FAIRBURY, Neb. -- The Family Youth Involvement Center, or the FYI Center, in Fairbury is not reopening due to a few problems with the building, volunteers and funding.

The center was planning on reopening in September, but it had to hold the opening for a future date. Now, it is wondering when it can reopen to the youth. 

“We prolonged, or were hoping to move it back a couple of months, but now we are trying to determine what the best fit is for the agency as far as the building concerns and then trying to meet the needs of the youth in the community,” said Shari Weber, CEO of Blue Valley Community Action.

The building has some issues with its roof, its air conditioning unit and its floors. 

Weber said that it is not a safe enough environment to house the youth. 

“When we took over the building 20 years ago, we renovated the inside but we did not have enough funds to redo the roof at that time so we have been making some small patches and it is to the point where it needs to be completely replaced,” said Weber.

Weber said the FYI Center is a big part of the community, bringing out many students and giving them help with homework, offering physical activities and more. 

“It’s a variety of things,” said Weber. “We, last year, served 131 students. On average, we had about 20 to 30 kids there a day.”

The FYI center is seeking help in order to reopen its doors to the youth whether it is volunteering or funding. 

“If they want to volunteer, either at the center or at Blue Valley, that would be greatly appreciated and if they know of any funding streams we can go after, that would also be appreciated,” said Weber.  

You can volunteer by calling Blue Valley Community Action in Fairbury at (402)-729-2278.