Michael said he doesn’t know where he will go without the program.

“My mom is kind of sad and mad that it’s closing,” he said.

Blake Roberts, a Pershing Elementary student, said he also likes coming to the program. He said he will start going to an after-school program at his school.

While the Boys and Girls Club’s after-school program is being put on hold, its teen program is thriving, Hackbarth said.

“The city of Muskogee Parks and Recreation Department has partnered with the Salvation Army Boys and Girls Club to offer teenagers in Muskogee a safe place to hang out,” he said. “Ken Henshaw took over the program in December of 2007 and has turned the program around. Our daily average went from 20 teens a day to 60.”

Henshaw said 100 teens come to the center for Friday night “parties” until 9 p.m.

The Club, located in what used to be an armory and the Muskogee Recreation Center, has a “cafe” with a snack bar, a stage for live performances, a full-sized gym and a game room.

“We are in the process of setting up a computer lab with about 18 computers,” Hackbarth said. “Currently we have a journalism class and a job skills class.”

Hackbarth said the center could soon open a weight room and rooms for art and music programs.

“There is nothing else like ‘The Club’ in Muskogee for teenagers,” he said. “We are in the process of working with the city to develop a summer program for teens, and the center will be opened from noon to 8 p.m. during summer.”