EDINBURG – Nearly one in three children in this country are obese or overweight. That’s according to a study by the National Center for Biotechnology Information.

Experts said 60 minutes of play a day can help children get healthy.

The Edinburg Boys and Girls Club is a second home for many Rio Grande Valley children. Out of the 34,000 students in the Edinburg school district, 5,000 of them are members at the center.

“We want kids to know that we are here in the community and they can come every day if they need to,” Edinburg Boys and Girls Club CEO Sabrina Walker-Hernandez said.

For members who come from low-income backgrounds, the Boys and Girls Club can be an important resource.

“We want to provide them some of those opportunities that they may not be able to afford, but we can pick up the cost through our donors and through our sponsors and have them have that opportunity because that’s what they need,” she said.

A membership for the entire school year costs $20. Children will have access to all sorts of programs that focus on the arts, exercise, diet and learning.

“I feel very fortunate because it helps my mom. I like it here. I like to meet people. It’s exciting,” Eleni Tijerina said.

“Being here, I like places like this because I used to live in North Carolina. We had something similar to this over there. It was great,” Jadan Davidson said.

The Boys and Girls Club wants to give every child a chance to have fun. If parents can’t afford to pay a membership fee there is help.

“I really want parents to know that we have scholarships for those opportunities too. We will waive that $20. We have a lot of generous donors out there who support us so we can offer even scholarships for that $20,” Walker-Hernandez said.

The Boys and Girls Club is a place for children to have fun and develop healthy habits.