Before Alex “A-Rod” Rodriguez became a Major League Baseball star, he was a member of the Hank Kline Boys & Girls Club in Miami. In fact, it’s where he first learned to play the game. But baseball wasn’t the most important thing Rodriguez took from the Club; it was his relationship with Club director Eddie Rodriguez (no relation).“He’s been like a father to me,” Alex says. “He taught me to believe in myself, be positive and stay grounded. Today, there are 3,000 Boys & Girls Clubs where caring people like Eddie help our children succeed.

Does it work? It did for me.”That message is more than just a personal belief, it’s the basis for Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s latest advertising campaign. As the Movement’s newest national spokesperson, Alex joins Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington and basketball star Shaquille O’Neal.

Alex’s first public service announcement, based on his experiences at the Hank Kline unit, appear in both English and Spanish, representing B&GCA’s first bilingual campaign. (For more information, contact Bing Arrieta at 404/487-5738.)

The advertising rollout also represents the first segment of CAMPAIGN 3P.M., a B&GCA-sponsored awareness initiative that Alex announced with fellow Club supporters Hank Aaron, Ken Griffey Jr. and Mark Wahlberg. The campaign calls for every child in America to be involved in safe, supervised after-school activities every day, whether at home, at the Boys & Girls Club or in other high-quality
community programs.