2018 September COLONY Magazine

LAST WORD
Boys & Girls Club of North SLO County
Celebrates CHAMPIONS OF YOUTH
Outside of his volunteerism
with Boys & Girls Club, Evenson
is a residential mortgage lender
and co-owner of Connect Home
Loans in Paso Robles. “I got into
the mortgage industry shortly after
arriving from Orange County
in the late ‘90s,” Evenson said. “I
knew I wanted to pursue real estate
and the loan side of the business
intrigued me.”
Evenson lives in Paso Robles
with his wife of 26 years, Tressa.
They have three adult daughters:
Nicole, Natalie and Katie. In his
free time, he also enjoys yard projects,
camping and traveling. “The
bulk of my community involveor
the 18th year, Boys & Girls
Club of North SLO County
will honor a dedicated community
member and their contributions
to the organization. “The Board
of Directors reviews contributions
of our Board members and community
partners — current and
past — who have made a significant
impact,” Board member Pat
Bland said. This year, former Board
Chair Todd Evenson was selected
as the honoree for the Champions
of Youth event scheduled on September
8th.
“Todd has
served on our
Board since
2012 and has
been Board
Chair for the
Todd Evenson
past fouryears,
recently
passing the
gavel over to
Nadine Sullivan,”
Bland said. Bland added
that some of the accomplishments
achieved during Evenson’s time as
Board Chair include expanding the
number of children served as well
as establishing community partnerships
and adding a Clubsite
in Atascadero.
“I have been passionate about
serving kids for quite some time,”
Evenson said. “I started with
coaching both soccer and softball
while my own kids were still playing.
The satisfaction from giving
back and especially in helping kids
improve not only their sports skills
but also in navigating through life
was very rewarding. As coaches, we
were able to instill good character
development that we knew could
last a lifetime. Transitioning to the
Boys & Girls Club was a natural
fit in that our clubs are all about
lifetime results and very intuitive
programs. The
organization
focuses on academic
success,
character development
and
healthy lifestyles.”
Evenson
added that
the Board also
knows that it is
important for
children to be
in a safe environment after school.
“Ultimately, I can’t think of a better
way to give back than to the future
of our country, our kids,” he said.
“I was humbled to be honored, but
also felt there could be 30-plus
honorees for this event. In order
to achieve the success that we have
as an organization, it takes many
wonderful volunteers throughout
our community to put all of the
pieces together.”
“Ultimately, I can’t think of a
better way to give back than to the
future of our country, our kids,”
By Heather Young
ment came in the form of coaching
until transitioning to the Boys &
Girls Club,” Evenson said.
“The Champions of Youth
Dinner event was started as our
primary annual fundraiser to support
the operating expenses for the
organization 18 years ago,” Bland
said. The organization has been in
operation in North SLO County
for over 28 years. “The award has
been given to previous and current
Board members, including local
community superstars such as
Sandy Viborg, Jeb Brown, Robert
Covarubius, Dale Gomer and JED
Nicholson,” Bland said.
On Saturday, September 8, the
Club will host its annual Champions
of Youth Dinner & Auction
at the Paso Robles Event Center,
2198 Riverside Avenue, at 5:30
p.m. Approximately 200 guests
come together each year for a lively
social hour, passed appetizers and a
four-course dinner catered by Chef
Jeffrey Scott with local wine pairings,
live and silent auctions and
dancing.
Tickets to the Champions of
Youth dinner are available by calling
Karen, Club Office Manager,
at 805-440-8783 or by visiting
bgcslocounty.org.
Heather Young can be reached
at Heather@pasomagazine.com
JEFF RAILSBACK
JOINS THE CLUB
Boys and Girls Club Hires Jeff
as Development Coordinator
Jeff Railsback
The Boys and Girls Club of the
North SLO County welcomed Jeff
Railsback to the position of Development
Coordinator as the program
focuses on growth and development.
With an already-strong
presence in Paso Robles, he will
help expand the program to serve
more kids, and grow the Atascadero
program into maturity.
As the Development Coordinator,
Jeff will be the face of the
North County Boys & Girls Club
with on-the-job duties including
donor relations and stewardship,
building new partnerships and
donor bases and fundraising.
“We want to make sure that we
are communicating to the community
what we are doing,” Jeff said,
“and properly acknowledging the
people that are supporting us.”
With Jeff’s role, the club will continue
to work along its established
longterm goals of finding a new
facility in Paso Robles to meet the
demand for its services, and grow
awareness and participation in the
Atascadero program into a facility
of its own.
“I’m going to be spending a
lot of my time in Atascadero,” Jeff
said. “Most of the donors we have,
we’ve had for the past 10 years,
before we even had a club in
Atascadero. There is a huge need
to find a facility and let people
know about our services.”
The North SLO County program
serves over 500 kids through the
year, and Jeff said they are working
to dramatically increase that.
“We are not just after-school
care,” Jeff said. “We are more than
a ‘drop off’ solution. We work on
character, development, and growing
better human beings.”
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34 | colonymagazine.com COLONY Magazine, September 2018