Eight months after Tim Davis and his team had a vision of what the former Keizer Grange Hall could become, The Rec Grange is ready to open its doors later this month.
More than 150 people attended a ribbon cutting ceremony on Tuesday morning, Feb. 13.
The Greeters event, sponsored by the Keizer Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors, was an opportunity for Davis, CEO of Valor Mentoring and The Rec Lanes, to showcase how the youth mentoring and community center will have a positive effect on regional youth.
Valor Mentoring purchased the hall last year and began renovating the 85-year old building from top to bottom.
Utilizing financial donations and as well as donations of labor and supplies, Valor Mentoring has been able to transform the musty building into a show place with a coffee shop, cafe, performance and meeting spaces.
In remarks to the assembled crowd, Davis stated statistics that make mentoring a key part of success for young men. “Ninety percent of all homeless runaways are from fatherless homes. Seventy-one percent of all high school dropouts, 63% of every youth suicide (are from fatherless homes).
43% of children in America are in a home without their dad. That’s not a recipe for success,” said Davis.
Citing the result of mentorship, Davis continued, “55% are more likely to enroll in college, 78% more likely to volunteer on a regular basis. 90% are interested in becoming a mentor. We’re trying to build up the future generation. We do that through one-on-one and group mentoring. That’s pretty easy to understand. And we do it through music, media and the arts.”
The Rec Grange will have video production and podcast studios. Other elements of the new mentoring center will be video game tournaments, hip-hop dances, photography, painting and graphic design, all of which will be available and free.
Davis emphasized that those are tools to reach a younger generation, much like coaches used on him when he was younger.
The center is located just several hundred yards from McNary High School, making it convenient for the target audience to visit when they want.
Before the ribbon cutting, Davis acknowledged dozens of individuals and organizations that were instrumental in converting the building into the gleaming community center it is today. He also named the board directors and members of the advisory board.
When the project began Davis said it was important to tell the building’s story from its beginning on River Road before being moved to its current location at Chemawa Road North.
The renovation included displaying gold-tinged, Grange-themed china sets found in the building as well as photos of the Grange’s board of directors from the mid-20th century.
Once operational, Davis expects The Rec Grange to serve up to several hundred youths each week.
Contact Publisher Lyndon Zaitz:
[email protected] or 503-390-1051
SUBSCRIBE TO GET KEIZER NEWS — We report on your community with care, depth, fairness, and accuracy. Get local news that matters to you. Subscribe today to get our daily newsletters and more.
