One of the questions we're asked most often is, "How do I go about starting a Boys and Girls Club where I live?" There is no easy answer – no "one size fits all." Our approach to the development of new Boys and Girls Clubs is to help communities make their own choices. As you review the material that follows, keep in mind the following general guidelines:

• We don't offer a pre-packaged solution.
• Boys and Girls Clubs do not seek to duplicate services, but to enhance services already offered in the community.
• Whenever possible, Boys and Girls Clubs will act as a cooperator to bring existing service agencies together to find a solution that makes the best use of available resources.
• Boys and Girls Clubs will not promote the development of services that the community does not have the resources or the capacity to maintain for the long term.

In our experience, "how" you choose to serve the needs of children and youth is as important as "what" service you choose. As you learn more about Boys and Girls Clubs, you will find that no two Clubs are identical or offer exactly the same service in the same way. This reflects the choices each community made to get important services to the children, youth, and families who needed them most.