Ymca of the Suncoast

Healthy living: the y is committed to improving america's health and well-being, community by community. We bring families closer together, encourage good health, and foster connections through fitness, sports, fun, and shared interests. As a result, 99,000 people in our community receive the support, guidance, and resources they need to achieve greater health in spirit, mind, and body.our programs are accessible, affordable, and open to all. We delivered over $9.4 million in community investment across all programs to ensure participation among youth, adults, and families facing financial hardship and subsidizing programs that fill community voids. (continued on schedule o)the Ymca of the Suncoast provides numerous health and wellness programs for its members and program participants. Among children and families, the Ymca promotes the importance of a physically active lifestyle through programs like personal training, active older adults, cpr/first aid, Ymca membership, family nights, the Ymca's diabetes prevention program, walking and running clubs, social groups, adult sports, family nights, and many others. To support these programmatic efforts, the Ymca of the Suncoast continued as a pioneer for other ymcas by participating in several Ymca of the usa health innovation initiatives and cohorts with other ymcas across the country. For adults, the Ymca has continued to focus on the needs of those who rely on our support to make healthy behavior changes as we develop and implement healthy living programming and services for all. Ymca of the Suncoast collaborates with community health partners such as local hospitals, physicians, state, county, local government agencies, and large employers to incorporate principles of healthy lifestyles into our work. Through these collaborations, our partners provide referrals and support to Ymca evidence-based programs to prevent and manage chronic diseases. Other health and wellness initiatives introduced by the Ymca of the usa are regularly piloted and tested in our organization. In 2023, over 1,200 individuals improved their quality of life through our community-integrated health programs, including the blood pressure self-monitoring program, enhancefitness falls prevention program, diabetes prevention program, cancer survivor wellness, arthritis management programs, and weight loss programs. the Ymca continues to offer a host of programs for adults, including swimming groups, walking and running clubs, tai chi, yoga, pilates, stress management, personal training, group exercise, strength training, social groups, and much more. Programs are offered to meet the needs of the members of each local community. Senior programming for active older adults is a large part of our health and wellness offerings. With many retirement communities across our service area, seniors come to the y not only for physical exercise but also for socialization among friends. Along with senior fitness classes and programs, we host social trips to local destinations to foster relationship-building. Lunch and learn educational sessions occur at many Ymca locations and feature speakers from various areas of expertise. Our programs help adults maintain self-sufficiency by maintaining a healthy lifestyle and serve a preventative health function. the john geigle north pinellas branch Ymca served 70 people in its mash (mainstream adults sharing hope) program. the program develops independence in adult lives for those with diverse physical or intellectual abilities. the program allows them to socialize and grow with friends, express their creativity, and participate in recreational and social activities. Ymca aquatics and lifeguard programs are part of the y's overall goal of building a healthy spirit, mind, and body. In addition to providing water safety skills, they promote good health through regular exercise. These programs are offered at fees affordable to the community at large, with financial assistance for those who can't afford the full fees. Drowning is the second-leading cause of death in children in this community. Learn-to-swim lessons are conducted throughout the year for infants from six months old to adults. Grants from private donations and foundation and corporate support, such as poolcorp, united way of hernando county, Florida state alliance of ymcas, Ymca of the usa, and the juvenile welfare board of pinellas county, provided substantial funding for children and adults to participate in free and discounted swimming classes during the year. During the spring and summer, seven y branches offered safety around water, a week of free swimming lessons for school-age children. Over 7,100 children and adults learned to swim and be safe around the water in 2023 across our four-county area.

