Photographs by William Taufic.
Greenwich resident Kevin Wing has been going to the Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich (BGCG) since he was six. There he found his “second family.” The fourteen-year-old, who is an only child of a single mom, now spends much of his time ensuring other kids feel as at home at BGCG as he always has. “I help all the staff and run errands for them. I also help out at events, like the pancake breakfast,” comments Kevin, “and I show new, younger members around the club so that they are not nervous or scared. I will introduce new kids to the staff and other members to help them feel welcome. I want to make sure they like the BGCG as much as I do.”
Kevin has been part of the Young Mariners program at the club for the past four summers. “Now I mentor the first- and second-year groups,” says Kevin. “I’m the one who gets in their boat with them to help them improve and make their sailing experience better.” After three weeks of sailing, Kevin spends the rest of the summer as a Counselor in Training at BGCG’s camp. In school, Kevin has a B+ average and is part of the AVID program, which prepares and supports promising students for college. For his eighth-grade capstone project, Kevin chose the issue of puppy mills and has been passionate about raising awareness. “Not many people know this is happening right in our community,” says Kevin.
For the past three years, Kevin has been a member of Torch Club, a character and leadership program at BGCG, and served as president last year. “We do community service and go to the regional conference and brainstorm,” explains Kevin, who came up with the idea for Fruit Fridays, with toppings to make fruit more appealing. “It’s a healthy way of giving kids at the club snacks,” he says. This year Kevin is graduating to the Keystone Club, BGCG’s leadership club for high school students.
“Kevin is one of the kindest, most genuine and great-spirited young teens at the club,” comments Takeia McAlister, associate development director. “It’s not always easy for him to be without a dad, but he has the support of his immediate family and BGCG too. I think he takes that support and exponentially passes it forward to his peers— remarkable, at such a young age.”
Kevin helped organize a Halloween Haunted House fundraiser for the Sandy Hook Foundation, and the $502 raised went to a playground built in New Jersey in honor of Daniel Barden, one of the children who perished that day. Torch Club members visited the site. “We met his family,” recounts Kevin. “We saw the playground—how beautiful it was and how connected it was to Daniel. His drawings were inscribed on the playground and his favorite colors and favorite things to do.”
Maureen, Kevin’s mom, comments, “Kevin being such an active member of the club has given him many opportunities to participate in programs that have helped shape the person he has become. He really seems to enjoy helping others in any way he can, and for that I am extremely proud. One thing I have always told Kevin is to be kind, and I think that kindness shines through in all he does.”