FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 7, 2020
Hospital partners with Boys & Girls Club to offer enrichment program
Five-year-old member Alison laughing from the day’s yoga class at the new child care site for children of healthcare workers.
COLUMBIA, Tenn. – Maury Regional Health has formed a collaborative agreement with Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County (BGCMC) to provide an enrichment program for those facing childcare issues on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In an effort to control the spread of COVID-19, Tennessee schools were mandated to close on March 17. As a result, this has placed a childcare burden on our emergency responders and health care providers who serve our community,” said Maury Regional Health Chief Operating Officer Kenny Boyd. “We worked with local leaders from Boys & Girls Club to develop a safe plan to help alleviate this burden.”
Effective April 7, the program is offered to the employees and physicians of MRH for children grades kindergarten through eighth grade at Baker Elementary School, following approval of the school board to use the facility. Fun and educational enrichment activities in the three BGCMC priority outcome areas of academic success, good character and citizenship, and healthy lifestyles will be provided to participants. Funded by MRH, the hours of service will be Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. until 6 p.m., until schools reopen or until May 17th. Pre-school children will continue to be served by MRH’s Hospitots program.
BGCMC Chief Executive Officer Robyn Peery stated, “We are honored to partner with Maury Regional on this initiative to do our part to help our community fight the COVID-19 pandemic. I am grateful to our school district partners for their support in making this possible, and I am also extremely grateful to our dedicated Boys & Girls Club staff members who stepped up and volunteered to execute this important assignment. They are dedicated to ensuring this is a positive experience for the children served, so that parents can focus on their critically important work while knowing their children are safe and cared for.”
To maintain social distancing, there will be only nine children per room, grouped by age, with one adult. Baker Elementary School has been disinfected thoroughly and will be sanitized each evening. There will also be additional zone cleaning safety protocols in place throughout the day, and all children and personnel will be provided a mask to wear while at the facility. Children will receive breakfast and lunch during their stay.
“I would like to thank Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County for their leadership in coordinating this program and the school system for allowing us to utilize Baker Elementary and for providing the food services. We are grateful for the overwhelming support of our community partners as we face the challenges presented to our health care team during this pandemic,” said Boyd.
Maury Regional Health employees with questions should call the Human Resources Department at 931.381.1111, extension 1089 for more information.
About Maury Regional Health
Maury Regional Health is a not-for-profit regional health system serving southern Middle Tennessee through its hospitals, clinics, surgery centers, outpatient facilities and physician practice group. A five-time member of IBM Watson Health’s 15 Top Health Systems list, Maury Regional Health is the largest health care provider between Nashville, Tennessee and Huntsville, Alabama. Maury Regional Medical Center in Columbia offers a wide range of advanced services including an accredited heart program, neonatal intensive care and cancer center and was ranked number one in Tennessee for overall hospital care in the area of medical excellence in 2020 by CareChex.com®, — an information service of Quantros, Inc. Maury Regional Health includes Marshall Medical Center in Lewisburg, Wayne Medical Center in Waynesboro, Lewis Health Center in Hohenwald, Maury Regional Medical Group physician practices, as well as additional facilities across southern Middle Tennessee. For more information, visit MauryRegional.com.
About Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County
Boys & Girls Clubs of Maury County (BGCMC) is a not-for-profit youth development organization with a mission to “enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.” BGCMC is a chartered member of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the oldest and largest youth serving organization in the country, and part of a global network of over 4,000 Clubs serving 4 million kids annually. BGCMC serves over 1,300 youth per year at 14 locations in Maury and Giles Counties. The Club provides daily after-school programs for children in grades K-12th and serves youth twelve hours per day on school breaks and all summer long. Programming is targeted around three priority outcome areas for members: 1)Academic Success, 2) Healthy Lifestyles, and 3)Good Character and Citizenship. In 2019, BGCMC was recognized by Boys & Girls Clubs of America as having the #1 Academic Program in the nation. One-hundred percent of Club seniors have graduated on time since the Club’s founding in 1999. For more information about BGCMC, visit www.bgcmaury.com
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