BLOOMINGTON -- Children and parents said they were thrilled when the Boys & Girls Club of Bloomington-Normal reopened its doors Tuesday afternoon, ending a two-week closure prompted by state budget cuts.

"Oh, I am ecstatic," said Jamie Davis of Bloomington, mother of Yasimine Hamilton, 8. "She's an only child. She was getting kind of bored."

When asked to say how happy she was with the club's reopening, Yasimine said, "Twenty reallys."

"I miss it because I didn't get to play with any of my friends," said Yasimine, who is active in the club's choirs and Girl Scouts troop and enjoys the facility's computer and bumper pool game.

Club Executive Director Evelyn Young welcomed back children and teens to the club, which provides summer and after-school programs for about 85 young people ages 5 to 18 from disadvantaged backgrounds. Offerings include homework help, health classes, music, dance, sports and recreation.

"It gives me something to do after school -- not sitting at home," said Amina Owens, 10, of Bloomington.

The club, which had closed Aug. 17, was informally open Monday with a skeleton staff who cleaned and painted, and children could drop in, said Young.

Jayda Bartholmew, 14, a Bloomington High School student, got help Monday as she studied for her Spanish test at the club.

"Jayda got an A," her sister, Jalissia Mitchell, 12, said excitedly.

An after-school van to pick up children from school will start up again next week, but parents will need to pick up their children from the club in the evenings at least through September.

The reopening came with the recognition that more money will need to be raised locally.

The club received $46,240 from the state in the current budget for core services, which is less than the $68,000 it received last year, Young said. State reimbursement for child care was cut from last year's $20,000 to $7,500.

The state also is four months behind in payments.

In July the club laid off six part-time employees -- a third of its staff -- and those cuts remain. In other cost-saving measures, the evening van service has been suspended, and an evening program for teens has been reduced from four nights a week to two.

United Way of McLean County, agency fundraising and grants are Boys & Girls Club's other funding sources. Young said the agency needs to rely more on fundraising, donations and volunteer help.

After an Aug. 8 Pantagraph article about the temporary shutdown, the club received $10,000 from a couple who asked to remain anonymous. There also were gifts of $1,000 from another couple and $800 from a local business.

"That caused me to rejoice ... and helped to stabilize us," Young said.