Hundreds were in attendance at Georgia Southern’s Performing Arts Center theater Thursday evening as a question-and-answer forum with University of Georgia football head coach Kirby Smart and former UGA player David Pollack headlined a fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Club of Bulloch County.
Plenty of local UGA Red and Black supporters joined up with those who sport Blue and White in support of a cause that fans of any allegiance could get behind.
Before Smart and Pollack took the stage, event attendees mingled outside of the theater where more money was raised via silent auction.
The local Boys and Girls Club chapter holds many events throughout the year and - through their contacts and affiliation with local sports celebrities - was able to provide plenty of exciting merchandise to help add to the fundraising total.
Statesboro High product Justin Houston - who has hosted summer camps for local youths - donated a signed Kansas City Chiefs jersey and helmet. A.J. Green, who attended UGA with Houston and has served as an instructor at his camp, also had one of his Cincinnati Bengals uniforms up for auction.
“We appreciate all of the support we get from our community and from those who give back to it,” Boys and Girls Club executive director Mike Jones said. “Everything we raise goes right back into our local club, so everyone who contributes is directly affecting kids in our area.”
And while Smart and Pollack entertained the crowd with stories and musings from the sidelines, the main focus of the event remained the young people who will benefit from it.
“It’s important to reach out and help where you can,” Smart said. “I know that I’ve got a big platform, so I want to use it to send a good message.
“I’ve asked my team to raise their hand if they’ve been in a program like the Boys and Girls Club and I’ve seen about 100 hands go up. It’s a program that does so much for kids and we want to help send that message.”
While one aspect of the club serves to provide members with opportunities to play organized sports, the main goal is to serve in any capacity to help kids realize and achieve goals as they grow up.
Giving turns into getting. Some of the biggest moments for coaches and anyone volunteering and helping kids along the way is when they see down the road that these kids are achieving great things.University of Georgia Head Football Coach Kirby Smart
Part of the message from Smart and Pollack focused on the importance that parents and volunteers to the club can have on kids and how long-lasting any impact on a child can be.
“Something not everyone knows is that I was ready to quit football when I was a sophomore ,” Pollack said. “I had a coach ask me to just come and work out with him and talk to him.”
“Giving turns into getting,” Smart said. “Some of the biggest moments for coaches and anyone volunteering and helping kids along the way is when they see down the road that these kids are achieving great things.”
The Boys and Girls Club of Bulloch County hosts upwards of 1,000 unique children every year and shoulders the demanding task of providing all of them with time, space and programs necessary to provide athletic and educational opportunities that will suit every need.
From a spacious facility for activities, to organized sports leagues, to teachers and volunteers lending a helping hand, funding and raised awareness for the Boys and Girls Club is setting up Bulloch County with new classes of high-achieving youths every year.
“Everyone is looking for purpose in their life,” Smart said. “I know people work hard and work 9-5, but when they can find time to give back - when they can see the fruits of their labor through kids succeeding - that’s when you really feel that a purpose has been served.”