Young Men's Christian Association of the Virginia Peninsulas

Healthy living: the ymca views health holistically: a healthy person has unity of body, mind, and spirit. the ymca has identified the growing national obesity rates in this country as a critical social issue that must be addressed, and our health and well-being programs are designed to help people develop new skills and grow in spirit, mind and body by setting realistic goals for self-improvement and disease prevention through an active lifestyle, proper nutrition, stress management, and health education. Ymca programs promote interaction, teamwork, and the development of moral and ethical behavior, social skills, and self-esteem. We serve all ages, abilities, races, nationalities, and religions and provide financial assistance to those who need it. the familiar ymca triangle emphasizes the oneness of spirit, mind, and body. Ymca health enhancement programs help achieve this unity through medically based programs that stress proper exercise, nutrition, stress management, avoidance of drug and alcohol abuse, and health education.the ymca of the Virginia Peninsulas offers a lifelong progression of medically based health and wellness activities, experiences, and education, including programs for children, teens, families, and seniors. In 2023, there was 1,097,096 service opportunities for individuals to engage in health, well-being, and fitness programs. Healthy habits can protect kids from life-threatening diseases. Childhood obesity is in danger of reaching epidemic proportions across the united states. Obesity and being overweight create an enhanced risk for serious health problems that manifest in childhood and later in life. Virginia ranks 36th in overall prevalence, with 13.2% of children considered overweight or obese.hepa education is provided in all ymca school-age childcare and preschool child development programs. It teaches children about making healthy choices and provides take-home educational materials so families can make healthy choices together. Hepa is built on four main pillars that help children live healthy every day: 5 servings of fruits and vegetables each day, 2 hours or less of screen time daily, 1 hour or more of physical activity each day, and 0 sugary drinks.ymca healthy kids day is designed to highlight a wide range of wellness activities, sports, and other physical activities available to kids at their local ymcas. With over 9 million overweight children in the united states, increasing physical activity levels in children's lives is a critical component of our country's and our ymca's effort to fight childhood obesity. Both the national ymca and our ymca are dedicated to helping combat childhood obesity year-round. Activities included games, physical challenges, crafts, healthy snacks, and handouts for home. the goal is to show kids that physical activity can be fun. Healthy kids day was a great success, with 743 people participating at 5 different locations. People with disabilities and those with chronic ailments, such as arthritis, cancer, and heart disease find ymca program opportunities in ymca and community-based pools. Ymca aquatics programs are a major part of the y's overall goal of building a healthy spirit, mind, and body. In 2023, the ymca provided aquatics programs for 5,562 people. Infants through seniors took progressive swim classes, participated in our aquatic exercise programs, and participated in our arthritis aquatics classes. Teens learned lifeguarding skills in our lifeguard classes.

Social responsibility: the ymca is more than the four walls of our facilities. We are partners in strengthening families and communities for members and non-members alike. Our ymca promotes community development through a series of programs designed to work with the disadvantaged, health and social departments, public school systems, and many others. We have community partnerships with agencies such as rotary, kiwanis, hospitals, and local municipalities. We believe that our role in stimulating volunteerism, training volunteer leaders, and providing vehicles for charitable work addresses an important social need. of our over 46,543 members, 41.23% are families; over 13,500 are youth; and 15.58% receive financial assistance for membership, childcare, and programs valued at $1,644,821.the y achievers program purpose is to help teens pursue high educational and career goals resulting in graduation and acceptance to an institution of higher learning or vocational trade school. the program is based on five pillars: academics, college knowledge, positive relationships, life skills, and positive identity. Activities, projects, speakers, field trips, events, etc. Are purposefully designed to advance leadership and academic skills as well as stir up a thirst for discovering the vast array of career opportunities awaiting them in their future. Tutoring, sat/act preparation classes, study technique seminars, homework help, computer tech classes, financial literacy, are examples of sessions that volunteers and ymca staff conduct. Research also shows that teens are more motivated to succeed academically when encouraged and guided by adults who are accomplished community members that care. the y achievers program addresses these issues by pairing students with successful role models and providing academic and career-related mentoring and support services.bright beginnings is a ymca program that helps provide new clothes and school supplies to children in need in our community. the goal is to help children have a great start in school by giving them the confidence and the tools they need to learn. Ymca volunteers take children shopping for school clothes; they also receive a backpack filled with school supplies. School supply lists are obtained from area schools. Clothes purchased include at least one outfit, shoes, underwear and socks, and a sweater or jacket. the average cost to shop for one child is $150. Beginning in august of 2023, 619 families participated. Volunteers from cnu, bayport, chesapeake bank, ferguson, local high schools, police departments, and fire departments, ymca boards members and ymca members are paired with a child to shop for these items at kohl's, target or wal-mart. the first tee of the Virginia peninsula is a program center of our y that reinforces values and provides healthy benefits through the medium of golf. By participating in the first tee, Young people are introduced to the nine core values of honesty, integrity, sportsmanship, respect, confidence, responsibility, perseverance, courtesy, and judgment which are incorporated throughout the program. Parents are encouraged to reinforce these behaviors by talking about them, what they mean, and what these behaviors can look like at home.playing the game of golf can improve your quality of life as there are many physical, emotional, and social benefits. Our program integrates the positive concepts of energy, play, safety, vision, mind, family, friends, school, and community with golf instruction. In 2023, we offered 616 opportunities for youth to improve their perspective on life. We are currently seeking out ways to deliver first tee programming to disadvantaged youth for little to no participant cost.we strengthen our communities with initiatives designed to serve the ever-changing needs of individuals and families. Our summer learning-loss prevention program gives hundreds of children the tools they need to stay on track academically through the summer months. In 2023, youth participated in our summer learning loss prevention program through y summer camp. Our service area consists of 989 square miles of water, not including public and private pools. Drowning is the second leading cause of accidental death among children in the state of Virginia. For every child who dies from drowning, another five receive emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries. Children ages 5-14 most often drown in swimming pools and open water. Surprisingly, 58% of parents do not consider drowning a threat to their children. To help reduce this dreadful statistic, our endowment fund has pledged to offer aquatic safety classes at no cost for all second graders in our service area. Our goal is to reach each one of the 7,000 second graders that live in our service area. In 2023, 2,111 second-grade students participated in our safety around water program through this community service offering.family volunteer day is held the weekend before thanksgiving. This program provides a vehicle for ymca volunteers to give back to the community by donating their time and warm thoughts. Each ymca branch collects non-perishable food items in their lobbies beginning at their october branch fall festivals. the branches collaborate with local service organizations to collect food items and recruit volunteers. On family volunteer day families come together to wrap, decorate boxes and fill them with food. the y works together with local agencies such as social services, link, help, and Christian outreach to select families that will receive the food boxes. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the united states. Cancer and its treatment can take a tremendous toll on a person's spirit, mind, and body. They just want to begin to heal and reclaim their health. No one experiences cancer in the same way. Participants come to the program with different physical challenges and lifestyle goals.livestrong at the ymca offers a no cost, caring, supportive exercise program filled with hope and love for cancer survivors. Participants take the friendships and encouragement they experience in the 12-week program and share the power of the program with others. Livestrong at the ymca has provided 24 participants with individualized attention and an approach to recovery that targets the areas they need to rebuild since 2014. One participant said, "i went to the cancer center for treatment. I came to the y to heal. "nicole white was a graduate of smithfield high school and a junior at Virginia tech majoring in international studies when her life was taken during the shootings at tech on april 16, 2007. She was a lifeguard for our luter family ymca and volunteered many hours in the community. To honor nicole's passion to make her community a better place, our y awards at least one college scholarship annually to a smithfield high school student with demonstrated service to community.

