The Game Loft

The Game Loft is a community based out of school time prevention program located in downtown Belfast, Maine. We serve youth from the ages of 6-18. Young people are helped to become: caring, connected, confident, competent, and contributing adults. We encourage volunteerism at every age. The mission of The Game Loft is to promote Positive Youth Development through non-electronic games and community involvement. In 1996, Ray and Patricia Estabrook opened their store, All About Games, in Belfast. Shortly after All About Games opened, the Estabrooks found their shop filled to bursting with youth of all ages who wanted to play (or learn how to play) non-electronic games. They tried to incorporate the game playing into the running of their store, but they eventually realized their store could not be a business and a youth center at the same time. Instead of just kicking the kids out and going on with their lives, they saw that there was a serious need for a place for the youth of Belfast to go and decided to do something about it. Together with a group of youth and adults, they organized The Game Loft, a volunteer-run community center located in the heart of Belfast. With an almost nonexistent budget, on a wish and a prayer, the doors of The Game Loft opened on February 1, 1998. By the summer of 1999, the Loft had reached a crisis point. Funds had run out, and the people who were running the Loft were exhausted. Fortunately, the Loft received help from Communities for Children, a statewide organization offering services for Maine youth, in the form of an AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteer. The A*VISTA volunteer researched and wrote grants and took on a number of daily administrative responsibilities, taking some of the load off the core group of volunteers and restoring the Loft's financial solvency. The Game Loft received its first MBNA Foundation Excellence in Education grant, allowing it to offer a year-round program of educational and cultural experiences for its members and the community at large. AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers have been a vital part of the Loft's functioning for the last two years, helping The Game Loft to build its capacity to run itself. In 2000, four high school students who were Game Loft members decided to take part in the 4-H AmeriCorps volunteer program. They donated hundreds of hours of labor to The Game Loft, running games and serving as mentors for younger students, helping out with mailings and other administrative duties, participating in fund-raising activities, and serving as ambassadors to other communities who wanted to start a program like the Loft. The Loft successes ebbed and flowed, but in 2006, it looked as if the Loft, like so many other non-profits before it, would fall apart in its eighth year. However, a new group of volunteers rebuilt the Board of Directors in October 2006, and with the help of parents, adults, and primarily the members who love this program, the Game Loft was reconstructed and became stronger than ever before. One year later, the Game Loft was rid of all financial debt, the audits were completed, and we have had record attendance figures. The programs are running smoothly, with members being just as important as they ever were. In October 2007, the Game Loft was named "Maine's No. 1 Exemplary After-School Program" by the Maine After-School Network and received the award in Augusta. The Game Loft has, and always will be, a place where every contribution is appreciated and everyone has a way to help. Without this belief and practice, the Game Loft would no longer exist. In 2008 The Game Loft was merged with Spurwink Services. Through that relationship we grew and became a stronger and more vital organization. Through their help we learned that we could survive on our own and in 2012 The Game Loft became independent of Spurwink and a true community organization.

The Game Loft helps young people in the community. We are open 50 weeks a year to provide non-electronic games and nutritious food to youth between the ages of 6-18 who are in school or are homeschooled. All services are free to the participants. Youth may participate regardless of race, religion, creed, national origin, or sexual preference. On Mondays we offer services for youth ages 6-12, on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday we offer services for youth ages 12-18. We offer a satellite program at Mt. View Middle School in Thorndike on Wednesdays. There are many choices of non-electronic games and volunteer activities available every day for youth and adults at The Loft. Our Positive Youth Development approach connects well with our 4-H affiliation. We are a 4-H afterschool leadership program. The Game Loft provides a safe environment both physically and emotionally where young people can explore ideas and find the things that are important to them. Those young people who attend regularly can choose to become members. Our members are our owners and young people are called upon to make decisions on all levels of programming. We have a youth board that makes programmatic and policy decisions and raises funds for Game Loft activities. Our governing board is made up of youth, adult community members, and parents. Volunteers at The Game Loft provide about 2000 hours of service per year. With all of the attention to personal growth we could be called The Center for Transformational Behavior except that no one would come. It is the games in "Game Loft" that attract and hold our members. We play all kinds of non-electronic games like Magic, Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon, role-play games like Dungeons and Dragons, and party games like Scrabble or Apples to Apples. Games teach valuable skills in winning graciously and losing gracefully, sportsmanship, honor, creative problem-solving, and experiencing joy. At The Game Loft youth learn that life is worth living and that they can create a positive future for themselves.