Boys & Girls Village Thanks Donor

Photo Caption: Recent ceremonial check presentation (left to right): Jimmy Miller, Sr., Founder/Friends of Jimmy Miller; Jimmy Miller, Jr., Vice President/Friends of Jimmy Miller; Steven M. Kant, M.D., President & CEO/Boys & Girls Village; and Dominic Schioppo, President/Friends of Jimmy Miller.

Boys & Girls Village (BGV) is pleased to announce the continuing partnership with the Friends of Jimmy Miller, Inc., based in New Haven. The Friends of Jimmy Miller generously contributed a $20,000 donation to BGV from proceeds of its December fundraising dinner, which will help to launch BGV’s new Work To Learn Program. This innovative program serves at-risk youth ages 16 to 21, and features intensive life skills coaching, as well as the launch and guided management of three student-run businesses.

According to Steven M. Kant, M.D., President and CEO of BGV, “We are proud to be associated with The Friends of Jimmy Miller. Since 2012, they have provided BGV with significant support raised through its annual fundraising dinner in New Haven. These gifts help BGV treat the most vulnerable youth with behavioral health. The great majority of the youth and families we see rely on some form of state assistance, which often falls short of the real costs of providing the services they so clearly need. Support from Jimmy Miller and other generous donors is critical to closing this gap in funding. The programs they support help these youth and families regain healthy developmental pathways, critical to their having a rewarding and fulfilling future.”

The Work To Learn program focuses on eight broad areas that affect long-term ability of at-risk youth to achieve economic self-sufficiency and resiliency. Program participants also receive extensive coaching and use their acquired skills in a monitored environment to launch their own small business. These small businesses operate as competitive commercial endeavors, teaching participants a wide range of personal and professional skills needed to run an ongoing entity.

About the Friends of Jimmy Miller, Inc.
The Friends of Jimmy Miller is a 501(c)(3) organization made up of a voluntary Board of Directors and officers. The organization is dedicated to raising funds to support programs that benefit children in crisis. Many of these programs and services deal with positive reinforcement, teaching life skills and adolescent development. For more information, visit friendsofjimmymiller.net.

About Boys & Girls Village
Since its beginnings in 1942, Boys & Girls Village has created a better future for thousands of Connecticut children and their families. The agency has grown into a sophisticated array of therapeutic and evidence-based programs for both boys and girls, ages 5 – 21. Children from 50 Connecticut communities are under BGV’s specialized care on any given day, coordinated through offices in Milford and Bridgeport/Black Rock. Many clients have experienced significant trauma and abuse, and come from the most impoverished portions of society. In that respect, Boys & Girls Village is a key part of the safety net for at-risk youth and their families. For more information, visit bgvillage.org, or call (203) 877-0300.