Interim Director Eric Anderson says recent deliberations to push back the reopening of the Boys and Girls Club of Door County until October 5th represented a tough decision. In the end, he chose to err on the side of caution as COVID-19 activity spikes across the area. In communications with the organization’s Board of Directors, Anderson said he wrestled with the issue for several days. The Boys and Girls Club offered summer programs, and Anderson says it is incredible the range of emotions being felt by kids as they attempt to process the pandemic.
Other factors in the decision include the need for additional staff, which can be difficult to find until the end of the tourism season. More hires will help the Boys and Girls Club operate similarly to its summer program in the future. Anderson says he was nervous about kids being able to wear masks from 7:30 AM until 5 PM, but they became better at it than many adults. Extra sanitizing and moving activities outdoors were also used. Anderson credits the decision to go to pods the most in avoiding any COVID-19 cases through July and August. Reducing the amount of intermingling by children at the center means that a positive case, if it were to happen, would only force a quarantine situation for a portion of the kids, rather than all participants.
