YMCA of Central New York

Our Tween Club afterschool program at our East branch in Fayetteville erupted the volcanoes they have been working on this week! We are focusing on science and STEM this month so look out for more awesome science projects in October!

Monica at the Manlius Y shared photos from the 2024 GLOWERQ Fundraiser they held last Friday - lots of fun had by all!

YMCA of CNY Association Board Member Maarten Jacobs was recently honored at the 2024 Interfaith Leadership Awards. Past Board Chair Bishop Colette Matthews-Carter, current Board Chair Julie Mann, and Board Member Michael Collins were on hand to celebrate!

Every year, the YMCA's Downtown Writers Center recognizes the great books published each year by authors from our region at the CNY Book Awards. This year's Awards were sponsored by our friends at Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital, Nine Mile Press, Judy Carr, Sarah Freligh, and Vita DeMarchi. Awards were offered in Fiction, Nonfiction, Children's Books, and Poetry. Nine Mile also presented this year's Bob Herz Memorial Award for Literary Engagement. CNY BOOK AWARD FOR CHILDREN’S BOOKS, sponsored by Upstate Golisano Children's Hospital Winner: Jennifer Catney, for Filling the Manger Judge: Anonymous CNY BOOK AWARD FOR NONFICTION Winner: Martin A. Sweeney, for The Remarkable Life of Alfred Haskell, Jr. Finalists: Here, Where Death Delights by Mary Jumbelic, M.D. Desert Wind: My Life in Qatar by Peter Fortunato Gannentaha: The 17th Century French Jesuit Mission, by Jonathan Anderson Judge: Steven Huff CNY BOOK AWARD FOR FICTION, sponsored by Vita DeMarchi Winner: Mary McLaughlin Slechta, for Mulberry Street Stories Finalists: Christopher Gould, for The Boys & Girls of America David Grannis Moore, for A Past Life Judge: George Guida CNY BOOK AWARD FOR POETRY sponsored by Judy Carr and Sarah Freligh Winner: Bad Animal, by Kathryn Bratt-Pfotenhauer Finalists: Bone Language by Jamaica Baldwin Yours, Creature by Jessica Cuello Judge: Lynn Domina Our friends at Nine Mile Press also presented the annual Bob Herz Memorial Award for Literary Engagement to Ed Kochian, for his many years of dedicated support of literature, literacy, and the arts. We hope you'll join us for next year's CNYBAs... and if you have a book published this year, don't forget to nominate it by 12/31 for next year's Awards!

Our CVO and Board Chair Julie Mann, along with other board members, recently visited our East branch to hear more about how our programs serve the Fayetteville community and beyond.

It's National Voter Education Week! As a nonpartisan nonprofit organization, we are committed to helping individuals and communities across the nation prepare for Election Day (November 5, 2024). Voting is associated with many positive benefits for both community members and nonprofit organizations like the Y. According to The Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, voters are more likely to volunteer, contact their elected officials and stay informed about local affairs. It also helps strengthen social ties and improves health. Take the first step of civic engagement today by registering to vote or checking to ensure your voter registration is active. Visit ymca.org/vote

Our Membership and Childcare teams recently held events to come together, have fun, and refresh their training to share experiences together and ensure the best service for our members and kids!

Our BYMOC strategy team went on a field trip to Rochester last month with 100 Black Men to attend an HBCU football game and battle of the bands! 🏈

On Monday, September 23 the Hal Welsh East Area Family Y celebrated Senior Appreciation Day. We hosted 60 seniors throughout the morning who participated in a group exercise class, brunch and had a chance to listen to several guest speakers who provided information on Active Older Adults (AOA) programming across the association. We ended the morning by honoring our Senior of the Year, Vicki Jayne, a dedicated Y member who visits the Y on average over 300 times per year!

Another Moving For Better Balance training in the books! So excited to have 20 new instructors certified in two months at New York State YMCAs in this fantastic evidence-based falls prevention program. Thank you to NYS trainers Tara Westervelt CPT and Lisa Camp of Saratoga Regional YMCA. Alliance of New York State YMCAs, Inc., Rye YMCA, Rockland County YMCA, New Rochelle YMCA , Capital District YMCA, YMCA of Ithaca & Tompkins County, YMCA of Central New York, YMCA of Broome County