the reviewJanuary/February 2017 the official magazine of the

Southeast Michigan Regional Transit

Beaverton Activity Center

• Complete Streets• Albion-Marshall Connector• Autonomous Cars• 2017 Capital Conference

Volunteers are Key to Scott Govitz’ Vision

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Beaverton is seeing red—red volunteer vests, that is. And it’s those brightly-clad volunteers who helped propel the Beaverton Activity Center to victory in the

League’s 2016 Race for the Cup!“There were literally thousands and thousands and

thousands of volunteer hours to put this whole project together,” said Scott Govitz, former Beaverton mayor and current president of the Beaverton Activity Center. “So for all of us who were instrumental in putting this project together with a whole lot of other community members, this is a great source of pride. Not only do we have a new center for the community, now we have recognition by winning the Community Excellence Award.”

These days, the Beaverton Activity Center—formerly an old school building— is indeed the hub of activities. From day to night, children and adults enjoy everything from gymnastics

“There were literally thousands and thousands and thousands of volunteer hours to put this whole project together,”

and yoga to book club and high school plays. The Alumni Gallery showcases former students, while exhibits and meeting space honor the community’s plastics industry. Friends might even start or end their day with a delicious latte at the center’s Sweet B Café.

In 2011, that wasn’t the case. When Govitz would drive by his old high school, he’d remember all the energetic teens talking and laughing on their way to class or basketball practice. But what he saw through his windshield was a tired old building only partially occupied by a pre-school and an adult education program. He worried that it would soon close and become a vacant eyesore in the middle of town.

“The building has a significant history for our community,” said Govitz. “It was built 80 years ago— almost to the day of our grand opening—by a vote of community members during the Depression. It has such significance to so many people who graced its halls over the years.”

An Old School Graduates into True Multi-Purpose Facility

By Lisa Donovan

Beaverton Activity Center

Launching An Action PlanGovitz didn’t just sit back and let the building’s demise happen. Instead, he jumped into action. He started by connecting with Brian Rowland, who he had worked with on a Beaverton Lions Club fundraising project to remodel the inside of a building. After hearing Govitz’ idea to repurpose the old school, Rowland and his wife, Barbara, got on board. Brian eventually became the first vice president of the BAC, and Barbara was one of the all-important volunteers.

Beavertonpop. 1,071

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“There were literally thousands and thousands and thousands of volunteer hours to put this whole project together,”

and yoga to book club and high school plays. The Alumni Gallery showcases former students, while exhibits and meeting space honor the community’s plastics industry. Friends might even start or end their day with a delicious latte at the center’s Sweet B Café.

In 2011, that wasn’t the case. When Govitz would drive by his old high school, he’d remember all the energetic teens talking and laughing on their way to class or basketball practice. But what he saw through his windshield was a tired old building only partially occupied by a pre-school and an adult education program. He worried that it would soon close and become a vacant eyesore in the middle of town.

“The building has a significant history for our community,” said Govitz. “It was built 80 years ago— almost to the day of our grand opening—by a vote of community members during the Depression. It has such significance to so many people who graced its halls over the years.”

The next step was to call a community forum to get input from residents. “We laid out the potential vision for the facility and asked them if it was worth holding meetings and coming up with a plan,” said Govitz. “We got a resounding yes!”

That led to months of community meetings where everyone talked about what the building could be and how to make it self-sustaining. The Mid-Michigan Community Action agency was already leasing space for a pre-school, so Govitz hit on the idea of leasing out some of the space to other compatible tenants. After a number of conversations, the Gladwin County District Library—which had outgrown its current building—signed on. So did MidMichigan Health.

“I think his plan is kind of unique,” said Brian Rowland. “Everyone is trying to figure out what to do with old schools, but I never saw anything like this where you bring in anchor tenants to pay the rent and keep it running.”

Funding the Action PlanThey began holding fundraisers, which brought in more than $10,000. That enabled them to develop a good strategic plan for the formation and funding of the center. Then they shared their plan with key business people and manufacturers and raised $150,000. Their success gave them the confidence to approach the Charles J. Strosacker Foundation, based in

Beaverton Activity Center

Launching An Action PlanGovitz didn’t just sit back and let the building’s demise happen. Instead, he jumped into action. He started by connecting with Brian Rowland, who he had worked with on a Beaverton Lions Club fundraising project to remodel the inside of a building. After hearing Govitz’ idea to repurpose the old school, Rowland and his wife, Barbara, got on board. Brian eventually became the first vice president of the BAC, and Barbara was one of the all-important volunteers.

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nearby Midland, to help them reach the $1.3 million total they would need for construction.

“I was impressed with the homework they had done, the time they had taken to organize themselves, and the financial possibilities,” said Bobbie Arnold, the foundation’s president and CEO. “And they had a plan that would allow them to be sustainable.”

Arnold was impressed enough to share Beaverton’s plans with two other foundations—the HH and GA Dow Foundation and the Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation. The three of them agreed that if the Beaverton community could raise $200,000, then the foundations would contribute $200,000 each.

To meet the foundations’ challenge, Govitz and his team put together the Step Up campaign, which included a custom built set of 8-foot high steps in front of the school building. Each step represented a financial milestone on the way to the $200,000 goal. Then they reached out to every corner of the community, including past graduates across the country and every organization that had an interest in the facility.

Within 60 days, they surpassed their goal, raising a whopping $300,000! Not only did they receive $600,000 from the three foundations, but they were able to complete phases 1 and 2 of construction. To top it off, the BAC group had been very involved in helping the school district pass a $15 million bond issue to improve all the district’s school buildings—which paid for a new roof on the old high school.

The Dream Becomes RealityOn Oct. 17, 2015, all the hard work paid off. Almost 600 people showed up for the Beaverton Activity Center grand opening, anxious to see the transformation. Under the direction of Sally Hicks, the first president of the BAC Volunteer Board, many volunteers were on hand. In their easily-identifiable red vests—Hicks’ brain child—they conducted tours of the fitness center, library, café, gym,

meeting rooms, and all the other amenities the building has to offer.

“They thought we would just meet and greet and be ambassadors, but we became the hub,” said Hicks, a retired bookkeeper for the Beaverton school district. She believes in the personal touch of recruiting volunteers face-to-face.

Today, a large cadre of red-vested volunteers are at the heart of the center. They do everything from scheduling, building repairs, and gardening to greeting guests and making popcorn for special events.

“Under Sally’s leadership, each volunteer has been able to find their niche in the organization. Everyone has been able to take their strengths, what they enjoy doing, and contribute to the success of the BAC,” said Joan Cashin, current president of the BAC Volunteer Board and retired Beaverton school superintendent.

The success of the BAC isn’t isolated to the complete transformation of one building. Govitz said one of the hopes for the center was that its synergy would help other areas of the community improve and thrive, and indeed that seems to be happening. The Beaverton Gem Theater is being restored to its 1940s grandeur by a community member. The city plans to move its offices into the space vacated by the library. And a significant employer has plans to double their footprint and add 200 employees.

“One piece of great news can build into another piece of tremendous news,” said Govitz. “There’s just a new bounce in the step of people here.”

Lisa Donovan is the communications specialist and editor for the League. You may contact her at 734-669-6318 or ldonovan@mml.org.

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