Regional Ymca Of Western Connecticut Inc

Programs: Membershipthe regional ymca is a cause-driven organization, committed to strengthening our community through youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. We are a positive force, and everything we do is in service of building a better community. For more than 150 years, the regional ymca has worked to create bright futures for children and adults in the greater danbury area, through a multitude of means, and as a result, more than 9,600 local community members are receiving the support, guidance, and resources they need to achieve greater health in spirit, mind, and body. This is particularly important as our community faces new challenges each day, such as an obesity crisis, chronic disease, the disconnect within families, and the isolation felt by growing numbers of older adults. Our myriad of programs each helps shape different facets of people's lives, whether it is teaching children to swim and the value of water safety, encouraging teens to become leaders in the community or educating people young and old about the importance of fitness and nutrition. Our programs promote connections, support systems and friendships between members and staff, as well as building self-confidence and self-esteem. Members are encouraged and supported in becoming their best self. Because we believe everyone has the power to make their lives better, we open our doors to all - no matter who they are or where they come from. The regional ymca brings together people from all backgrounds and supports those who need us most. At the regional ymca, no child, family or adult has been turned away for an inability to pay, and financial assistance is offered to all who cannot afford membership. In 2017, we were able to provide $78,506 in financial aid, allowing thousands of people access to the community of the regional ymca. Additionally, the open-door membership program provides membership opportunities to many more individuals and families, and is based on their household income; individuals and families whose income falls below a certain level are offered participation in the program, reducing their membership fees by 25%. More than 40 open door memberships were offered in 2017. As part of our focus on our community and social responsibility, besides financial assistance to our members, we also provided military service members and their families with discounted memberships, allowing the service members to physically prepare before heading off to training or active duty, and offering their families a place to feel safe and connected while their loved one is away.

youth development: nurturing the potential of every child and teen is a core value for the regional ymca. Providing opportunities and encouragement for children to learn and grow, and discover what they can achieve, is what we do best! 658 children were served at our child care centers in 2017, with $245,942 provided to families in financial assistance. To emphasize and support the work kids learn throughout the school year, our before and after school programs, summer day camps and escape to the arts program all have an academic component. Our preschool child care, before & after school care, and school readiness programs offer a safe and nurturing environment and are designed to meet the individual needs of children and provide them with learning skills to help them in school. Our children's center in bethel continues to serve as an outstanding provider of education and activity for students from 18 months - 12 years old. O provided parent workshops on a variety of topics such as sleep routines, positive guidance, nutrition and transitioning your child to kindergarten. O our teaching staff participated in approximately 650 combined hours of professional development in the areas of stem, social emotional competence, positive child guidance, bullying prevention, challenging behavior, developmental assets and nutrition. O both our preschool and afterschool programs follow the hepa (healthy eating and physical activity) guidelines and classroom curriculums are developed with these concepts in mind. We have a children's garden with 20+ raised garden boxes which are planted, cared for and harvested by the children and staff. During the summer months, the children run a farm stand and sell produce that they pick from the garden each week. Produce is also used for cooking projects and nutritious cooking classes for parents in the evenings with our wellness director to extend the healthy eating from the classrooms into the homes. Other programs, such as leadership development, arts & humanities, youth sports, youth swim lessons and day camps, offer a range of activities that allow children to have fun, build self-esteem, develop interpersonal skills and make lasting friendships and memories. These programs provided $142,203 in financial assistance, affording opportunities for children that otherwise might not be available to them. Camp greenknoll is an area leader in providing children with a safe, fun, and educational summer camp experience. In 2017, 729 children from pre-k- 8th grade spent the summer engaging in programs designed to challenge them both mentally and physically. Our camps provided $92,713 in fee assistance. O new in 2017, older campers were offered the opportunity to participate in field trips designed to promote teambuilding and teamwork, including hiking, ropes courses and orienteering. O various activities are scheduled throughout the camp day, from things that build a skill set to things that are just plain fun. Also new in 2017, during certain periods of the day, campers were offered the opportunity to choose which