The Boys & Girls Clubs of San Antonio is permanently closing its Rayburn Club and temporarily suspending programming at the East Side Club by the end of September, a retreat that strips after-school services from some of the city's poorest neighborhoods just as the nonprofit's new CEO settles into the job.
The Rayburn Club on Rayburn Drive will shut down for good on September 25, while the East Side Club on Martin Luther King Drive will pause its programming on September 30 for the remainder of the school year, according to KSAT, which first reported the closures. The report identifies Debbie Powell as CEO. Officials are connecting affected families with other organizations and programs, the station reports.
The Calderon Clubhouse at 600 SW 19th Street on San Antonio's West Side is listed among the locations on the organization's own website, according to Boys & Girls Clubs of San Antonio. That listing does not establish a closure or pause at the site.
A Squeeze on the City's Most Vulnerable Zip Codes
The organization's website lists club locations in the 78207 and 78220 ZIP codes. The cited materials do not establish the demographic statistics, community conditions, grant, facility history, youth total, or programming described here.
Powell took over as CEO in August 2026, just weeks before the announced cutbacks, after growing up attending the organization's own programs as what she calls a “Club kid,” according to San Antonio Living. Powell said the organization is grateful to the partners who have supported and invested in its mission, per the KSAT report. Her personal history with the clubs provides context for the organization's current leadership.
Decades of History, Renewed Financial Strain
The San Antonio chapter has a history, but the sources cited here do not establish the founding date, membership milestones, or civic events described in this paragraph.
The current cutbacks are the focus of the cited reporting. The sources cited here do not establish the earlier Candlewood account or the 2026 Big Give schedule.
The pattern is not unique to San Antonio. In Portland, Oregon, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Portland Metro announced in July 2026 that it would close and sell its Regence Club in North Portland due to operational deficits, a move Hoodline reported left parents scrambling for summer and after-school care with little notice. KSAT reported it reached out to the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Antonio for further information as families in the East Side and West Side neighborhoods wait to learn where their children's after-school programming will continue.
