YMCA of the Capital Area Newsletter - Y Connection    

APRIL 2024

JOIN FIVE DAYS OF ACTION TO HELP PREVENT CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. As part of our commitment to protecting the children in our community, we’re participating in the Five Days of Action - a week-long campaign to increase awareness of child sexual abuse and empower and equip us all to prevent it. By taking part in this important campaign and implementing abuse prevention practices year-round, The Y is committing to the safety of all children in our community.

The Know. See. Respond. campaign is back this year, and Childhelp, Common Sense Media and Committee for Children have shared resources to support this campaign.

Know

KNOWing the facts about child sexual abuse can help adults better understand what to look for and how to prevent it. As parents, caregivers, and trusted adults to the young people in our lives, we play an important role in protecting them from abuse. Learn more about the different types of abuse, the signs and how you can help at childhelphotline.org.

See

Media and technology are at the center of children’s lives every day. With more of life happening online, what catches their attention isn’t always what’s best for them. As a parent or caregiver, you may SEE a child interacting with media daily, and you can be equipped with the tools and resources to make sure any environment (including online) is free from any abuse. Learn more at commonsensemedia.org/articles/online-safety.

Respond

How can you RESPOND to the call to help prevent child sexual abuse? As a parent or caregiver, you may know it’s important to talk about it, but you may not know what or when to say it. Committee for Children has created the Hot Chocolate Talk campaign, packing decades of research into easy-to-use guides to help you begin these crucial conversations – at any age, from toddler to teen. Visit cfchildren.org/resources/child-abuse-prevention/ to learn more and empower your child to report and refuse sexual abuse.

FIND YOUR JOY, FIND YOUR Y

AT HEALTHY KIDS DAY

We are excited to be hosting the Y’s annual Healthy Kids Day® on April 20 from 9am until 12pm at the following locations; Americana YMCA, Dow Westside YMCA and Paula G. Manship YMCA. This free, annual event features a variety of family-friendly activities to encourage healthy kids, healthy families and a healthy start to the summer season. Big thanks to our national sponsor, Peanuts and our local sponsor, The Baton Rouge Clinic.

In celebration of this annual kick-off to summer, we are sharing a list of four activities that we encourage you to introduce to your kids. The goal is to have them try something new by promoting a variety of opportunities to get involved in active play – hopefully, this will inspire a lifetime love of physical and mental activity! Share these activities with your children and inspire them to “find their fun” by discovering an activity that they love! 

Find Your Swimming Skills with Y Swim Lessons Each year the Y teaches children to swim. This helps them find their CONFIDENCE, teaches a lifelong skill and introduces them to safety around water. Visit www.ymcabr.org/swim to learn more about Y swim lessons. 

Find Your Adventure with Y Summer Camp 

Summer is a time for kids to explore new things and expand the limits of their imagination. At the Y, every day is a new adventure! While having a blast with new friends at summer day camp, many children and teens find their ADVENTURE with the Y. Visit www.ymcabr.org/camp to learn more about Y summer camp. 

Find your Passion with Y Sports Youth sports are just the start of something bigger, aside from teaching fundamental skills, they also teach the value of teamwork, help fuel determination and build character. At the Y, we have several sports programs to help keep children active while igniting their PASSION for something greater. Visit www.ymcabr.org/youthsports to learn more about Y sports . 

Find Your Voice with Y Teen Programs We believe young people have the power to change the world. Our teen and young adult programs are designed to help young people develop the skills and confidence they need to lead positive change in the Baton Rouge community and beyond. Visit www.ymcabr.org/teens to learn more about Y teen programs. 

WE ARE GETTING AN UPDATE

We are excited to announce a new membership software system for our YMCA is coming soon! After thorough evaluation, we chose a new software partner to help us better serve our members.

This change will happen April 16 through April 24, during this time online registration will not be available. Register for all programs and memberships at your YMCA location during this time. Online registration will be available again beginning April 25.

Thank you for your patience as we make improvements to our membership software.

GREAT SUMMERS START HERE

YMCA Summer Camps at the Y offer children countless opportunities to laugh, learn, lead, make lasting friendships and have FUN! Camp is offered for children ages 4 - 12 and is offered Monday through Friday from 7am until 6pm. Registration is now open!