activities they wanted to participate in - maybe woodshop, archery or drama, to name a few. O we've formed a leadership group, mostly cit's (counselors in training) from camp greenknoll, who plan and implement service projects in the community. Arts and leadership education is thriving at escape to the arts in downtown danbury. Nearly 100 local danbury middle school and high school students participated in a broad range of activities designed to develop their artistic, personal and leadership skills, done in an environment that fosters academic success. Some highlights from 2017 include: o 35 middle school students participated in the afterschool program during the year. The afterschool program includes dismissal time school pick-up, professional art instruction in visual and performing arts, homework assistance, physical activities and swimming. This year's highlights included student participation in:" the connecticut association of schools middle school leadership conference at trinity college. Some of our high school students facilitated sessions at this conference. " the connecticut association of schools art in the middle conference at the university of hartford's art school. " staff brought a number of middle schoolers to the young men & women of color conference. " the unconference for high school kids - a conference that teaches high school kids a new type of leadership training - through the connecticut association of schools. Some of our high school students facilitated sessions at this conference. " international leadership conference with high school students " students attended an international leadership training in toronto, canada for students in high school and young adults in college. " participated in the new england student leadership conference at worcester state university in massachusetts. O the youth & government program exposes high school students to connecticut's legislative, legal and journalistic processes and shows them how they can play a significant leadership role in their community. Students participate in a mock government process where they practice critical reasoning, debating and public speaking skills. 14 of our students were involved in 2017 state legislative convention. O achievers, a mentoring program for disadvantaged low-income students from the greater danbury area, is designed to produce first generation college bound teens. Using a combination of academic and career mentoring, leadership skills building curriculum, and exposure to "college life," we helped 35 students reach their full academic potential and in turn open their eyes to their potential to succeed in college and beyond during the 2016-2017 school year. " promoting healthy lifestyle choices to children, including proper nutrition and physical activity, is a key focus of the y's youth programs. O with this goal, the regional ymca, in partnership with the united way of western ct and the coalition for healthy kids (20 organizations strong), developed and implemented the scram (students can run and move) program, which offers physical activity and a healthy snack to students each day after school. In 2017, the ymca provided after school fitness and nutrition through scram to more than 580 students and their families. Scram was also integrated into key danbury camp programs to engage families in summer opportunities. O access to fruits and vegetables is crucial to encouraging children to eat fruits and vegetables. We have installed 16 garden beds at two danbury elementary schools and more than 20 beds at our ymca children's center in bethel to teach students about proper nutrition. Students at the children's center even sell the produce they grow at their garden stand on fridays, providing families with fresh produce and giving the children a lesson in money management. O we provided families with access to the danbury farmer's market through family nutrition education programming and conducted a family walk to the market, encouraging participants to eat fresh fruit and vegetables and to get out and walk. O we held family zumba classes at the danbury public library during the summer, encouraging families to have fun and move together. O in may of 2017 more than 300 people participated in the danbury public school walk to school day. Parents, children, teachers and volunteers walked children 1 mile to school after meeting with the mayor at town hall. This event kicked off a regular walking school bus program at park avenue school. In y swim lessons, participants learn and practice swimming skills and feel a sense of achievement from mastering something that they can enjoy the rest of their lives, all while learning water safety and increasing their physical activity levels. The importance of water safety, especially in a lake community such as ours has never been greater. Most people don't know that drowning is the leading cause of accidental deaths for children ages 1-4. Here at the regional ymca, we are dedicated to helping everyone learn how to be safe in and around the water. In 2017, we were able to teach swim lessons to over 2,500 youths in the greater danbury area. These lessons are provided to children who are community members, campers, and little ones in our childcare programs. Although swim lessons are usually the first thing people think about, the y's youth aquatics programs are more than just swim lessons. O our mako swim team has 200 children, in multiple competitive groups. This team is about much more than just swimming. These children are learning dedication, patience, sportsmanship, and leadership. They are figuring out what it means to be part of a team and develop skills that will carry them through their adult lives.

