will feature new, state-of-the-art technology, as well as refreshed spaces throughout the Club for programs that will help teens get ready for life’s next big steps, including the world of work.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (WSBT) — The Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan announced a $1.2 million capital improvement project.

Level Up at the Club is a new life and workforce readiness program for teens. The program will be based out of the Teen Center in Benton Harbor.

The teen tech centers will help teens develop critical skills with hands-on experience.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (Benton-Michiana Spirit News) In addition to its legacy sites in Benton Harbor, the Fettig Youth Campus and the Joel E. Smilow Teen Center, and current operations in Benton Heights, Bridgman, South Haven, St. Joseph and Sturgis, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan will add new summer sites in Buchanan, Lawrence, St. Joseph’s John and Dede Howard Ice Arena, Three Oaks and White Pigeon.

Held on August 6 and 7th, the Whirlpool Community Charity Golf Event raised $3 million for Berrien County youth. The event included rounds of golf on six courses in and around Berrien County with 864 participants. In addition to golf, attendees were able to participate in a Fireside Chat with Hall of Famers Hale Irwin (PGA) and Jerome Bettis (NFL), a silent auction and live auction.

From the Herald Palladium

BENTON HARBOR — Hundreds of children from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan gathered Friday in Benton Harbor for the third annual Unity Day.

“Basically, it’s about bringing all of our sites together in one place so that they can be together – so they know they are all part of one club,” said Alloyd Blackmon, chief executive officer of the clubs.

From the Herald Palladium 

BENTON HARBOR, Mich — No matter what you are going through, find someone to talk with, said Shamiya Williams, who was named the 2023 Greater Southwest Michigan Youth of the Year this week.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (Moody on the Market) - Two local Boys & Girls Club locations have named their Junior Youth of the Year. The two will represent their communities in the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan Junior Youth of the Year competition on Feb. 16.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (WNDU) - The “First Responders Children’s Foundation” worked with the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office to host this Christmas celebration! They also partnered with the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Southwest Michigan

BENTON HARBOR — Donovan Frazier of Benton Harbor may not have won the national title for Youth of the Year on Thursday, but he said the experience of competing in Los Angeles was life-changing. “When I found out I didn’t win and that Asha from Washington (D.C.) won, I was actually really happy for her because she has a bright future, like all of us do,” said Frazier, who was named in July the 2022 Midwest Youth of the Year by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. He said he took several tours in Los Angeles with the other five contestants during his week in the city and formed close bonds with them.  “It was a really good experience for me. A lot of networking took place,” he said. “We’re still regional youths of the year and we will be moving together as a team to contribute to the development of the youth.”

BENTON HARBOR — “24K Magic” by Bruno Mars will never sound quite the same for dozens of Benton Harbor youth after listening to the version performed by DPB Music on Tuesday. This was one of several songs DPB Music performed at the Benton Harbor Youth Campus of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan. “I’m a dangerous man with my Bible in my pocket,” sang David Paul Brooks, who founded the group more than 30 years ago.  The original lyrics are: “I’m a dangerous man with some money in my pocket.”

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. (WNDU) - Benton Harbor teens opened up about their experiences with gun violence. People gathered at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan for a teen summit Monday night. Pastor Taurus Montgomery was the keynote speaker, followed by a discussion panel with city leaders, like Benton Harbor Mayor Marcus Muhammad. City leaders said they want to make sure youth feel heard.

August 29, 2022 (BENTON HARBOR, MI) – Boys & Girls Clubs of Benton Harbor announces today that going forward the organization will now be known as Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Southwest Michigan.