'It was supposed to be a five-year deal': How the Denver Broncos Boys & Girls Club became an enduring community pillar

[Miles]

Nearly 17 years ago, before any of that happened, Barrows was put in charge of this place.


A former club kid himself from Rapid City, South Dakota, Barrows had taken his experience and made it his life's work. He had 25 years of experience working with clubs across the country and the state of Colorado before they told him he'd be the leader of a new club in northeast Denver that was being sponsored by the Broncos.


"They handed me the keys to the old Montbello rec center two-and-a-half weeks before it was scheduled to open and said, 'Hey, old man, get this place ready to go,'" Barrows says. "… I had no idea of the commitment, how they were involved. I was like, 'Hey, we get to paint the place — let's paint it white, blue and orange since the Broncos are sponsoring [it]!'"


But he quickly understood that this partnership wouldn't be like any he had seen before during his years at other clubs.


"In all those years, we never had the commitment that the Broncos have provided for our Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver. Ever," Barrows says. "They started off with a grant, they tied it to inflation, [and] they've covered the operating costs. It was supposed to be a five-year deal. And we're in the 17th year of that."


As the only professional sports team in the country that fully funds a Boys & Girls Clubs branch, the Broncos have a unique role with the organization. The Broncos were recognized Wednesday as a finalist for ESPN's Sports Humanitarian Team of the Year Award, in part for their work with Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver.


"Truly there is not a partnership of any NFL team across the United States that is as strong or powerful or has as strong of a philanthropic commitment as the Denver Broncos have made in the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver," says Erin Porteous, CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver.


Since that connection was formed, the team has provided more than just the financial backing the club needs to function. It has also provided a number of unique experiences, like providing travel and tickets for select members to go to the Super Bowl. Members of the club's youth football team also get to participate in an annual game of football against various team mascots during halftime of a Broncos game.


"Opportunity is the currency of the Boys & Girls Club," Barrows says. "And it's only $2 a year to be a member, but you're exceptional. And if you make exceptional choices, you'll get to do things that other kids can't even dream of. And that's basically the center tenet that we've operated that club and that partnership on for almost 17 years now."