Honoring Ron

Ron Britt, BCNY’s former Managing Director of Programs and Abbe Clubhouse Director, retired last month and we want to honor Ron as a man who always stood up for all boys and young men and led BCNY to evolve alongside them.

Ron has dedicated the last 45 years to directly impacting the lives of countless New York City boys and young men. He recently remarked that it has been his good fortune to share in their journeys: “I am one of the luckiest people on this planet. I have watched boys grow up for 45 years, witnessing them gain knowledge and confidence to go out into the world, and greeting them as they return to visit their clubhouse.” 

A Memory from Ron

In 1991, after working for The Boys’ Club for 13 years on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, I arrived at Marion McMahon Abbe Clubhouse in Flushing, Queens, as the new Clubhouse Director.

Flushing was indeed very strange territory for me; I grew up an urban kid navigating the mean streets of Harlem, the South Bronx, and Bedford-Stuyvesant. Even my work on the Lower East Side was at a time when the streets were rampant with crime, drugs, and all the other outward signs of a city struggling to find its way.

Working at Abbe brought me to 41st Road, a tree-lined block of one-family homes that had backyards and garages, and bicycles left lying in the front yard. As you can imagine, no one I knew left their bikes lying on their front lawns, even if they had a front lawn at all! The neighborhood was a very big change for me, to say the least.

My first thought was what would the members be like? I loved working with the members in Manhattan, and while I fully expected to integrate our new Abbe members into The Boys’ Club culture, I admit that I was afraid that these comparatively suburban boys would not relate to The Boys’ Club, and would not relate to me.

I shouldn’t have worried. I had forgotten what drew me to The Boys’ Club, and what has kept me there for so many years. It has never been about whether members are urban or suburban, rich or poor, from Queens or Manhattan. It’s about personalities. Yes, those wonderful, unpredictable, enriching personalities that you see growing before your eyes. Boys’ Club boys are amazing kids across the board, and being in Flushing didn’t change a thing.

Ron’s Endless Accomplishments

Ron’s accomplishments include increasing access and diversity and building a robust career training program that has opened doors for young men across the city. Notably, members of our gifted Program Leadership Team include alumni who have known Ron since they were boys. BCNY alumnus Venket V., who dreamed of one day leading the programs pivotal to his own childhood, shared: “From the gym to the teen center, Ron supported me and helped me garner experience across many departments in various capacities. As a former Career Training participant, I now have the foundation needed to excel and thrive as Youth Director at Abbe Clubhouse thanks to Ron.” 

Thank you, Ron, for sharing your commitment, wisdom, and talent with us over the years. You will truly be missed.