Social responsibility: our Ymca believes in creating a culture of philanthropy and volunteerism by giving back and supporting our neighbors. We have been listening and responding to our community's most critical social needs for over 65 years. Y programs, such as volunteerism and giving opportunities, global partners, advocacy work, and world service, are examples of how we deliver training, resources, and support that empower our neighbors to effect change, bridge gaps, and overcome obstacles. We engage Ymca members, participants, volunteers, and donors in activities that strengthen our community and pave the way for future generations to thrive. (continued on schedule o)the y is focused on advancing our mission through philanthropy by giving, asking, joining, and serving. We raised over $1.3 million in operating contributions, $0.4 million in capital and endowment gifts, and $5.7 million in grants. the y's volunteer program, y community champions, allows community members to give back in meaningful and valuable work. As a volunteer-led organization, the y cannot thrive without the support of volunteers. In 2023, 543 volunteers donated their time and talents to assist in the y's cause-driven programs and initiatives, logging more than 26,200 hours. Our y is also fortunate to benefit from talented and dedicated volunteers who compose the board of directors and advisory councils at each branch. These individuals advise on strategy, recommend policies, forge collaborations in the community, and actively fundraise. Twenty-six community representatives served on the Ymca of the Suncoast board of directors and 125 as advisory council members at our branches.we continued collaborating with feeding america - tampa bay at two of our branches. By distributing food at the Ymca, a place frequented by many families, we eliminate an extra travel requirement for these families. At the james p. gills family Ymca, we served as a food distribution center, utilizing 45 volunteers who provided over 800 hours, serving 2,888 households and 12,237 community residents with nearly 75 tons of food. Further, the feeding minds program offers an easily accessible food aid solution to families in need in the greater ridgecrest area. the food provided includes a combination of bought non-perishable items and donations from feeding tampa bay, encompassing a variety of items such as produce, bread, and meats. In 2023, we served 248 community members with 14,014 pounds of food. We continued to hold several prayer breakfasts annually in 3 counties as a time for the community to unite in fellowship and prayer. These events served over 700 people combined. Child sexual abuse prevention and child protection continue to be our number one priority. Our goal is to help educate parents and children on how to be safe from child abuse in any environment. In 2023, the Ymca of the Suncoast was independently reassessed and achieved accreditation by praesidium as having met the highest standards in sexual abuse prevention. We continue to train our staff and volunteers on comprehensive and innovative practices to ensure children and vulnerable adults are safe in our care.with its commitment to never turn a person or family away because of an inability to pay for services, the Ymca continues to be the community where people of all incomes and backgrounds can find professional support for healthy behavior changes. the Ymca of the Suncoast provides financial assistance for all persons in need. Charitable contributions to the Ymca enable us to provide financial assistance on a sliding scale. We promise that everyone who qualifies will receive assistance to the greatest extent possible based on the availability of funds and provided $925,000 in subsidies funded by donations this year.the Ymca of the Suncoast continues to proudly serve our community. Our strategic plan guides us, prioritizes our ability to provide financial assistance, create and expand programs to help underserved and underrepresented communities, sustain healthy living programs, increase the engagement and activity levels of older adults, create opportunities that support academic success, expand programs to increase youth and teen participation, improve the mental well-being of our community, and expand water safety programs so that every child within our service area participates in a begin to swim program.

Youth development: our Ymca is committed to nurturing the god-given potential of every child and teen. We believe all kids have great potential and deserve the opportunity to discover who they are and what they can achieve. We help Young people cultivate the values, skills, and relationships that lead to positive behaviors, better health, and educational achievement. Our Ymca programs, such as school age programs before and afterschool care, summer camp, leaders clubs, swim, sports & play, and others, offer a range of experiences that enrich social-emotional, cognitive, and physical growth. (continued on schedule o)throughout the school year, the Ymca afterschool partnership with all four county school districts provides before and afterschool care to infant, toddler, pre-k, elementary, and middle school-age children residing in our service area. Ymca school-age care ensures that the time gaps before and after school are filled creatively and constructively. This program provides working parents with safe, educational, affordable, and high-quality supervision for their children. Our after-school programs focus on youth development for all communities with a holistic development approach. We operate in 50 schools that serve over 4,200 children throughout the school year. Our Ymca provides a quality curriculum using multiple partners for enrichment programs and evidence-based learning. All students enrolled in the after-school programs benefit from supplemental learning through activities, games, and fun and engaging projects. the Ymca provided $242,000 in financial assistance to children enrolled in our before and after-school care programs in 2023. In all four counties, we provide literacy enrichment programming as part of our before and afterschool care. These programs give children access to books and encourage reading at least 90 minutes