What's Up, Doc? Here's a Great Place for Fun, Learning

By Randall Freeman, PhD

I have completed one year of volunteering at the Boys & Girls Club of Menifee. I am astounded at the progress they have made in the past 12 months.

Under the capable leadership of Executive Director John Whann and ably assisted by Sam, Hannah, and all the others (too many to name individually), the club has grown to over 1,100 youngsters who are provided with breakfast and dinner and a wealth of great programs.

The summer field trips are daily and great in number. I witnessed at least 2-3 field trips heading out each day, amazingly organized and highly entertaining for the children. I felt like I had entered the Magic School "Bus with Miss Frizzle taking her students each episode “on a field trip!"

STEM (or STEAM, as it is known currently) is alive and well at the Boys & Girls Club of Menifee. Gears 2 Robots, a non-profit organization dedicated to STEM education, has been providing members with lessons in robotics. All children were highly engaged in their active learning. As I walked through the classroom, I saw smiles and excellent discussions being carried out. Everybody was heavily involved in robotics.

Other programs include tumbling, dance, martial arts, wrestling, archery, and cooking. One of the boys I tutored the past couple of weeks had to delay coming to tutoring until he was done with his Rainbow Chef class. (Never brought me anything he made, either. Bummer.)

Mr. John and Mr. Sam organize recreational leagues for the children. Soccer, basketball, etc., are available for a small fee. Mr. John is so persuasive in his position that I find that I volunteered to coach a T-Ball team come October. How did that happen? (Smile)

I am looking forward to the coming school year. Mondays and Thursdays, I will be continuing to tutor children who need help with their homework and/or Common Core Math. It’s free!

For information about the Boys & Girls Club of Menifee Valley, click here.

Randy Freeman and his family have lived in Menifee since 1993. Randy teaches kindergarten in Perris and his lovely wife Karen teaches first grade here in Menifee at Freedom Crest Elementary School. They are the proud parents of four beautiful daughters: Daniela, Sarah, Holly, and Megan. Other family members include dogs Scruffy and Max, and turtle Tuttles. Randy earned his PhD in early childhood education in 2011 and has served on the Menifee Union School Board since 2008. When not assisting Karen in driving the girls to all of their sporting events, Randy volunteers at the Boys & Girls Club of Menifee Valley.