Kathy Chidester
Several positions are available at the Boys & Girls Club in Hawthorne as the doors will be shut temporarily due to staffing issues.

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Mason Valley has announced that it will temporarily close its Hawthorne clubhouse on April 18 due to a staffing shortage and encourages anyone within the area to apply. The Hawthorne clubhouse is currently hiring for a site director, lead cook, and Youth Development Professionals (YDPs) to allow it to be fully staffed.

The biggest need is for a site director, which is a full-time, benefitted position that pays $18/hr. Its former site director, Delphine Speights, passed away last month due to a sudden illness, and is sorely missed (she also played a large role in Hawthorne’s Care & Share senior program). Speights started out at the Boys & Girls Club as a Youth Development Professional and was eventually promoted to site director. The Boys & Girls Club is looking to hire someone with the same positive attitude who has management experience and enjoys working with kids.

Along with the current staffing shortage, Hawthorne’s clubhouse has been temporarily closed on and off during the past few months due to lack of heat and asbestos in the building. Those issues have since been corrected, so now the Boys & Girls Club is hoping to get those positions filled to help welcome kids back into the clubhouse again.

“We have 45-50 kids here on a busy day,” says Boys & Girls Clubs of Mason Valley Director of Communications Nick Beaton. The Boys & Girls Club has an MoU in place with Mineral County to use its former armory building to act as its clubhouse on 525 W. 9th Street which is conveniently located next to the elementary school. The clubhouse has four rooms, including one that is a computer lab and another that is a multi-purpose room.

“The space is awesome; it’s a 45-second walk from the school,” Beaton says.

When asked why the Boys & Girls Club is a good place to work, Beaton replies, “It’s an absolute blast. You get to hang out with kids and watch them learn, grow, discover new things, or just play basketball all day. The Boys & Girls Club offers flexible, competitive wages and there’s always room for upward mobility. And it’s a fun group to work with.

“We want to get open to our families again as soon as we possibly can.”

For more information about the Boys & Girls Clubs of Mason Valley and to apply for a position at its Hawthorne clubhouse, visit https://bgcmasonvalley.org/.