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STAUNTON- AUGUSTA FAMILY YMCA

NEWSLETTER

FEBRUARY 2020

P. 3: CHILD SAFETY TEAM P. 4: M ISSION REPORT P. 8: DANVILLE BATTLES BULLYING P. 9: VOLTAGE SWIM TEAM P. 10: SEEN AROUND THE Y P. 12: LEGO ROBOTICS P. 14: STAFF SPOTLIGHT: RUSSELL HEINRICH

SAYMCA INTERN BAILEY ROBERTS: "I AM MORE THAN RUNNING"

BAILEY ROBERTS: I AM MORE THAN RUNNING By all appearances, Bailey Roberts was an ACC- bound cross country runner. Then the injury reports started to come in just as frequently as the college recruitment letters. ?I wanted to run in the ACC,? Roberts said. ?That was my dream. I got hip surgery, so that didn?t work out. I ended up at JMU, and my plan was to take the year, get healthy, and transfer.? But Bailey, currently a Staunton- Augusta Family YMCA intern, fell in love with James Madison University. Instead of transferring, she planned to walk on to the cross- country team at JMU. ?My sophomore year came around, and I still wasn?t feeling right,? Roberts said. ?I had a plethora of injuries (seven stress fractures and tendonitis) scattered throughout all that. Being told to stop again would have been too devastating. I?d rather walk away from it myself than to be forced to quit again.? Spending more time in doctor?s office than pursuing her passion of running was incredibly difficult for Roberts,

but some good did come from it. As she was forced to reflect, she learned that her value as a person was greater than her identity in being a runner. And it also helped steer Roberts ? an aspiring surgeon ? toward the medical profession. ?It got me to step back and say, ?I am more than running. I am somebody without running,?? said Roberts, an avid hiker. ?I need to figure out what I want to do with my future. I?m not going to run forever. I need to be able to handle anything that life throws at me. Just because I can?t run, I can?t be upset about X, Y or Z.? For as long as Roberts can remember, she had been part of the YMCA in Roanoke. Her parents had been members for decades who visited the YMCA frequently, and Roberts grew up attending summer camps and various activities at the YMCA. During her time at JMU, Roberts would drive to Staunton, just to be part of the closest YMCA. ?I started coming here my freshman year, just because I knew it was here,? Roberts said. ?I just needed to get out of the JMU bubble. I worked there, and did my homework there. I just needed to get out. I like the atmosphere here. It?s very diverse.? Roberts is a senior majoring in kinesiology. Her major requires her to complete an internship. Having been around the Staunton- Augusta Family YMCA since her freshman year of college, the Y was just a logical choice. ?Since I do enjoy exercise science, I want to work with a diverse population, learning the needs of kids in elementary school versus elderly people,? said Roberts, a self- described shy person who wants to push out of her comfort zone at the YMCA. ?I want to study how exercise can impact them and then translating that into whatever medical profession I go into.? 2

JOIN THE CHILD SAFETY TEAM Staunton- Augusta Family YMCA summer camp director Nicole Kozikowski has been exploring ways to make the YMCA as safe as possible for children. And not just children, but everyone who enters the YMCA facility. And now she?s asking a few willing members to join her. With the aid of some of the YMCA?s board members, Kozikowski is forming a Child Safety Committee. The first meeting of the committee will be on Feb. 18 at 6:00 p.m. at the Y. ?One recommendation was that as an association we need to get a team together to really address child safety on a regular basis,? Kozikowski said. ?It?s going to make our YMCA a lot safer.? In addition, thinking through child safety issues, the group will be tasked with helping update a handbook that will help address child safety and member safety in a technology- driven world. ?We haven?t reviewed our handbook in a while,?

Kozikowski said. ?We need to have those things in writing. It?s really going to be important with the change in technology.? Anyone wishing to reserve space in the Feb. 18 meeting, volunteer or wanting more information can reach Kozikowski at Nicole@saymca.org.