CORPORATE CUP

A big thanks to the 472 runners who participated in the Charles W. Lamar Jr. YMCA Corporate Cup. It was a beautiful day to run and we had so much fun! Thank you to our jambalaya cook off participants and our sponsors, Guaranty Media, Louisiana Lottery, Providence Engineering, Placid Refinery and Emergent Method. See you in 2025! 

EASTER EGG HUNT

The C. B. Pennington Jr. YMCA was excited to have more than 470 participants at their first annual Easter Egg hunt, which was provided in partnership with The Stitches Influencing Purpose Initiative.

EASTER BASKET DRIVE THANK YOU

Thank you so much to everyone who donated to our Easter Basket Drive! We collected 211 donations for children in Foster Care!

VOLUNTEER MONTH - THANK YOU

It’s National Volunteer month and the Y wants to send a big THANK YOU to all our heroes who make our Y strong. We appreciate all the people who lend their time, talent and voice to make a difference in our community. Want to become a volunteer and help strengthen our community? Find out more and get involved today!

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE

The apartment pilings and the final pilings for the foundation of the new A. C. Lewis YMCA are complete. Nearly 600 pilings were used to support the structures. Concrete for the apartment foundation has been poured and we look forward to seeing the progress being made each day.

For more updates on the A. C. Lewis YMCA construction click here!

YMCA DAY OF GIVING

YMCA of the Capital Area’s Day of Giving is April 20, 2024

Visit ymcabr.org/give

Or text YMCAIMPACT to 44321

Gifts impact youth development, healthy living & social responsibility.

STAY UP TO DATE

We are asking all members to please update your contact information and/or facility access photo by April 15. By updating your information and/or photo, you will be entered into a drawing for a chance to win a FREE 3-month YMCA membership!

Click below to update your membership information and you will be automatically entered.

EVOLT IS COMING TO AMERICANA YMCA

The Evolt 360 body composition scanner is coming to the Americana YMCA!

Our Evolt 360 body composition scanner can provide you with over 30 different measures in as little as 2 minutes.

Sustainable lifestyle changes don’t happen overnight, so we’ve put together a 12-week wellness challenge designed to help you determine what works for you and make changes that stick!

During this challenge, you will receive three Evolt body composition scans, nutritional guidance from our registered dietitian, exercise tips, and more! Points will be awarded for body composition changes in weight, body fat loss, muscle gain, and visceral fat loss. The participant who earns the most points wins and can choose their prize of a 60-minute nutritional consult, a 60-minute personal training session, or a free month of an adult membership!

Click HERE for more information and registration!

MONTHLY SPOTLIGHT

This month's Employee Spotlight is Anna Brown!

Anna has worked at the Y for three years as a Front Desk Attendant, and she has also worked summer camps and before and after school care. Anna's favorite part of working at the Y is helping the members with their wellness journeys. Anna started working at the Y when she came to join and learned that there was an opening.

Ms. Anna opens the A. C. Lewis YMCA every day with a smile on her face. She works hard to recognize every member, and she knows every one by name. She is a role model of a great Y employee and she consistently demonstrates the four core vales of the YMCA: caring, honesty, respect and responsibility.

Y APP CHALLENGE

We are adding new challenges each month to our Y app to help keep you motivated! These challenges are designed to keep you moving and give you the opportunity to win some great Y prizes! Challenges are FREE to participate!

Download the Y app for free from the app store by searching "YMCA of the Capital Area". Click on "challenges" within the Y app and click "join challenge" to participate. This month's challenge is to complete 12 workouts throughout the month of April for a chance to win a set of resistance bands.

Good luck!

Congratulations to our February Challenge winners:

Dana P. and Joe B.

PROGRAMS

Parents Night Out

Nutritional Services

Holiday Camp

Y Run for Kids

Tennis

Youth Sports

Group Exercise

Summer Camp

Spring Swimming Lessons

April 2: T-Shirt Tuesday, Wear a Y shirt today.

April 15-19: 5 Days of Action

April 15 - Summer Sports Registration Begins & May Swimming Lessons Registration Begins

April 17: Member Appreciation Day

April 20: Healthy Kids Day

April 26: Friend Friday! Y members can bring a guest for free! 

COMING SOON!

A free kidney screening is coming soon! If you have one of the risk factors (high blood pressure or diabetes) then join us on May 10 for a free screening. More information coming soon!