the y is our community's leading voice on health and well-being. We help people and families build and maintain healthy habits for spirit, mind, and body in their everyday lives. In 2017, more than 9,600 people engaged in our healthy living activities, such as family wellness, group exercise classes, personal fitness, programs for active older adults, water activities, walking groups, arts & humanities, diabetes prevention & management, and healthy lifestyle and nutrition education. These programs aimed to provide education, increase activity, raise awareness, and showcase the ability one has to take control of their life through making healthy choices. But the y means more than exercise and healthy living programs to so many people. The friendships and connections they've made with staff and other members mean so much and keep them motivated and connected. Mary ann and jerelyn are both dedicated members here at the y. However, that wasn't always the case. Jerelyn says that she came to the y sometimes, but it wasn't until she joined the diabetes prevention program that she became a regular. "i feel so much better, just by changing my diet and exercise. I can do more with my grandchildren that's the biggest part," says jerelyn. And mary ann, who's been borderline diabetic all her life, wasn't a member until she joined the y and the diabetes prevention program on the same day. "i've tried every single diet there is i could've bought a house with all the money i've spent! (the program) worked it was unbelievable. I lost 60 lbs. My a1c went down. My doctor was amazed, she was almost in tears. I would've gained all the weight back, but i have the tools from the program. " both ladies credit their success to the program's group setting and the support and encouragement they received from other program participants and from the staff. They've become like family" to each other, they say. "she's my support and i'll be her support. It means a lot," says jerelyn. Two years after they've completed the diabetes prevention program, they're still great friends and their success is inspiration for others to take the first step in improving their health. In 2017, we held our 11th lose to win competition to help people get on track with their health while connecting with others and receiving the support and encouragement of a team. 90 participants lost a collective 512 pounds, a 2. 8% weight loss as a group! Members were encouraged to create a 12-week vision and set goals, both short and long term, to help them make healthy lifestyle changes, lose weight and reach their "new normal. " we are also a participating partner with silversneakers, a leading fitness program designed exclusively for active older adults, which offers a basic membership and access to amenities through their health plan's benefit package. Over 1,300 seniors stayed fit and active through silversneakers classes in 2017. We've expanded our nutritional and healthy living programs, taking a stand against chronic diseases such as diabetes, and giving people the tools to make better decisions regarding their health. " 1 in 3 u. S. Adults has pre-diabetes; most of them don't know it. As many as 50,000 adults in our service area are at risk of developing diabetes. We've teamed with area health leaders to screen and identify residents with pre-diabetes and invite them to enroll in our diabetes prevention program. Now in its third year, the program teaches participants about healthy eating, portion control, reading package labels and exercising - small lifestyle changes that will have lasting effects on their health. 140 participants have either graduated from the program or are currently enrolled, getting the support they need from our specialists on staff. " our president and director of community wellness are members of the steering committee for the community health improvement plan. This group provides chronic disease prevention programs, such as the ymca diabetes prevention program, to members of our community, especially high-risk and low-income seniors and hispanic residents living in the greater danbury area. As the area's health & fitness leader, we continued to take our health expertise and programming into the community to combat one of the region's greatest health threats: childhood obesity. " the regional ymca leads the coalition for healthy kids, a group of community partners that is focused on promoting good nutrition and physical activity to school children, teaching them healthy habits at an early age with the goal of getting the entire family involved in making healthier choices. " we've added a program coordinator, who is reaching out to danbury public schools, area afterschool programs, health care offices and workplaces to improve policies around healthy eating and physical activity through our go 5-2-1-0 program. " all our childcare programs are following hepa standards (healthy eating and physical activity standards), serving only healthy snacks and beverages, including holiday and birthday celebrations, and screen time is kept to the minimum needed for students to complete homework assignments. All our programs have made a tremendous effort to make sure children in their care are physically active on a daily basis through play time, snowtime, swimming lessons, and indoor fitness. These programs are examples of how we deliver the resources and support that empower our members to effect lasting personal change. We're here day in and day out to provide the resources needed by our community, the greater danbury area, to address the most pressing social issues.