COVINGTON, Ga. — Some Newton County youth will be among the recipients of meals and technology from a $25,000 grant from Facebook.

Boys & Girls Clubs of North Central Georgia recently received the Facebook grant to continue to serve community youth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Katie Comer, community development regional manager at Facebook, said, "The Boys & Girls Clubs of North Central Georgia serve an essential role in caring for our community's young people.”

"We enthusiastically support them and are proud to provide this grant to further this critical mission. It's what neighbors do, and we've called this community home since we broke ground on our Newton Data Center in 2018."

Facebook operates a data center in the Stanton Springs area of Social Circle along I-20 east of Covington.

Bob Mackey, president and CEO of the North Central Georgia agency, said the grant will be utilized to provide “breakfast and lunch for all youth who attend our programs and will provide additional technology structure such as electronic tablets, laptops, and will support more advanced capabilities for the youth while benefiting from our BGC programming.”

The funds will be utilized to support clubs in Newton, Walton and Madison counties which together serve more than 300 young people, officials said.

 “This partnership with Facebook will allow us to continue to serve the youth who need us most,” Mackey said. “This funding will help provide the essential tools and resources we need to bring brighter futures to our youth. 

“With community financial support such as this grant from Facebook we will indeed get through this together. We are grateful for our partnership with Facebook and their helping hand to allow us to continue being innovative in the ways we serve our families and youth who need us now more than ever.”

For more information about Boys & Girls Clubs of North Central Georgia, visit www.bgcncg.comor call 770-267-8034 .