Saturday, November 1, 2014

Cake 121-Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club

Found November 1, 2014


In the summer of 1960, Martin Luther Matthews and Hubert "Dickey" Ballentine met in Handy Park with a shared desire to keep boys on the field and off the streets.  After organizing a five team league, the men realized they needed a facility where these young men could meet.  A clubhouse was built in a storefront along Natural Bridge Road.  This would become Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club.  The new facility at Kingshighway holds an Olympic-size pool, basketball gymnasiums, community meeting and music rooms, computer labs, and administrative offices.  President Reagan dedicated the facility in 1982.  Two years after that, a multi-purpose outdoor athletic facility was built.  In 1986, the club added its Girl's program, which led to an expansion of six more classrooms, a teaching and demonstration kitchen, a dance room, and an auditorium.  


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