Mia, a spunky fifth grader at Boys & Girls Clubs of Mason Valley’s Yerington clubhouse, is already a people person at just 11 years old.
“My favorite memories at the Club are meeting Makenna, meeting Dyanna, meeting all my friends,” she said.
Makenna and Dyanna are both former youth development professionals at Mia’s clubhouse, and it’s clear they made an impression on the young member. Now old enough to make her own choices, she still comes to the Club because of her current mentors like Jackie in the gamesroom.
But Mia makes her own impression around the Club, too. She’s constantly surrounded by friends and other Club Kids, and is a strong member of her Torch Club, a service and leadership group for tweens.
“We do bake sales to raise money for projects, like making things and bringing them on visits to long term care,” Mia said. “I get to make my Club better by volunteering in it.”
Mia has learned a lot in her four years at the Club. She particularly enjoys all the SMART Moves programming. It’s taught her how to calm down and all about her emotions. Before SMART Moves, she struggled with strong emotions, but now knows how to label them, what’s causing them, and how to handle them. She’s also learned the importance of saying no in the face of peer pressure. All of that confidence led her to run for Junior Youth of the Year this year, giving a speech in front of hundreds of people.
She also loves getting to express her creative side during Youth Arts and is always getting active in Triple Play. Those sports programs have made her better at a passion outside of the Club.
“Softball really means a lot to me,” she said. “I started playing seven years ago, and this year I’ll be in majors. It’s taught me how to not be afraid, and I get to make new friends every season.”
A regular attendee during the long summer days, Mia loves going on the Club’s weekly field trips. Wild Waters, trampoline parks and more are all some of her favorites. She even got to share a little bit about her story and the Club on stage at the 2026 Night in the Country Music Festival.
When she’s not at the Club or the softball field, she’s usually hanging out with her family, including her mom, step-dad, dad and little step-brother.