Parents! Need a safe environment for your children before and after school? Need a place for them to go on Saturdays when they're sitting around with nothing to do? Then, bring them to the Prairies Youth Activities Centers.

Youth programs offers a variety of programs for youth ages 5 - 18. Programs in social, recreational, instructional, and athletics are offered for Wright-Patterson's youth.

Prairies Teen/Preteen Center houses programs for youth 9-18 years old. They have access to; gym/stage; kitchen; TV area; weight room; martial arts; dance and music room, the center has something for everyone. Outside facilities include tennis courts, 11 soccer fields, 4 baseball fields, and a well equipped playground.

All youth must fill out a Boys and Girls Club membership packet to receive a membership card and gain access to the Prairies Teen/Preteen Center facility. Membership fees are due Oct. 1 of each year and cost $48 per youth. All youth without a membership card must pay $2 per day, regardless of affiliation. Guests are allowed at the facility for $2 per day.

A large sports program includes soccer, T-ball, coach-pitch, baseball, basketball, wrestling, flag football, cheerleading and softball. All volunteer coaches are certified through the National Youth Sports Coaches Association. Special instructional clinics for youth are also offered in several sports during the year.

Instructional programs offered at one of the centers include dance, computers, Tae Kwon Do Martial Arts and special occasion arts & crafts.

Social activities include lock-ins, field trips, pre-teen and teen dances, pool tournaments, cook-outs, holiday parties, and skating trips.

A Before and After School Program gives the youth of the base a safe and healthy atmosphere in which to wait for working parents, offering its participants a variety of social and instructional activities.

In addition to regularly scheduled programs, the center offers a holiday camp during winter and spring school vacation periods with specially planned programs and activities appropriate to the time of year.

The Youth Center's summer program offers eleven weeks of educational and recreational activities. The camp's curriculum is planned around a different theme each week offering the youth a chance to learn new things, develop new skills, and visit interesting places.

Parent participation in various programs is highly encouraged. Youth Activities appreciates any spare time volunteered to aid with various sports activities, or knowledge and expertise offered in a specific field.