Honsinger named STC director

The Sandpoint Teen Center is pleased to announce that Claire Honsinger has joined the organization as its executive director. Joan Avery, who has been with the center for over a decade will continue on as program director.

“I am excited to have Claire on our team. She is energetic and engages well with the teens,” said Avery. “Claire’s focus will be to use her grant writing skills to add new programs for the teens, obtain much needed kitchen equipment, act as primary spokesperson for the center and will help us find funding and support for buying the building.”

“The teen center often has a reputation as being the spot for ‘at-risk’ youth,” states Jim Payne, president of the center’s board of directors. “But, the reality is that all teens are at risk and we want to offer a place for all of them to feel challenged and important. Hiring Claire as our executive director will help us continue with that mission.”

Honsinger brings many years of non-profit experience to the Teen Center as well as strong background in education and teen programing. “My goal as executive director is to focus on three major areas: to offer consistent quality programming, to increase the partnerships between the teen center and the rest of the community, and to meet fundraising goals for building acquisition and program operations,” Honsinger said. “Being a teenager has its challenges for sure, but it can also be a wonderful time of discovery. Sandpoint is a fantastic town and the teenagers who live here are awesome individuals that I am happy to be getting to know.”

“We are thrilled to have her here and look forward to continuing to provide a great place for our Sandpoint teens,” Avery adds.