PLAN YOUR VISIT - JEFF'S TRAFFIC REPORT

MISSION REPORT UPDATES ON EFFORTS TO IMPACT OUR COMMUNITY. CHANGES IN RED DAY CAMP Ashley Cole & Nicole Kozikowski This is a program we have run for a long time and brought it back in the 1990's and it has been a staple since. With the help of Staunton City Schools and other locations, we host over 200 children each week. They take field trips, play sports, create art projects and make new friends all in the care of our Youth Development Counselors. We have purchased a new camp software package that will allow us to better care for this program and communicate better with our campers and their parents. We are currently accepting fee waivers applications and will soon be enrolling this summer camp. This program is funded by our Annual Campaign and a grant from CAPSAW. AFTER SCHOOL ADVENTURE CLUB Ashley Cole & Nicole Kozikowski Another of our long- time mission programs, we operate our After School Adventure Club as a site licensed by the Department of Social Services. We are licensed for more than 60 children, but currently limit enrollment to 40 children due to our use of the space. Some of these children are on our financial assistance or are reimbursed by DSS or CAPSAW through TANF funds. All Staunton Elementary Schools send buses to our program. This program is currently full with 40 students enrolled. Recently, counselor LJ Johnson has started working with the older children in this program to provide a more active experience for them in our program.

YOUTH BASKETBALL LEAGUE Eddie Sant iago & Chris Lassit er Another of our long- standing youth development programs, the Youth Basketball League introduces more than 230 students to the game of basketball and involves the efforts of more than 25 volunteers. This program runs November through February this winter and is held at the Y and at Shelburne Middle School.

SATURDAY NIGHT MADNESS Now: MIDDLE SCHOOL MAYHEM Eddie Sant iago & Chris Lassit er On the second Saturday of each month, 15 minutes after we close, we open our doors to Middle School students to enjoy the gym, pool and teen center for 2.5 hours while our teen staff take over the Y. In January, this program saw more than 100 students attend the program. This is the largest number we have hosted in years.

STAFF CHAPLAINS Dave Boger & Allen Jones We are fortunate to be served by two staff chaplains, Dave Boger and Allen Jones. They serve the Y through the Skyline Chapter of the Industrial and Commercial Ministries. The SAYMCA started this program in 2010.

BIBLE STUDY Dave Boger & Allen Jones Chaplains Dave and Allen lead our Monday morning Bible Study group at 9:00 a.m. each week. The group has met at the Y for years and they currently have more than 18 people show up for the weekly meetings. They have added a Prayer Group on Wednesday mornings.

NEUROWELLNESS Lee Baker and Wendy Shut t y NeuroWellness is the brainchild of SAYMCA member and Physical Therapist Lee Baker who wanted to bring a program to the community that could help people recover from strokes. Working with Rhonda Shinaberry, Wendy Shutty and the Personal Training staff, Lee launched the program in fall 2014. Since that time, the program has evolved into NeuroWellness, helping people work out in our Wellness Room two days a week to recover from a host of neurological issues. We are fortunate to have many interns from the Murphy Deming College of Health Sciences at Mary Baldwin University help with this program. 4

MISSION REPORT UPDATES ON EFFORTS TO IMPACT OUR COMMUNITY. CHANGES IN RED Y NOT SING SINGERS Carol Byrd Spearheaded by Carol Byrd, our outreach singing group visits senior centers, retirements homes and assisted living facilities throughout the area. Putting their spin on some classic songs, this group is never a drag. ADULT RESPITE CARE Rhonda Shinaberry and Laura Hit chin In response to the increasing number of members needing to give up their memberships to take care of loved ones needing full- time care at home, the Y created a three day a week respite care program. For five hours a day, people can leave loved ones in the care of our trained staff. We serve lunch and exercise with them in the Wellness Room and the pool. This program takes place in the Teen Center. We are currently working to figure out how the closure of the Daily Living Center will impact this community and if we need to make adjustments to our program. TEEN CENTER Eddie Sant iago We are looking at several new partnerships this spring including bringing back the Recruiters Office running Boot Camp classes for the teens, a further partnership with the ARROW project and a partnership with the Board of Health which should allow increased services for our teens. VETERANS COFFEE George Schmock, Meade St ewart & Nelson Twyman Veterans Coffee had 30 people attend the January meeting earlier this month on a day when schools were cancelled due to weather. They have added a monthly breakfast group (outside the Y) and are considering adding another meeting each month.

