The Boys & Girls Clubs of Yellowstone County hosted a grand opening on October 13^th, 2026, for the brand-new Panda Cares Center of Hope at the Bair Family Clubhouse.

Funded by the Panda Cares Foundation, whose mission is to serve the health and educational needs of underserved youth and to foster the spirit of giving with the hope that more focus on quality academic support outside of school will help provide quality outcomes in school. The Panda Cares Foundation has partnered with Boys and Girls Clubs all over the country to help build these Centers of Hope and we are thrilled to provide the first one here in Yellowstone County.

For our space we spent several months taking into account the needs for our members in school and the strengths of our staff in what would be best for the redesign of our Education Center. After months of working in conjunction with BGCA and the Panda Cares Foundation, we developed a model that is clean, fun, sustainable and will provide many opportunities for our members to thrive.

We devised a design that divides and optimizes the room into quarters. The first quarter of the room is devoted to STEM learning, giving our members an opportunity to engage in messy science and engineering activities that may be outside of what’s possible at home or even in the classroom. The second quarter is built to be used like a traditional learning space with tables, chairs, access to Chromebooks and a smartboard for interactive learning opportunities that utilize technology. The Third quarter is dedicated to furniture that will help encourage literacy growth, comfy fun and inviting our members to grow in their capacity to read as well as spend time with their friends developing the skills to be lifelong learners. The final quarter of the room is dedicated to a maker space, where our members can explore three dimensions creatively through 3D Printing, Lego and cardboard construction. Together, it provides a safe space where Club members can dream big and fuel their educational passions.

The Grand Opening saw Pei Pei, the Panda Cares Mascot, provided entertainment while Club members engaged in a ribbon cutting ceremony and grand reveal! Panda Express provided dinner and take home prizes for all so not only were brains nourished but so were tummies. We are very thankful to the Panda Express teams across all locations in town, bringing management and staff to our Clubs to run activities, provide food and pass out give aways like a book for all ages for every kiddo that attended.

We are especially grateful to the Panda Cares Foundation for funding the Center of Hope, Andy Browning for his countless hours dedicated to the project execution, and Jaylin Coleman for her skill and talent that brought the panda-themed design to life in the space.