per week. the yreads program operates within one pinellas county elementary school and one citrus county elementary school, designated as lower-performing title 1 schools. the yreads program provides intensive small-group reading instruction with pre and post-tests to track gains. the juvenile welfare board of pinellas county (jwb) continued to provide substantial funding to the promise time program to serve children with financial needs at elementary school sites at no cost to them. In august of 2023, we added two additional sites to the program, providing it at nine sites during the 2023-24 school year. the program offers tutors, school liaisons, and enrichment learning activities to connect the academic portions of the school day with the academic portions of the after-school program. We offer y middle school academies in two middle schools in pinellas county. These academies develop engaged students. Teachers work with the Ymca to coordinate learning from the school day with the after-school program and provide homework assistance, tutoring, and stem activities. Ymca summer care programs serve children aged preschool through teens in our four-county service area. Kids have fun while learning to make friends, acquire skills, and grow in self-confidence. For 2,550 children in 2023, summer programming provided high-quality, affordable, safe places with qualified supervision. Ymca-subsidized financial assistance for summer camp in 2023 was $133,000. Based on the national Ymca program model, the typical Ymca summer camp provides children with a healthy mix of academic enrichment and an outdoor, social experience built in an atmosphere of fun, learning, and respect to build self-esteem through the growth of the spirit, mind, and body. This is accomplished through field trips, crafts, songs, archery, values, fitness, sports, nature activities, swimming, and canoeing. the pinellas county school board contracted again with us to provide wrap-around and full-day care for children in their summer bridge program. Summer bridge provides engaging learning activities over the summer to prepare students for maximum success when the next school year begins. We served 750 children with wrap-around summer camp, funded by the juvenile welfare board, who attended the summer school learning sessions to bring them closer to their grade-level requirements. the y scholars learning academy summer program operated in pasco county and introduced 34 elementary scholars to a culture of high academic expectations. This five-week program is designed to help underperforming elementary school students in need make measurable gains in math and reading over the summer months when they typically lose ground. the y has also committed to serving individuals with special needs and challenges through camp coast (children on the autism spectrum together). the summer program provides children on the spectrum with a specialized and valuable day camp experience that allows them to feel comfortable in a safe, fun, and nurturing environment. Ymca swim, sports, and play programs promote an appreciation of one's worth. Young people participating in sports build lifelong positive attitudes, establish exercise and proper healthy nutrition habits, and learn ways to have fun. This year, our youth sports programs served over 5,000 youth in programs such as baseball, dance, gymnastics, soccer, flag football, basketball, tennis, tae kwon do, volleyball, swim teams, track and field, pickleball, and many others. the Ymca youth in government program serves high school students in hernando and citrus counties. Students learn first-hand about government and civic issues and collaborate on possible solutions, culminating once a year with a state conference in tallahassee with other teens from around the state. Youth leadership pinellas and youth leadership citrus seeks to educate interested high school teens on local community issues, develop leadership potential, and foster involvement in community services. Classes in 2023 contained 65 students, providing the opportunity to meet community decision-makers, and graduates are better prepared to take on their leadership roles. Teen leaders club is a year-long leadership development program for middle and high school teens. This program provides teens with extensive leadership training and volunteer opportunities that support Ymca programs and serve the community. In addition to teaching teens leadership through service, leaders club introduces teens to all the work the y does to strengthen the community and inspires and prepares teens to become future y leaders. the yearlong program is highlighted with a weeklong trip to leaders school in the blue ridge mountains of north carolina. We continue to have growing teen leaders clubs at four of our y branches. the bridging the achievement gap (btag) / achievers program at the ridgecrest branch of the Ymca of the Suncoast continued to grow in 2023. the program identifies students at risk of dropping out of school, being held back, not meeting graduation requirements, and not being sufficiently prepared to enter college or the workforce. It helps them explore, determine, and pursue education and career goals. Successful participation in the program results in increased high school graduation rates, acceptance to higher education institutions, and successful transition into the workforce. the program goal is to improve academic performance and reduce the achievement gap by facilitating the development of non-cognitive factors: social and emotional learning and academic behaviors. the btag program focuses on individual goals designed to aid each high school student develop their full potential by creating individualized plans for each participant based on their needs and goals. We continue our early learning readiness (elr) programs in the clearwater and high point communities in pinellas county. This free program targets primarily hispanic/latino families and is for caregivers, parents, and their children aged five and under. This program helps children build bilingual language skills and prepares them to enter school ready to succeed. This year, the program gave the parents and caregivers of 32 children skills to enhance learning.