Meadowlands Area Young Mens Christian Association

Programs: Our children - the ymca is bringing its core values of respect, honesty, caring and responsibility to the children in our care by providing a welcoming environment in which parents and children can engage in positive activities that help build the mind, body and spirit. Whether it's a fitness program during our before and after school childcare programs, an afternoon dance session, a child-friendly fitness class or one of our many enrichment courses, the meadowlands area ymca is seeking to engage and expose "our children" to the arts and humanities, technology and science, nutrition and fitness just to name a few. Through our summer camps, aquatics, enrichment, child care and day care programs we strive to promote healthy lifestyle behaviors that help guide and support our children to develop life skills that will turn them into the leaders of tomorrow. In addition, the meadowlands area ymca gives children a safe place to call their own, a chance to connect with adults who care about them and an opportunity to get involved in programs that help them grow. At the meadowlands area ymca, no child or family is turned away because of their inability to afford a program. The ymca provides all fees on a sliding scale and offers scholarship opportunities.

wellness, older, disabled - improving the communities health and well-being. More than 30 million americans have diabetes - the seventh-leading cause of death in the u. S. - and another 86 million have prediabetes. The ymca's diabetes prevention program is based on a national institutes of health study that showed weight loss of 5% to 7% and 150 minutes of physical activity per week can reduce the number of new cases of type 2 diabetes in adults by 58%, and 71% in adults over age 60. By extending health care to community settings, the y improves the health of communities and helps reduce health care costs for individuals, employers, and insurers. Including everyone in our community is paramount to our cause, as such we offer programs specifically designed for older adults. They give participants an opportunity to stay physically and mentally active or in some cases, to overcome their fear of exercise and begin being physically active. Active older adults programs include water exercise, yoga and stretching classes and walking clubs. We also offer socialization opportunities through a dedicated senior lounge as well as cooking and nutrition programs as well as seminars geared towards our aging population. Our program for special needs individuals provides opportunities for people with physical and developmental disabilities to be engaged in a number of programs. We offer trained staff to assist and ensure that each person is able to become familiar and comfortable with the programs and equipment, including aerobics, aquatics, lap swimming, strength training and a variety of other activities.

21st century competitive learning program - the meadowlands area ymca runs the 21st century competitive learning program in moonachie. This program provides academic enrichment opportunities during non-school hours for children, particularly students who attend high-poverty and low-performing schools. The program helps students meet state and local student standards in core academic subjects, such as reading and math; offers students a broad array of enrichment activities that can complement their regular academic programs; and offers literacy and other educational services to the families of participating children.

family success center - the meadowlands family success center is a family centered, community based, neighborhood gathering place for all residents in the little ferry and moonachie area, as well as the surrounding communities, to receive support, information and services that help reduce isolation and foster connections between families. The expanded family success center enables the meadowlands area ymca to provide additional services at the family success center to families impacted by hurricane sandy. Services include: linking disaster victims with human service agencies which provide support services, designing and facilitating workshops for children and their families, and providing linkages to appropriate mental health providers when needed. Membership - providing a community center with a focus on improving the health and education of our members. We provide a safe space for all of our members to exercise, cook, paint, swim, and relax. This is through access to our 86,000 square foot facility and our over 125 weekly free programs