by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
While the Jacksonville Super Bowl Host Committee dispersed about six months after the Feb. 6, 2005 game, one of its legacies — the Youth Education Town (YET) — is still a year away from becoming reality.
Next Wednesday, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America will break ground on the $3 million facility created by the National Football League and designed to give back to each Super Bowl host community. When completed in a year, the 22,400 square-foot facility in Brentwood will house an art room, group club room, game room, teen center, cafeteria, gym and the Forever Young computer lab (named after former San Francisco 49ers quarterback and Super Bowl winner Steve Young).
Debbie Verges is the president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida and she’ll oversee the YET along with the area’s other 11 clubs. During Super Bowl week, the NFL lived up to its promise of donating $1 million to help build the YET. In September, Verges said the Boys & Girls Clubs finally raised the other $2 million it needed to build the facility. Verges said she would have liked to raise the money more quickly, but a couple of factors made that impossible.
“The NFL gives you $1 million and you have to match that. In our case, you couldn’t build the YET for $2 million. We needed to raise $3 million,” she said. “You can break ground when you have the money in the bank. We had the money in September, but took the fall to find a contractor.”
Verges said the other delay was due to the hurricanes in 2005 and the soaring construction materials costs that resulted.
“If we had bid the job a year ago, it would have been much more expensive. Building supplies were hard to get,” said Verges. “We wanted to be at budget when the contract was awarded. I wish we could have started six months ago.”
Verges credited the Host Committee and the local business community for helping with the needed $2 million.
“They [the Host Committee members] asked the businesses and corporations in Northeast Florida to donate, and they did,” said Verges.
Leading the way was Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida which contributed $650,000. Thanks to that generous contribution, the gym at the YET will be named after BCBS. Others that donated at least $100,000 include: the Petway Family Foundation, Bank of America, the Weaver Family Foundation, Winn-Dixie Stores and Wachovia.
The Jacksonville YET is one of several across the country. Currently, there are 11 open in nine cities and four either under construction or planned. Perry Cooper is the senior director of field services for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. He’s based in Atlanta and he’s seen first-hand how the NFL-inspired clubs affect the communities.
“They are very successful,” said Cooper, who plans to be in Jacksonville next year when the YET opens. “The NFL’s involvement, resources and recognition are great and we are excited about being affiliated with the NFL. The Boys & Girls Clubs are a real complement to what the NFL brings.”
Like Verges, Cooper credits the Host Committee not just for its work and help in raising funds, but also for its work in identifying an area of Jacksonville in need of such a facility. When open, the YET will serve children ages six to 18 every day after school until 8 p.m. and from 7 a.m.-6 p.m. on all school holidays and during the summer.
“Their (the Host Committee members’) legacy is in the place,” said Cooper. “What they did drives the success of the YET. The Boys & Girls Clubs of America are excited about the YET in Jacksonville and it’s great to participate with the NFL. The bottom line is, the kids will have a great facility and a great staff.”