The Boys & Girls Club is going "kukoo," and though such a thing may sound undesirable, Kukoo for the Boys & Girls Club is actually a birdhouse project and educational opportunity that will bring together members of the club, environmentalists, artisans, and the community at-large, all while raising much-needed funding for the Wareham Boys & Girls Club.

Members of the community are invited to create and decorate birdhouses, as well as other hand-made, bird-related pieces of art, such as drawings and paintings, to donate to the Boys & Girls Club. The donations will be auctioned off at a gala scheduled for June 18, 2011, with all proceeds directly benefiting the Wareham Boys & Girls Club.

"We're hoping for a healthy competition among artisans, hobbyists... anyone who might be interested in producing a birdhouse," said Boys & Girls Club Wareham Unit Director Barbara Sullivan. The birdhouses can be "sophisticated to whimsical,” and either purchased from a store and embellished, or built from scratch.

Youth members of the club will also create birdhouses and other pieces for the auction.

The money raised will be used to defray club's operational expenses.

“We have families struggling to pay,” said Sullivan, adding that the club has been operating in the red for the past three years and has had to pay for expenses with help from its New Bedford counterpart.

“With this event and others, we hope to be able to carry our weight,” Sullivan said.

In addition to the creative piece, there is an educational aspect of Kukoo for members of the club. The club is recruiting educators and bird-experts to teach the club's youth about our fine, feathered friends.

For more information about Kukoo for the Boys & Girls Club, to donate a birdhouse or other piece of art, or to help the club with the educational aspect of Kukoo, call the Boys & Girls Club at 508-295-5400.