special to viewBill Postma, left, a longtime supporter and board member of the Girls and Boys Town of Nevada, celebrates with executive director Tom Waite at the Celebration of Giving event, held Nov. 7.
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There's one thing almost all nonprofit charity organizations have in common: they do as much as they can with limited resources.
Girls and Boys Town of Nevada recently was recognized for doing just that. The Nevada Community Foundation, which has supported the organization in recent years with a total of $150,000 in grants, named Girls and Boys Town Outstanding Charity of the Year, an award that recognizes charities that use funding in a most effective and cost-efficient manner.
The award was part of the annual Celebration of Giving event held Nov. 7 at the Assistance League of Las Vegas, 6446 W. Charleston Blvd., which also recognized honorees Eric Hilton, the 2007 Champion of Philanthropy, and Andy Flaherty, who was posthumously granted the Jameson Philanthropic Achievement Award.
Tom Waite, executive director of Girls and Boys Town, said the award was particularly sweet for an organization that has maintained a somewhat low profile while focusing on its own objective -- helping children in Southern Nevada.
"Any nonprofit, and us in particular, is always in the dilemma of trying to provide the highest quality service possible while being frugal and trying to save money," Waite said. "We've always appealed to the community for support. Our biggest issue is staff salaries because we want to have the best people available, and yet we're always reminded that we're a nonprofit. So we are very honored by this recognition, because I guess it shows that we are a good steward of our resources."
The award seems particularly timely considering the national organization of Boys Town is celebrating its 90th birthday on Dec. 12.
The local branch of Girls and Boys Town has its roots in northwest Las Vegas, although it now maintains administrative offices downtown at 821 N. Mojave Road.
In 1987, a group of community leaders traveled to Nebraska to convince Boys Town to establish a facility in Southern Nevada to help abused and neglected children. The result came in 1989 when 22 acres in the then-undeveloped northwest valley were purchased as a site for five Family Treatment Homes, which were built and opened in 1991. Since then, 850 youth have been helped and healed through their time at the homes, which are located near Grand Teton Drive and Rainbow Boulevard.
Waite said a major change within the organization came in 2004, when Girls and Boys Town of Nevada established its own board and broke away from the national organization to seek its own fundraising. The following year, it expanded once again by creating the Family Based Department, which offers the Family Preservation and Family Support programs, a skill-based program for families in crisis.
Other Girls and Boys Town programs include Common Sense Parenting, Transition to Adulthood services, a crisis hot line and the Behavioral Network, a team of professionals who provide individualized treatment recommendations for children referred to the organization.
The newest program, Family Reunification, fits perfectly with the plans the organization has for 2008.
"Right now, we have 30 children living in the five homes," Waite said. "Our plans for the future of that campus -- and we have a lot of room to work with -- include the building of two more homes next year, with one dedicated for siblings. Many times siblings can get split up when moving through the system, and this will give us the opportunity to keep those children together in the same house, going to school together and working together."
Bill Postma, a longtime local supporter of Girls and Boys Town and board member, nominated the organization for the Outstanding Charity of the Year award.
"I know that my philanthropic intent and my donations are in good hands," Postma wrote in his nomination letter.
While it's nice to be recognized, Waite said he's just hoping his organization continues to grow and find support from the community.
"Especially at this time of year, we and other organizations like us really depend on Las Vegas to donate and help support us," he said. "And Las Vegas is a very giving place. There's a lot of generous people in our community for us to depend on."
For more information, visit www.girlsandboystown.org.
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