Tucked between the tennis courts and the playground sits a building that hums with energy all summer long: the Bill Wilde Youth Center. Also known as the BYWC or the B Dubb, the building looks simple on the surface: Old wooden floors, a few game tables, a counter full of lanyard string. But if you spend a little time inside, you’ll quickly realize it’s one of the cornerstones of Montreat’s magic. I spent three days with the guys who make everything in this space happen: Hudson, the supervisor, and Keaton and Lucas, the tennis instructors.
Hudson told me his favorite part of the job is embodying hospitality and providing a space for communities to gather, and you can feel that purpose in every interaction he has with a guest. Whether it’s a group of kids asking for Hungry Hungry Hippos or high schoolers requesting a deck of cards, each guest is welcomed with patience, warmth, and a little bit of laughter.
The staff’s daily tasks might sound straightforward: monitor the playground, hand out board games, organize court reservations for tennis and pickleball. But behind the checklist and ping-pong matches, their real mission is simple: help kids and families have fun and create a space that feels like home.
Outside, clubbies cheer as first-time players try their luck on the tennis courts. Inside, you’ll hear the clack of pool balls, followed by a roar of cheers or groans. In the corner, friends giggle over a game of spoons while the floor beneath them creaks with every shift of their chairs. Kids shout across the counter asking for lanyard string, twisting the shiny, smooth plastic into keychains that will hang on their backpacks long after the summer ends.
Of course, not every moment is serene. Hudson laughed when I asked about the hardest part of the job. “Chaotic kids,” he answered. And he’s right, the B Dubb can be a whirlwind. Kids sprint from the tennis courts to the game shelves and back again, board game pieces scatter under chairs, and sometimes the line at the counter feels endless. But through the craziness, the staff keep the mood light and the doors open, determined to make the space feel like a home base for everyone who stops by. Everyone who enters the B Dubb, whether passing through or a frequent visitor, has the chance to become part of a larger community as they engage in various recreation activities with each other. Friendships are formed over games of Uno and pickleball matches, causing laughter to echo through the rafters of a well-worn building that somehow smells like summer.
So, the next time you find yourself near the Bill Wilde Youth Center, take a trip inside. Whether you pick up a lanyard string, play a round of pickleball, or just stay to soak in the sounds of fun unfolding around you, one thing’s for sure: the crew at the B Dubb will be ready to welcome you.
Kayden Foyles is the marketing assistant at Montreat Conference Center as part of Summer Staff. She is a rising senior at North Carolina State University studying Communication Media.
