I’m a child of the ’70s and ’80s, and when summer rolls around, I’m reminded of what life was like as a teenager back then. I drove my old VW Beetle all over town, to baseball games, the creek and wherever the day happened to lead. There were no cell phones, no social media and none of the constant digital noise kids face today. We didn’t spend our summers staring at screens. We spent them outside, chasing whatever adventure we could find. Every day felt open-ended and full of possibility. Parents often had no idea where we were, and honestly, that could go one of two ways — you either learned responsibility or you ran completely wild and learned some lessons.

Today’s teens live in an entirely different world. Much of their social life exists online. Friendships, trends, entertainment and even self-worth are filtered through phones and social media. While technology has created incredible opportunities, it has also brought isolation, anxiety and nonstop pressure. Teens today are growing up more connected than ever digitally, yet many feel more disconnected emotionally.

Young people still need opportunities to socialize face-to-face, build confidence, develop independence and learn how to navigate the world around them. They need places where they can laugh with friends, discover new interests, make mistakes, learn responsibility and simply be teenagers.

Maybe when I was a teen we didn’t need organized spaces in quite the same way because the world naturally created gathering places for us. Today, many of those places are gone. That means we have to intentionally create them. That’s why places like The Bijou Teen Center in Holbrook matter so much. The free summer classes and Friday night activities at The Bijou aren’t just about keeping kids busy. They’re about helping young people reconnect with each other and with their community. Because even though the world has changed, what young people need hasn’t. They still need friendship. They still need purpose. They still need community. And most importantly, they still need opportunities to simply be kids.