A youth program that once squeezed roughly 40 kids into shared space at a county recreation center now has a 30,000-square-foot home of its own in Winter Garden, and it can serve more than 300 children and teens every day. The June Family Branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida opened at 459 9th Street, marking the culmination of years of planning, fundraising, and local government cooperation to give West Orange County kids a permanent club after nearly three decades of borrowed space.
According to WKMG ClickOrlando, Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida has served children in Winter Garden for nearly 30 years but had long outgrown its previous location. That prior home was the West Orange Recreation Center on West Crown Point Road, where the club had operated since 1999 after previously running out of the Mildred Dixon Activity Center, according to the West Orange Times & Observer. Space limitations at that shared county facility had capped daily attendance at around 40 children, a fraction of what the new branch can now accommodate — the station reports the new site represents a capacity increase of more than 400 percent.
A Purpose-Built Home Replaces Borrowed Space
The new branch sits on city-owned land under a 35-year ground lease and operating agreement the Winter Garden City Commission authorized in March 2024, per the same West Orange Times & Observer account. A February 2025 Florida Senate local funding request sponsored by Sen. Keith Truenow sought $800,000 in state fixed capital outlay toward the project and listed $4,768,933 as the total for the 2025-2026 fiscal-year request, according to the Florida Senate.
Local zoning history backs up the scale of the buildout. In July, the Winter Garden City Commission unanimously approved a site plan for a full-sized gymnasium and walking track at the Ninth Street property, a vote that came alongside a $3.5 million municipal budget reallocation, as Hoodline previously reported. The facility's location in East Winter Garden was deliberate: it sits directly next to free healthcare clinic Shepherd's Hope and just two blocks from Maxey Elementary School, according to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida, so that local elementary students can easily reach after-school care.
Dedicated Rooms Replace a One-Size-Fits-All Setup
Where the old space forced kids of all ages to share limited rooms, the June Family Branch provides dedicated spaces for children and teens separately. WKMG ClickOrlando reports the building includes social-emotional rooms, art rooms, technology spaces, sound studios, music rooms, and dance rooms. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida separately describes the layout as featuring a STEM and robotics lab, a health and life science learning center, a “zen den,” digital media and tech labs, and music and dance studios, with dual Youth and Teen Centers allowing concurrent age-appropriate programming.
After-school and summer programs continue at the new site, along with access to mentors and safe spaces, the station notes. Many club members qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and some come from lower-income or single-parent households, according to WKMG ClickOrlando. The organization reports that its high school seniors maintain a 100 percent graduation rate.
An Alumnus Who Pushed for Years to Make It Happen
The branch is named for donor Randy June, who played football as a child with the Boys & Girls Club in Pine Hills. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida says June spent over a decade advocating for a dedicated Winter Garden location and worked with municipal officials and community leaders to make it a reality. Jamie Merrill, president and CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida, said the facility helps children learn what to dream and how to execute those dreams, per WKMG ClickOrlando.
Site leadership brings its own personal history with the club model. West Orange Branch Service Director Shamel Akins, who oversees daily operations, spent 12 years as a youth member at the West Boulevard Boys & Girls Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, starting at age six, and has credited club mentors with guiding his upbringing, according to the nonprofit.
For 12-year-old Logan Brunson, the club's impact has been personal. WKMG ClickOrlando reports the club has helped him build confidence and develop both academically and athletically. “The Boys and Girls Club is where great futures are started,” Brunson said, per the station.
Part of a Much Larger Regional Network
Exactly when regular fall programming will fully ramp up at the new branch, and how the club plans to sustain daily services for up to 300 children long-term, remain open questions for future reporting.