Youth development: strengthening families and meeting the needs of children have always been central to the ymca's mission of building a healthy spirit, mind, and body for all. the central focus of all ymca preschool and school-aged childcare programs is to foster growth and development, not only in children but also in their parents and families. Accordingly, parents play an important role in policy and program decisions. Ymca childcare curricula help children develop moral and ethical behavior, self-esteem, and leadership. Y childcare allows parents to remain gainfully employed, knowing that their children are thriving in a safe, supportive environment. Ymca financial assistance policies help ensure that the ymca is a place where children of all economic levels, from the affluent to the disadvantaged, receive the same quality care in the same setting. In 2023, 39,606 opportunities for children to attend afterschool programs at sixteen different childcare sites and 5,940 opportunities for children to attend preschool programs at three preschool locations.our ymca also gives families safe, reliable, and affordable recreational opportunities such as family swim night and volleyball which let families relax and enjoy time with each other. Ymca family life programs, parenting classes, and family volunteer programs help people grow as responsible members of families. We provide children and their parents with activities that foster understanding and companionship. Activities are planned to bring groups of families together to support each other. Parents have the opportunity to learn from each other and from their children in an enjoyable way.the ymca provides family programming year-round. Day camps develop self-confidence and self-respect when campers meet challenges and learn to cooperate. Y camping programs are educational; they promote spiritual awareness, mental development, physical well-being, social growth, and respect for the environment. Through a variety of activities and the use of natural surroundings, ymca camping seeks to help participants achieve their fullest potential in spirit, mind, and body. Low-cost ymca camping programs also are a safe, high-quality alternative for working parents. Knowing that a child is being cared for in a y camp program enables these parents to remain gainfully and productively employed. In 2023, there were 13,705 opportunities for children to participate in ymca day camp and teen camp programs. As in the case of all ymca programs, financial assistance is available for those who cannot afford the customary fee. Ymca youth and teen programs help children develop self-esteem and good values, including, cooperation, respect for the body, good citizenship, and a strong work ethic. Teen activities are among the most rapidly growing ymca programs. In 2023, middle and high school teens attended teen nights reflecting the growing awareness that adolescents need structure and activities, especially in the after-school hours.ymca sports and recreational programs promote an appreciation of one's own worth. Youth sports focus on the full and equal participation of all: every child plays in every game. Ymca youth sports programs also help to strengthen families. Parents coach teams and turn out, often with brothers and sisters, to watch kids play. Young people participating in sports build lifelong positive attitudes, habits of healthy exercise, and good nutrition, and learn ways to have fun as adults. There is little coaching on adult teams, but the same values applyno putdowns, no name-calling, no profanity, and respect for others, giving everyone a chance to play. In 2023, 4,559 youth participated in a myriad of sports programs that value cooperation over competition, fair play over winning at any cost, good feeling, good health over a good score, and building self-esteem over beating the opponent. the ymca knows that with this approach everyone wins--undefeated in spirit, mind, and body.