Miles Files: What's all this I hear about Riekes Center?
For years, I have heard of the Riekes Center in North Fair Oaks as a great place to get in physical shape. Kids and others who go there end up as Riekes' advocates.
So I decided to talk to the founder of the center, Gary Riekes, who is legendary among many kids in this area.
"The Riekes Center has been a kind of 'Fountain of Youth' for me," says Mr. Riekes. "I am constantly learning and being challenged. I get to be involved with all of the areas of passion in my life in terms of athletic fitness, creative arts and nature awareness. It's powerful."
Gary Riekes started the Riekes Center in 1977. It is a nonprofit organization focused on public and private school students of all ages in the Bay Area, which uses a multidisciplinary approach to "self-enhancement."
The Riekes Center offers physical fitness, creative arts, nature awareness, and technology training to help each student develop skills, self-reliance and self-esteem. Its programs have affected the lives of thousands of students from more than 80 Bay Area schools, both public and private, since its founding.
"It is a place for everyone," says Mr. Riekes, whether the student is rich or poor, talented or challenged.
I was amazed to learn how the center has changed many lives. It helps reluctant students flourish by becoming more secure athletes or to find a passion in the arts, such as photography and music. For the already impressive athletes, it provides facilities to help them improve their skills.
Recently, the Riekes Center received a $95,000 grant from the Sequoia Healthcare District to benefit the center's after-school program. The grant will allow "100 students who would not otherwise be able to participate at the Riekes Center to have their lives positively impacted," says Mr. Riekes. "This program helps them become physically fit, learn information designed to provide lifetime wellness, and learn leadership and life skills."
Students receive an individual evaluation based on their goals, and peer mentoring to help them achieve the goals.
Given all that Gary and his team have accomplished over the 31 years since the center's founding, I wondered what was next.
"Our vision is to have a state-of-the-art ... staff training center for our mentoring methodology," Mr. Riekes says. "This would allow us to 'train the trainers' and impact the greatest number of students."
INFORMATION
More information on the Riekes Center for Human Enhancement is at www.riekes.org or by contacting executive director Gary Riekes at 298-3413 or griekes@riekes.org. The center is at 3455 Edison Way in North Fair Oaks.
Miles McMullin, a Woodside resident, will be a senior this fall at Crystal Springs Uplands School in Hillsborough.
