For 40 years, the Herbert Hoover Boys and Girls Club only had one location – on North Grand Boulevard at the Sportsmans Park Site.
In Flint Fowler’s 13 years as the club’s executive director, he has led the club in opening up two new sites, expanding programs into city schools and diversifying the club’s programs.
“It’s given us a bigger footprint,” Fowler said. “It’s like a bank. We’re opening up branches, which gives us more credibility and higher visibility.”
Fowler will be honored as the 2009 Non-Profit Executive of the Year on Tuesday, November 10 at the Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon, to be hosted at the Ritz-Carlton in Clayton by the St. Louis American Foundation, the RCGA and the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis.
By expanding the programs, Fowler felt that the club could increase its impact on children in the region, while simultaneously aiding with fundraising efforts and employment opportunities. With just one location, professional development is limited, he said. Now the organization has more site director and management positions.
Besides the main location, Herbert Hoover worked with the Adams Park Community Center in the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood to open a satellite program in 2007. Then last year, it partnered with Hazelwood Southeast Middle School for offer programs in the Hazelwood community.
Fowler said there are a lot of challenges that their children face in their communities and homes that prevent them from growing and learning.
“A lot of baggage comes to the club with the children each day,” he said. “Our goal is not to let them use setbacks as a crutch, but to work through it and help them see that if they establish loving relationships with adults and work hard, they can be successful.”
The club focuses on after-school and weekend programs for children 6 to 18, who pay $25 for a yearlong membership. It costs the club $1,250 to sponsor each child for a year, and the organization has 3,500 members.
Last year, the organization reported $3.96 million in operating expenses and $3.29 million in revenues and support. As with many nonprofits, it’s difficult to sustain the programs with the downturn in the economy. But that hasn’t stopped the organization for expanding.
One way they have done this is by establishing two more Boys and Girls Clubs at school facilities, rather than building new facilities, which was modeled after a Boys and Girls Club initiative in Milwaukee.
“Often times people set off to do something, and then they have to pull back because they don’t have the resources,” Fowler said.
In order to make sure the club is able to sustain its growth, the organization applied to be part of the Deaconess Impact Partnership, which focuses on strengthening the operations and leadership of youth-serving nonprofits in the region. The Deaconess Foundation will help Herbert Hoover improve its fundraising, track program outcomes and build its infrastructure between 2009 and 2012.
“That type of experience not only strengthens what we’re doing now, but better prepares us for growth,” Fowler said.
Fowler feels fortunate that, with a strong and capable board, Herbert Hoover has been able to keep its doors open while many other nonprofits have closed in the economic crisis. They’ve been able to maintain hours and keep the youth coming to the club, he said.
Especially with employment impacting the families’ and children’s lives, programs like Herbert Hoovers’ are even more crucial, he said. Children are less likely to be supervised during non-school hours if they don’t have a Boys and Girls Club or some other experience to be part of.
“It’s important for children to have a family surrounding them, whether that’s family they live with or family made up of concerned citizens,” he said.
When Flint Fowler graduated from Washington University with a degree in psychology and black studies in 1980, he had his sights set on the physical therapy masters program as his next step. He derailed from the plan when a minority health masters program at Wash U peaked his interest.
Fowler went on to hold some exciting leadership roles with the youth organizations such as the Boy Scouts of America Greater St. Louis Area Council, Saint Louis University’s Upward Bound Program, Operation Teamwork and INROADS/St. Louis.
But it wasn’t until he got to the Herbert Hoover Boys and Girls Club of St. Louis in 1996 that he felt he could affect the lives of young people on a grassroots level.
“It’s important for people to understand the role they can play in helping our young people become productive, responsible and caring citizens,” he said.
The 10th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon will get started with a networking reception at 11 a.m. Tuesday, November 10 at the Ritz-Carlton in Clayton, hosted by the St. Louis American Foundation, the RCGA and the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis. Tickets are $75 each for general seating, with table of 10 available for $750; or $100 for Preferred/VIP seating, with a table of 10 for $1,000. For tickets, call 314-533-8000 ext. 305, visit stlamerican.com or email Rbritt@stlamerican.com.
