Taking Charge

Filling seven of the nine top leadership positions within the organization, women are leading the charge at the Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern North Carolina. 

“At every level of leadership throughout our organization, we have strong women leading,” says KRISTIN MCPETERS, chief development officer at the Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern North Carolina. 

Among this group of female leaders is a great mix of perspectives that enriches the organization, McPeters says. Two of the seven executives have worked for the organization for more than fifteen years, offering a wealth of experience and history. Some of the leadership team are from Wilmington and have a depth of local knowledge, whereas others are transplants with a broader regional perspective. Additionally, some leaders have spent their whole careers in the nonprofit arena while others came to the Boys & Girls Club from the for-profit sector.

In January 2023, the Boys & Girls Club of Southeastern North Carolina unified two formerly separate local clubs, the Brigade Boys & Girls Club and Community Boys & Girls Club of Wilmington into one Club. This merger allowed the organization to strengthen its efforts, ultimately expanding its reach into two additional counties and adding ten new club sites.

“Our goal is to serve youth and families throughout Southeastern North Carolina, and this gave us the footprint to be able to do that,” McPeters says.

The club now serves more than 2,200 students per year across a five-county area that spans New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, Duplin, and Onslow counties. Their mission is to “enable all young people to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens,” McPeters says.

As a member organization of the Boys & Girls Club of America, the club utilizes a curriculum that focuses on the whole child’s wellbeing, McPeters says. Their student program covers academics, leadership development, arts curriculum, and health and wellness. They also reinforce workforce development for middle and high school students.

“We are looking for graduation on time with a plan for the future,” she says.

The Boys & Girls Club works closely with the families they serve as “an extension of the family and caregivers,” McPeters says. “There is an understanding and an inherent empathy on our team of what our parents and families are looking for in a safe, supportive environment.” 

As chief development officer, McPeters oversees fundraising, marketing, communications, and volunteer management.  “I love being able to connect people who want to make a difference with work and a mission that they are passionate about,” she says.

McPeters joined the organization in early 2023, having served as capital campaign manager for the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, where she was mostly focused on fundraising. As the Boys & Girls Club is a longstanding partner agency with the food bank, the transition to her current position was seamless.

Next summer, the club will broaden its reach by offering summer camps to participants throughout its five-county area.

The club aims to help students build healthy relationships with trusted adults and develop community. “A great deal of childhood trauma can be overcome by one trusted childhood relationship,” McPeters says. “Parents need to know that their kids are in a safe, trusted environment.”

McPeters encourages the Wilmington community to get involved with the Boys & Girls Club as a volunteer. Their biggest needs are for one-time events such as holiday celebrations and volunteers to help with homework and tutoring. “We can use more trusted adults in the lives of our kids,” she says.

To view more of photographer Daria Amato’s work, go to dariaphoto.com

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