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Boys & Girls Clubs of the Nez Perce Tribe becomes the first Native American Club to receive the Swire Coca-Cola Teen Center award.
By Chantal Ellenwood
LAPWAI, Idaho — A historic investment in Nimipuu youth became a reality in Lapwai as the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Nez Perce Tribe celebrated the grand opening of its new Teen Center, made possible through a $150,000 grant from Swire Coca-Cola.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Nez Perce Tribe is the first Native American Boys & Girls Club to ever receive the Swire Coca-Cola Teen Center grant, bringing a national investment home to Lapwai and creating new opportunities for generations of local and surrounding youth.
The new Teen Center gives teens something that has long been needed, a space of their own. Designed with College & Career Readiness at its heart, the center provides access to technology, educational resources, mentorship and a safe place for young people to learn and begin thinking about what comes next in their lives.
On September 1st, a grand opening was held at the Lapwai Clubhouse, where attendees gathered to celebrate what had just been accomplished, and given a glimpse of what is yet to come.
During the event, early concepts were unveiled for a future expansion of the Lapwai Clubhouse. The vision creates a dedicated space for teens and younger Club members. Safety and flow are at the forefront of the plans.
Designers spoke about the traffic and parking surrounding the property, the movement of children throughout the building and the importance of creating spaces that allow youth to safely learn, play and spend time outdoors.
The concepts envision expanded indoor programming areas along with outdoor learning and play spaces designed around the way children grow and interact. Sensory areas could incorporate plants, natural materials, color, light, wood and stone, giving children opportunities to explore, reset, learn and just be kids.
At the center of that vision is something even more important; identity.
Members of the design team said the stories shared by the Nez Perce Tribe and Club are already influencing their work, and praised the local team for representing the Tribe throughout the planning process in a unique way.
For the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Nez Perce Tribe Executive Director Victoria Konen, hearing those cultural elements reflected in the vision for the future made the moment especially emotional.
“These kids are our future. They’re the ones I fight for. They inspire me,” said Konen.
She spoke about wanting young people to know who they are, where they come from, who they represent and to know, they belong. She described them as future leaders and a true inspiration.
“This is for them,” she said.
The expansion is still taking shape. The concepts unveiled at the celebration are in the early stages, and bringing the project to life will require planning, partnerships and fundraising. But inside the new Teen Center stands proof that ambitious dreams for Nimiipuu youth can become reality.
A $150,000 investment from Swire Coca-Cola helped transform a vision into a dedicated space where local teens can explore careers, use technology, build relationships, develop skills and imagine possibilities beyond what they may see today.
The celebration was made possible with support extending throughout the community. The Club expressed appreciation to Swire Coca-Cola, the Nez Perce Tribe, Nez Perce Tribal Enterprises, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Nez Perce Tribe Policy Board and the many community partners who continue to stand behind local youth.
The significance of the day could be seen in the ribbon that was cut, as well as in the faces of the teens that gathered inside the space created just for them.
The new Teen Center is one step in a much larger vision to create safe, inspiring and culturally grounded spaces where the youth can grow from young children into teenagers and, eventually, into the leaders who will carry the world forward.
For Lapwai, the message behind the celebration was simple and powerful: the youth are worth investing in. And this is only the beginning.
