Community celebrates opening of club

In many ways, the opening of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Nevada is like a love story.

It is the culmination of a decade of hard work and collaboration. A preliminary list of donors boasts more than 300 names of individuals, families, organizations and corporations.

For Jennifer Russell, of Carson Station Casino, and Buzz Fitzpatrick, a civil engineer with Lumos & Associates, it is a true romance.

The two met about 10 years ago while serving together on the club's board. They co-chaired the annual Kids Auction and World's Greatest Barbecue.

After all the time they spent together planning the event, "we kind of had to get married," Russell joked.

The proud parents of 2-year-old Spencer, Russell said it can seem sometimes like they have more than 400 kids, both having served as past presidents of the board.

"I think it has to be personal to be a member of the board," she said. "It's time consuming, but it's worth every second."

Russell said the next step is to complete the donor wall to honor all who contributed to the cause.

"It's 100 percent built through love of the community," she said.

Although the club opened to members on the first day of school, the grand opening was held Wednesday evening. The celebration was kicked off by a parade of students, complete with the Blue Thunder Marching Band from Carson High School.

More than 600 children, parents, board members, leaders and community members showed up to tour the new $5.5 million, 12,600-square-foot center facility at 1870 Russell Way, named for the Russell family.

It replaces the 7,000-square-foot building on South Stewart Street.

"It's amazing," said Executive Director Hal Hansen. "There's a lot of satisfaction. It's nice to see a lot of people who helped make it a reality here to celebrate with us."

Mayor Bob Crowell served on the original board to bring the Boys & Girls Club to Carson City more than 20 years ago.

"I'm excited to see this done," he said. "I think this is a real milestone of Carson City. In this town, we have a lot of kids who benefit by having a place to go after school."

And that, said Sheriff Kenny Furlong, is important.

"It puts them in a positive, caring environment that in many cases they wouldn't have," he said. "It keeps kids in a positive direction."