Nicole Ketcher
VISTA, CA – NOVEMBER 30, 2023 – In partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Panda Express presented the ribbon cutting for the newest Panda Cares Center of Hope, taking place at the Boys & Girls Club of Vista on November 30, 2023. Guest included over 25 employees from local San Diego County Panda Express Restaurants, City of Vista Mayor John Franklin, Deputy Mayor Corinna Contrerras, Councilmember Katie Melendez, Representatives from Congressman Mike Levin’s office, Senator Catherine Blakespears’ office, County of San Diego Supervisor Jim Desmond’s office, the Vista Chamber of Commerce, Boys & Girls Club of Vista Board of Directors and dedicated volunteers. The ribbon cutting involved club kids enjoying a meal provided by the local Vista Panda Express, an energetic game of dodgeball – kids vs the Panda Cares team, a visit from PeiPei the Panda Express Mascot, interactive rotations that included how to draw a panda with a fork, Chinese Paper Lanterns and each child taking home two new books. After much anticipation, the kids were overwhelmed with excitement when they saw their new space!
Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Panda Express are proud to bring a Panda Cares Center of Hope to the Boys & Girls Club of Vista. The opening of this Center of Hope aligns directly with Panda Express’ commitment to foster academic success among Boys & Girls Clubs members across the country.
Panda Cares Center of Hope is a newly renovated space within our Club designed to deliver more joy, education, and critical social-emotional development to local communities. Project Learn, the platform that unites each Center of Hope, is a holistic strategy intended to reinforce and enhance what youth learn during the school day, while creating experiences that invite them to fall in love with learning. Rooted in social-emotional development, this program is based on research showing that students do better in school when they spend their non-school hours engaged in fun and academically beneficial activities. Our Panda Cares Center of Hope was designed to meet the needs of our Club members with new flooring, new paint, all new furniture, live plants, and new laptops that provide collaborative learning spaces, individual hands-on learning and technology focused learning, a quiet area, new projector and new display board- all spaces for club kids to learn, engage, and grow.
“With the generous contribution of from the Panda Cares Foundation, the remodel of this space marks the first upgrade to this room in nearly 60 years. This room will now provide a welcoming environment to foster creativity and encourage a love for STEM learning. It is the hope of the Boys & Girls Club, that with the continued support of our community and local foundations, this will be the start of many upgrades to our youth’s spaces” states Matt Koumaras, President & CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Vista.
To learn more about Boys & Girls Club of Vista programs, please visit www.bgcvista.org
or call 760-724-6606.
About Boys & Girls Club of Vista
The Boys & Girls Club of Vista serves over 900 youth ages 5-18 annually and provides outcome-driven programs that emphasize academic success, character & leadership development, and healthy lifestyles that prepare them for Great Futures. Our mission is to empower every Club member, through safe and impactful experiences, to graduate high school with a plan for college or career, contribute to their community, and live a healthy life. Our goal at the Boys & Girls Club of Vista is to provide these opportunities for the youth in the community who need us the most. We offer financial assistance to families who qualify.
About Panda Express
On a mission to inspire better lives, Panda Express® is the largest Asian dining concept in the U.S. Family-owned and operated since 1983 by co-founders and co-CEOs Andrew and Peggy Cherng, Panda Express is best known as a trailblazer for creating a wide variety of industry-first recipes, including its best seller the Original Orange Chicken® and award-winning Honey Walnut Shrimp™, which have defined the category of authentic American Chinese cuisine. Each dish at Panda Express, including the Wok Smart® selections, is thoughtfully crafted with quality ingredients and inspired by bold Chinese flavors and culinary principles. The restaurant brand has more than 2,400 locations and has introduced American Chinese cuisine to twelve international countries. Powered by this global family of associates, Panda Cares® the philanthropic arm of Panda Express, has raised more than $282 million and dedicated countless volunteer hours in bettering the health and education for over 13 million youths, as well as supporting communities in need since 1999. In 2020, the organization established the Panda Cares Scholars Program to provide the necessary funding,- academic support and leadership development to help high school and college students learn, lead and thrive towards a bright future. For more information, visit pandaexpress.com or pandacares.org.
