MARTINSBURG – The leadership of the Eastern Panhandle Boys and Girls Club shared the importance of parish partnerships in supporting the needs of families in the area as Berkeley County Council continues to receive budget submissions from local organizations to address those needs.

After a few weeks under budget, Stacie Rohn, CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of the Eastern Panhandle, presented the organization’s budget proposal for the coming fiscal year totaling $ 25,000 to the council, emphasizing the ability of funding, men, women and Women support local children.

According to the district documents, the Eastern Panhandle Boys and Girls Club provided over 100,000 meals over the past year, almost double the number in 2019, and made efforts to respond appropriately to the pandemic while trying to offer afternoon programs to local children, meals and support.

“I think some of the things we found during COVID are that the club isn’t just for our kids, it’s for whole families,” said Rohn. “We care about food security and making it a stable source for families, and even when we couldn’t have children in our building, we always wanted to make sure they got something to eat. At a time of fear I believe COVID lifted the veil on family needs and when they realized we were there to help, that we would be there to help, and we were consistent every week there, trust us for help. I think it is our duty and responsibility to care for the families in our community and that is exactly what the club does and why partnering with the county is so important and important. “

Rohn said the council’s funding is for 25 Berkeley County’s youth out of a total of 175 children who will need financial assistance to attend year-round programs at the club, as membership is $ 2,800 per child for a full year and only $ 1,800 in grants.

Randy Lewis, executive director of Main Street Martinsburg, also provided the county with the organization’s budget for fiscal year 2021-2022 of $ 25,000. He explained that running a nonprofit that focuses on helping and encouraging the community in times of crisis is particularly difficult for the company. Funding from the county would help offset membership and sponsorship losses and focus on the opportunity Prepare for further events if vaccinations continue.

Todd Funkhouser, chairman of the Berkeley County Historic Landmarks Commission, made his budget request for $ 25,000.

According to county documents, the organization was rebuilt with professional members in 2020 and if the application were to be fulfilled the money would be used as a match for historical conservation planning and survey grants, office equipment and insurance.

In addition to the community-centered budgets presented on Tuesday, the council received requests during Thursday’s session last week from:

• • Michael Noll, President of the Apollo Civic Theater, for $ 10,000 for various operating, show, and programming fees.

• • Jennifer Swisher, 9-1-1 director, for $ 4,431,927.

• • Elaine Bartoldson, executive director of the Eastern Panhandle Transit Authority, for $ 100,000.

• • Nicolas Diehl, managing director of the airport authority, for 250,000 US dollars for further expansion efforts.

• • Beverly Van Meter, president of CCAP Loaves & Fishes, for $ 2,000 to provide additional rental assistance to Berkeley Counties.

• • Mark Jordan, executive director of Berkeley County Convention & Visitor’s Bureau, for $ 300,000 in annual operating expenses.

• • HD Boyd of the Berkeley County Roundhouse Authority for $ 14,000 to insure the company.