Programs
Boys & Girls Club of the High Rockies served 479 unique youth in 2018. We serve children between the ages of 5-18. We are committed to providing a safe place where we can focus on: Academic Success, Healthy Lifestyles and Good Character and Citizenship.
It represents the five key elements for positive youth development:
- A SAFE, POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT
- FUN
- SUPPORTIVE RELATIONSHIPS
- OPPORTUNITIES AND EXPECTATIONS
- RECOGNITION
Boys & Girls Clubs of the High Rockies offers tested, proven and nationally recognized programs that members will experience through either High Yield Activities (fun with a purpose) or Targeted Programs (outcome driven learning). HYA’s and Targeted Programs span a variety of interests that cover the five Core Program Areas and closely align with the developmental needs of all young people:
• The Arts
• Education
• Health & Wellness
• Leadership & Service
• Sports & Recreation
To see what programs are currently offered, be sure to check out the program schedules and monthly calendars on each club’s page!
Formula for Impact
The Boys & Girls Clubs of the High Rockies follows the Formula for Impact to achieve our 3 priority outcome areas: Academic Success, Good Character and Citizenship, and Healthy Lifestyles.
Our History:
After operating for some time as an after school Drug Prevention Programs for kids, in December of 2005 the Boys & Girls Club of South Park (BGCSP) was founded. From 2005 to 2009, the organization operated a year round Club in Fairplay and in the spring of 2009 expanded services into the Bailey community, 40 miles away. A year round Club in Fairplay continued to operate while the Bailey Club continued on for one more academic year and then went to a Summer Outreach Program. From 2013 – 2015 the Bailey Summer Outreach Program (BOP) had over 90 Club Members with an average daily attendance of 51. In the fall of 2014 the BOP, launched after-school programming for middle school aged youth. This program experienced limited success. In response, BGCSP launched a community assessment. After evaluating the data, the BOP launched a restructured year-round program serving youth in Kindergarten – eighth grade. In 2015 the BOP had 109 summer members and 39 year-round club members. In 2016, with over 120 registered club members, the BOP become the Platte Canyon Boys & Girls Club, a chartered Club through the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. With this expansion of services, the organization changed names to better reflect the populations being served and the vision to serve more rural communities across Colorado’s high country. In 2016 BGCSP, became the Boys & Girls Clubs of the High Rockies (BGCHR). BGCHR remains the only year round school age program in Park County and we are proud to be collaborating to address service gaps in the neighboring counties of Summit and Jefferson. BGCHR provides locally facing services that are essential to helping rural youth grow into caring, productive, responsible citizens through direct programming and support services.
Ms. Carman has lived in Colorado over 26 years and has lived in Bailey for 17 of those years with her three kids- all club members. Ms. Carman has worked in Early Childhood and Head Start in rural Colorado specializing in fundraising, grant compliance and organizational development. Ms. Carman is on the Platte Canyon RE-1 School Board, Chair of the Park Family Connections, Fundraising Board Chair for the Platte Canyon Piranhas Swim Team and Coordinator for Park Alliance for Young Children. Ms. Carman holds a BA in European History and Politics with a minor in Spanish from Colorado College and MA in Public Policy from the University of Denver. Her favorite reptile is the Spectacled Cobra and her favorite dog breed is a Newfoundland. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her kids, tending to her home zoo, volunteering in giant breed dog rescue, attending musical theater and attempting to high-altitude garden.
Board of Directors
Board President – Morti Longsdorf
Morti Longsdorf is a native of Brooklyn, New York and moved to Denver in 2000
Morti obtained her Bachelors at SUNY-at-Oswego, NY and her Master’s in Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire. In 2000, Morti moved to Denver where she has worked in the Information Technology sector in the Denver Metro area, and currently works for Kaiser Permanente as a Business Analyst.
Coming from a family that values the importance of giving back to one’s community, Morti has volunteered for local non-profits such as the Gathering Place, Catholic Charities, the Diane Price Fish Foundation (defunct), and Swedish Medical Center. Morti is an active volunteer at the Boys and Girls Club of the High Rockies (BGCHR) where she is the acting Board President.
To ensure a balance life, Morti has a keen interest in the arts—whether it’s dragging friends and family to see exhibits at galleries on First Fridays in Denver or experiencing wonderful productions at the local play houses in Conifer and Denver. Morti currently lives in Bailey and has a daughter that attends Fitzsimmons Middle School.
Board Treasurer – Pete Cote
Member Biography
Board Secretary – Christopher Byram
Mr. Byram has served on the BGCHR Board of Directors since December 2014, having held the office of Treasurer for one year (2015), President for four years (2016 – 2019), and Secretary in 2020. Mr. Byram also served at the Board Chair for the Boys & Girls Clubs Colorado Area Council in 2018 and 2019. He is an IT professional with 30 years of experience in multiple fields and is currently employed with Park County Government as their Network Manager and is actively involved with efforts to bring improved internet services to rural communities in Park County.
Mr. Byram has worked with a variety of youth-based and non-profit organizations over the past three decades. These include Meals on Wheels, Habitat for Humanity, WorldVentures Foundation, The Nancy Lieberman Foundation, Big Brothers & Big Sisters, Haven for Hope (San Antonio), Park Family Connections, and other Boys & Girls Club organizations throughout the country. He has also been involved with organizations abroad to include children’s orphanages in South Korea and Ecuador, Youth Action International in Liberia, Hug it Forward in Guatemala, and the City of Joy in Cancun, Mexico.
His wife, Violeta Byram, is the Collaborative Management Program Coordinator for Park Family Connections (PFC), coordinating the care of youth and families in need by putting them in touch with various social programs and organizations and assisting them in navigating the processes. BGCHR is one of approximately 20 partners working with PFC, each adding their own programs and services to help youth and families work toward improving their health, well-being, safety, and addressing their individual needs.
Member at Large – Arana Hagan
Arana Hagan is a retired Licensed Professional Counselor with a BA in Interior Design, a MA in Human Services and Counseling and a certification as a Hospice Specialist by the Elisabeth Kubler Ross Hospice Training Institute. A native of Texas, Arana worked for over two decades in various capacities with hospices. Arana moved to Denver in 2008 where she worked for the Denver Hospice before opening her private practice in 2010. Arana purchased a vacation home in Bailey in 2018 and moved to Bailey permanently in 2019. She is a member of the Conifer Rotary Club and volunteers for the Backpack Program of the club which distributes food to children in Bailey and Conifer. As a Heart Math Professional Trainer, Arana is currently part of a team training Red Cross Volunteers in Heart Math to help them cope with the stress and strain of attending catastrophic events in the country and is part of the Red Cross grief counseling program. Arana enjoys reading, crocheting, attending plays, connecting with friends all over the country, and playing with her two cats.
Member at Large – Nicol Randolph
