By Juliana A. Torres
Staff Writer

In a loud explosion of confetti, Osceola County’s local Boys and Girls Club branch celebrated the opening of its new, upgraded and larger facilities Friday morning.

The recently completed building, a construction project that started in October 2008, will allow the club to open its doors to twice as many local children as it has in the past. Its completion is a culmination of effort the club and local partners have been working toward for the better part of the decade.

“I think it’s awesome. I mean, finally, there’s a new club,” said 17-year-old Paige Manguiat, who has been a member for the last nine years. “There’s lots of space for new kids.”

The $4 million facility is named the Tupperware Brands Branch, after the locally based corporation that contributed $1 million to the club, along with $1 million from Osceola County government. The new Osceola County branch, which is directly across from Kissimmee Middle School at 2411 Dyer Blvd., sits southwest of the dilapidated building on Thacker Avenue from which the club has been operating. It also boasts about 12,500 more square feet.

“There’s new equipment, everything’s nice,” Jose Cancel, 18, said of the new facility. “We don’t have to share one bathroom. We used to only have one bathroom.”

Along with larger restrooms, newer appliances and a larger gym, the Tupperware Brands Branch has a kitchen complete with Tupperware products, three computer labs and a dance center.

Cancel has been attending the club since he was 6 years old. These days, however, he appreciates the new teen room, sponsored through a $750,000 contribution from Walt Disney World Resort.

“I like the fact that we’re separated from the elementary group. There’s like an elementary side and a teen side,” he said.

The local branch had the support from the Edyth Bush Charitable Foundation, which contributed $750,000, along with many community partners.

The new branch will open its doors to club members for its summer programming starting next week, club Area Director Mack Reid said.

“Our club has incorporated programs and services that focus on this objective by developing the self-esteem and confidence of Central Florida boys and girls,” Rick Goings, chairman and CEO of Tupperware Brands, stated in a press release. “We are proud of our commitment to achieve these types of positive milestones in the local neighborhoods and communities we serve each year.”

The club has been a place for local children to come after school and during the summer.

“(It’s) a place to hang out with our friends, and a safe environment, of course,” Manguiat said.

For more information on the local Boys & Girls Club, call 407-841-6855 or visit www.bgccf.org.