YOUTH VOLUNTEER CORPS Chris Lassit er This program helps students ages 11 - 18 gain volunteer and leadership skills through volunteer activities in our community. Working with Y staff, students decide the projects they will get involved with, organize and work the event and debrief after each activity. We started this program in 2015. And it is off to a great start in 2020 and have already completed 3 projects. Kristie Shuey is also volunteering her time to help Chris organize this program.

REACH & RISE (now YOUTH GROUP MENTORING) Ashley Cole In 2015, the SAYMCA got the one grant in Virginia to offer Reach & Rise Group Mentoring for at- risk youth. Based on a program out of San Francisco, this program provides15 hours of training for the mentors before they are assigned mentees. Then, groups of two mentors are matched with six youths between the ages of 8 - 15. The youths are all within two years of age. Unfortunately, the grant for this program expired in November of 2018. We are currently writing grants to try to bring this program back to our community. Ashley, with the help of Eric Williams just started a new Youth Group Mentoring Program. VOLTAGE SWIM TEAMS Bet h Valent ine Tori Graham, Porter- Grace Clark and Grace Hardiman are the Swim Team coach with 28 swimmers in the program. We worked with the fromer Augusta County Area Swim Team to have this program come back to the SAYMCA after several years being operated by an outside group. They are gearing up for a busy February with a meet in Salem, Feb. 8 & 9. Go Voltage!

MISSION REPORT UPDATES ON EFFORTS TO IMPACT OUR COMMUNITY. CHANGES IN RED THE GEORGE SOLT SAFETY AROUND WATER Bet h Valent ine This Y- USA program introduces youth to the water through a series of six sessions. It is designed to have youths feel more comfortable around the water and prepare them in case they need to save themselves in the water. We launched this program in June of 2018 and put 21 children through a pilot program. In 2020, we will be partnering with Staunton City Schools to have another 60 children go through this program. ROCK STEADY BOXING Wendy Shut t y and Judy Briggs One of our huge successes, this program is open to only Parkinson?s disease afflicted people and their loved ones. Starting in 2017, this program uses their loved ones as ?cornermen? and trains the ?Parkies? to fight back against the disease. This program meets three times a week for 90 minutes and has had tremendous results. We are now offering two groups of boxers with over 30 participants. We will be replacing the flooring in this room to make the room more able to handle increased use of the room.

ADULT BASKETBALL LEAGUES Eddie Sant iago and Chris Lassit er We went back to our roots to offer this first- time venture in the spring of 2018. Using the Y and Shelburne Middle School we featured 15 teams playing in two divisions: competitive and recreational. We are currently registering for the third season of this program. In 2019, Eddie and Chris added the first year of the Womens Adult Basketball League.

PRESCHOOL INITIATIVE Ashley Cole & Nicole Kozikowski Ashley has run a few preschool and homeschool classes to get people primed for us to offer a preschool. They have been successful with members looking forward to future classes. Nicole has added a playgroup to the offerings this winter. We will also be offering our fourth year of Preschool Camp this summer. SUMMER LEARNING LOSS PREVENTION Ashley Cole This Y- USA signature program targets the Achievement Gap. We partnered with Staunton City Schools to make this program possible. We altered the Y- USA program slightly to accommodate the SCS partnership. In doing so, we aren?t officially offering the Y- USA SLLP program but we do have a program that the Staunton City Schools have embraced. In the summer of 2019, we offered the program for 20 - 24 students from all three Elementary Schools. In 2020, we will do the same. This program is supported by the Community Foundation and CAPSAW.

