Boys & Girls Club of Door County Receives Grant to Update Security System

(Left to right) P.E.O member Elfriede Leporte and Jessica Heck, operations director at Boys & Girls Club of Door County, demonstrate the card identification device. Submitted.

P.E.O, an international philanthropic organization, recently awarded a grant to the Boys & Girls Club of Door County (BGCDC) to bolster its security system. Elfriede Leporte, member of P.E.O. Chapter EI in Sturgeon Bay, authored the grant request.

The $1,550 received by the Boys & Girls Club enabled the purchase of a bar code identification card system for adult staff, volunteers and visitors. The system tracks the dates and time of entry and exit, so administrative managers know at a glance who is in the Hatch Center building on 3rd Avenue. “Our number one concern always is safety of the children entrusted to us,” explained Operations Director Jessica Heck. “Of course, all adults going beyond the front lobby must be cleared in background checks. Now we have an additional layer of safety.”

BGCDC will realize a significant time savings as well since the new system uses durable heavy plastic badges rather than easily destroyed laminated paper badges.

Sturgeon Bay Police Dept. Chief Arleigh Porter recommended the Boys & Girls Club institute the card reader system. “We are extremely grateful to Ms. Leporte and P.E.O for their gift making the purchase of the card generator system possible,” said Heck.