Politics & Government

Video: Rushern Baker Applauds Boys and Girls Club

The Prince George's executive says it's the county's job to find funding for community nonprofit organizations.

 

During a visit to the Laurel Boys and Girls Club this week, Prince George's County Executive Rushern L. Baker said it is the county's responsibility to get funding for local nonprofits.

Baker, who toured the facility for more than an hour on Wednesday, applauded officials at the club for offering programming to youth in the community despite its .

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"The idea of today is to look around and see what needs to be done at the Laurel Boys and Girls Club, but it's all of our nonprofits that are seeking money from the county... cleary there is need," he said.

Officials at the club said that it is treading water as it has become harder to secure grant funding. Loss of revenues from its member base has contributed to the woes and the club is struggling to maintain its facility-a more than .

Find out what's happening in Laurelwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"The economy has hurt some of our members, member fees are down. It's just a combination [of things]," said Levet Brown, the club's director.

But Baker sees the problems facing local nonprofits as a county issue. He  said more work needs to be done to lure investors to donate funds to nonprofits in the county. Regionally, Prince George's County lags behind other jurisdictions in the number of nonprofits. 

"There is synergy," he said. "The ability for us to build capacity in Prince George's County to attract private funders [is crucial]."

 


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