With 4,300 affiliates to choose from, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) selected a local Club member and youth development professional from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Sarasota County to host their first ever virtual National Keystone Conference on Friday, July 24, from the Lee Wetherington Boys & Girls Club in Sarasota.

While the conference was scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C., this month, the in-person event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Rather than forgoing the event altogether, BGCA quickly transformed the multi-day conference into a virtual experience with the theme “We The Youth Declare We Will Be Heard, Seen and United.” BGCA selected Fatima and Geoffry to act as the event’s emcees.

“Hosting this national event, the first one of its kind, will be one of my most cherished memories when I look back on my Boys & Girls Clubs experience,” said Fatima, who has been a Club member since 2008 and recently graduated from The-Out-of-Door Academy. “I’m so grateful for my Clubs’ support, BGCA for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and most of all, my advisor Mr. Geoffry, for encouraging me every step of the way.”

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