Off The Street Club Youth Programs
Off The Street Club, 25 N Karlov Avenue, Chicago, IL 60624
About
Off The Street Club Youth Programs offers activities such as playing basketball, making friendship bracelets, tutoring, mentoring, and using the computer center for homework. Participants also experience art, culture, and sports around Chicago, and can swim, camp, and enjoy nature outside of the city through Camp Mathieu and other outings. Adult chaperones can join kids to explore baseball games and museums through the New Horizons Program.
• Ages: 4–18 years old
• Schedule: Programs run Monday–Friday with afternoon and evening hours, plus afternoon hours on Saturdays and Sundays, with additional activities on the third Thursday of the month (October through May).
• Price: For every $600 donated, one kid will be sent to camp.
Founded in 1900, Off The Street Club is described as Chicago’s oldest inner-city youth program for boys and girls, and more than 3,000 kids and young adults take part in its programs. The Club’s summer camp, Camp Mathieu, is a 30-acre facility located 30 miles from Chicago, described as a 30-acre summer camp in Wheaton for swimming, camping, and nature studies. The organization is supported by the Chicago business community and runs the S.O.S. (Save Our Summer) campaign to provide a summer experience for 1,000 kids.
Leadership has included former Executive Director Ralph Campagna and current Executive Director Arnett Morris. The mission statement describes the Club as a place where kids living in West Garfield Park have a safe place to learn, laugh, and play, with a focus on what the Club calls “Casual Joy.” Community involvement includes the Time to Excel program, where volunteers mentor a child through reading every Wednesday at 5 p.m. in the Edelman offices.
Testimonials from youth and adults describe experiences such as learning how to stay out of trouble, building character by playing on a team, feeling free to be a kid, and making new friends while learning to be nicer, kind, smart, and to work hard. Volunteers and leaders describe the Club as a shelter and haven, and Executive Director Arnett Morris describes Off The Street Club and Camp Mathieu as important to him personally, stating that attending camp as a child “saved my life.”
Last updated July 30, 2026.
• Ages: 4–18 years old
• Schedule: Programs run Monday–Friday with afternoon and evening hours, plus afternoon hours on Saturdays and Sundays, with additional activities on the third Thursday of the month (October through May).
• Price: For every $600 donated, one kid will be sent to camp.
Founded in 1900, Off The Street Club is described as Chicago’s oldest inner-city youth program for boys and girls, and more than 3,000 kids and young adults take part in its programs. The Club’s summer camp, Camp Mathieu, is a 30-acre facility located 30 miles from Chicago, described as a 30-acre summer camp in Wheaton for swimming, camping, and nature studies. The organization is supported by the Chicago business community and runs the S.O.S. (Save Our Summer) campaign to provide a summer experience for 1,000 kids.
Leadership has included former Executive Director Ralph Campagna and current Executive Director Arnett Morris. The mission statement describes the Club as a place where kids living in West Garfield Park have a safe place to learn, laugh, and play, with a focus on what the Club calls “Casual Joy.” Community involvement includes the Time to Excel program, where volunteers mentor a child through reading every Wednesday at 5 p.m. in the Edelman offices.
Testimonials from youth and adults describe experiences such as learning how to stay out of trouble, building character by playing on a team, feeling free to be a kid, and making new friends while learning to be nicer, kind, smart, and to work hard. Volunteers and leaders describe the Club as a shelter and haven, and Executive Director Arnett Morris describes Off The Street Club and Camp Mathieu as important to him personally, stating that attending camp as a child “saved my life.”
Last updated July 30, 2026.
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