SA youth celebrate Boys and Girls Club Week

Clubs to honor police, firefighters

SAN ANTONIO – Numerous studies have shown that the most vulnerable time for kids begins right after school, Boys and Girls Club of San Antonio CEO Angie Mock said.

"Study after study clearly indicates that the peak hours for juvenile experimentation with sex, drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gangs is between the hours of 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.," Mock said.

As part of a national celebration, the area San Antonio Boys and Girls Clubs are participating in Boys and Girls Club Week. 

The clubs are also celebrating Law Enforcement and Public Safety Appreciation Day, which honors police and firefighters. 

Mock said the program was "cutting edge" when it began about a year ago at the Eastside Branch off of Martin Luther King Drive. 

"Police officers work alongside our staff members to actually deliver some of our curriculum and our programming that focuses on resiliency and life skills," Mock said.

She said people cannot underestimate the powerful impact that adults working with kids have on their young lives. Mock said the statistics are staggering. 

"Kids are 40 percent more likely to be the victim of a violent crime after school than on weekends," she said.