THANKS TO OUR HEALTHY COMMUNITIES PARTICIPANTS!

Thanks to everyone who participated in this year's Healthy Communities Fair.  The event was a huge success!

Chris Herren Urges Drug-Free Choices at the Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley

Many share their life accomplishments in order to inspire others to follow, but the latest speaker brought in by the Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley had a much different message to send.

Chris Herren threw away a promising career in professional basketball for a life of drug addiction. He came up from that downward spiral over the past four years after starting an alcohol and drug-free life on August 1, 2008.

The message was not lost on the full house within the Amato Center for the Performing Arts who had come to hear Herren’s personal struggles with substance abuse. Herren told the many young men and women in the audience that stories like his should be listened to.

He too had attended a similar speech from a former drug addict in 1994, before his life took a wrong turn, and wishes to this day that he would have actually paid attention.

“I truly believed that night at eighteen-years-old that I was above his story,” said Herren.

That night he tried cocaine for the first time, which turned into a fourteen year struggle of addiction with prescription painkillers, heroin, crystal meth and alcohol. These choices got him kicked out of college, numerous basketball teams and even his own family. His answers where whittled down to lies, homelessness and even suicide.

“What should have been a dream come true was actually a nightmare,” he said.

The former NBA player had been given many chances, but still ended up with felony arrests. A man who broke too many promises to himself and his family, and was even was declared dead after a drug overdose.

The turning point came when a counselor told him to call his wife and instruct her to convince his three kids that he had died. That is when Chris Herren decided to live once again.

And that former life is not one Herren wants to see lived again.

His story of pain and redemption struck a chord with the young audience, and even their parents. It could be felt in the gasps and the tear-filled eyes throughout the crowd.

Herren has traveled across America to teach others the dangers of even trying the smallest doses of drugs. Keeping our kids drug-free is a top priority for The Boys and Girls Club of Souhegan Valley with their Community Action for Safe Teens (CAST) committee, who co-hosted the event.

CAST works within the communities of Amherst, Brookline, Hollis, Lyndeborough, Milford, Mont Vernon and Wilton to support and strengthen families, reduce the use/abuse of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs and encourage healthy choices by teens through increasing community awareness and action.

The Milford Hospital Association, Bellavance Beverage Company, Inc. and the members of the Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley sponsored the event alongside support from Community Action for Safe Teens and the Milford Police Department.

For more information about Chris Herren visit www.theherrenproject.org.

CELEBRATE HEALTHY, HAPPY COMMUNITIES WITH US ON SEPTEMBER 19TH

Feeling good can come down to making the right choices for yourself and the world around you.

The Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley invites you to celebrate healthy choices and a sustainable environment at their second annual Healthy Communities event on September 19, 2013 from 4-6:30 p.m.

Healthy Communities will feature local vendors that will showcase the many ways you and your family can eat healthy, recycle, and understand your environmental impact. Kids can also forward to special prizes this year.

Vendors include Community Action for Safe Teens, Milford Police, Milford Fire Department, Milford Ambulance, Beaver Brook Association, bigpicwellness, Skillings & Sons, Comfort Zone Therapeutic Massage, H20 Waste Disposal Services, Manchester food Coop, Julies Happy Hens, Envirotek USA, Naturally Clean and more!

The Boys & Girls Club has made it a point to keep your children healthy through its many active programs, and wants the whole community to learn about healthy lifestyle choices.

“We want to continue supporting  healthy lifestyle choices, which we feel is a crucial part of the local community,” said Director of Marketing & Outreach Kevin Salemi. “Promoting these choices goes hand-in-hand with our mission to enhance the quality of life for kids and adults.”

The Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley has an arsenal of programs that help develop fitness, a positive use of leisure time, reduction of stress, appreciation for the environment and social and interpersonal skills.

Programs include a Healthy Habits Program that teach kids how to cook more nutritious food options, sports programs that include their exciting rock climbing wall and environmental programs that get the kids out and exploring the world around them. Thrill-seekers can also look forward to skiing and snowboarding this winter with the Xtreme Team program coming this winter.

Skillings & Sons, Inc., Triangle Credit Union, and Envirotek USA are sponsoring this free event this year. All proceeds from Healthy Communities will support health and fitness programs at The Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley.

Healthy Communities is free for all to attend and will take place at the The Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley location at 56 Mont Vernon Street in Milford. The event is rain or shine. For more information contact Donna Rosenstock at drosenstock@svbgc.org or 603-672-1002 ext. 12.

NEW DANCE OFFERINGS THIS FALL!

We have so many dance options this fall.  Classes for all ages (including adults) taught by Liz Calabria, a dance production directed and choreographed by Jenn Brisebois and Devereaux Merchant, and our very first Dance Team!  Check out all the details below and email Robin with any questions. UPCOMING AUDITIONS:

Directed and Choreographed by Jenn Brisebois Assistant Director & Choreographer Devereaux Merchant COME TO AUDITIONS at the Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley (Milford, NH!!!) Sunday, September 15, 2013 1:00 - 3:00 PM Auditions for grades 1-6 4:00 - 6:00 PM Auditions for grades 7+   NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY -  Just the desire to DANCE!   Plan on being here for the entire two hour block as you will be learning a full dance number Save time, fill out the audition form and bring it with you. What to Bring:  PLEASE no jeans. Wear loose fitting, comfortable clothes. You should be able to move around easily.  Socks, bare-feet or jazz shoes are all acceptable. Bring your bright, shining smiles and your glowing, positive attitudes and you are good to go! :)  Go to Groovin' on the Go for the audition form and more information Rehearsals will almost always be on Sunday afternoons, or Sunday mornings.  UPCOMING CLASSES:

We are so pleased to offer classes taught by Liz Calabria for ages 3-adult! - Tap for Beginner and Intermediate (ages 16+) - Musical Theater (3 Classes):  ages 5-6  grades 3-7  and 16+ - JamKids Dance (ages 3-5) Print out the registration form and come join the party: Riverbend Dance Form DANCE TEAM:

Riverbend Dance Team How exciting is this?  Our very own Dance Team!   As her senior class project at Souhegan High School, Jenn Brisebois will be laying the foundation for a dance team dedicated to creating great dance routines all while instilling the values of teamwork, commitment, responsibility and of course FUN! Some details: The team will meet EVERY Tuesday and Thursday from 4:15-5:15 An annual participation fee of $30 is required Current BGCSV Membership is required BGCSV Afterschool fees apply Team enrollment will be open every 8 weeks for new participants Come to the info meeting Thursday, September 12th from 4:15-5:15 to learn more