VIRTUAL FITNESS Wendy Shut t y We got a jump start on one of our 2020 Goals when we installed our Virual Fitness projector and screen in the Cardio Fitness Room on the second floor. Wendy is still getting to know the system, but we have already started rolling out some of the programs and have a lot of interest in evening classes and mindfulness programming.

DIABETES PREVENTION PROGRAM Soon t o be: LEAN Wendy Shut t y and Sharon Mayo This is a Y- USA program that we have adapted for the Staunton area. We are currently collaborating with the Diabetes Prevention arm of Augusta Health hospital to run their Diabetes Prevention program. With the help of the Augusta Lions Club, we offered our first program in January 2019. The Virginia Alliance of YMCA's has developed a new program called LEAN which we will be rolling out shortly. It is showing promising results. 6

WE WANT TO KEEP OUR EYE ON OTHER VIRGINIA YMCAS THAT ARE FINDING INNOVATIVE WAYS TO IMPACT THEIR COMMUNITIES. RECENTLY, CHRIS LASSITER WAS ABLE TO MEET THE FOLKS AT THE DANVILLE FAMILY YMCA AND LEARN ABOUT...

DANVILLE'S BATTLE AGAINST BULLYING They had seen the effects of bullying at its worst. Not once, but twice. Adding to the pain is that the city of Danville ? the locale where two tragedies directly tied to bullying had occurred ? is a small and close- knit community where everyone knows everyone else. ?I think for us, our YMCA, we are a place of community,? Danville Danville Family YMCA Family YMCA CEO Sarah Folmar said. ?Because we?re such a small CEO Sarah Folmar community, things really hit us harder. Somehow, we know that person or we know that family. It just really hits home.? With the collective grief of its citizens hanging over the city like a rain cloud, Folmar and the Danville Family YMCA staff members just knew they needed to be part of the solution. Out of that desire, the Battle Against Bullying campaign was birthed. ?We think that any time the Y can be in a place to help ? and it makes sense for us ? we really want to be there,? Folmar said. ?We know we can?t be at every table, but we make sure we are at the tables that really matter and help our community.? FINDING SOLUTIONS The Danville Family YMCA staff had hearts to help the community heal, but also the wisdom to know they weren?t subject matter experts on bullying.

?We talked with different groups in the community, and we figured out that our Y staff aren?t counselors or medical officials,? said Dustin Whittle, the Danville Family YMCA associate executive director. ?But what we did have was the ability to start a conversation. We could serve as that place where we could bring people in and provide them with good information if they were experiencing that.? The Danville Family YMCA partnered with the local school systems and the community services board. ?We found that in our community there are a lot of tools to help people going through bullying,? Whittle said. ?People just aren?t aware of what they are.? After meeting with those community partners, the Danville Family YMCA staff pushed back its participation in the YMCA?s nationwide Healthy Kids Day festivities to include a Battle Against Bullying Campaign Kick- Off in conjunction with the Healthy Kids Day celebration. The partnering agencies, the school systems and the local media all helped the YMCA promote the event, which drew over 300 people community members. ?We had a humongous banner with the pledge against bullying for everybody to sign,? Folmar said. ?It?s in our lobby now.? The Battle Against Bullying campaign is a year- long project for the Danville Family YMCA, with a different speaker and topic on the last Monday of each month. They intentionally had the meetings at the same time every month to build consistency. When planning the event, the Y staff purposely left the

DANVILLE'S BATTLE AGAINST BULLYING (cont .) last six months of speaking engagements open until they could determine what topics needed to be addressed. HELPING TO HEAL The community has taken notice of the Danville Family YMCA?s effort to help in the healing process. ?A lot of people have expressed thanks to us for shedding light on the situation and bringing clarity on it,? said Troy Barbour, communications coordinator for the Danville Family YMCA. ?A lot of people don?t have a clear understanding of the actual definition of bullying. There are have been a lot of people that are grateful to have a better understanding, and for us just bringing attention to it in general.? APPLYING IT: If your YMCA is thinking of adopting an anti- bullying campaign, here are some best practice tips from the Danville Family YMCA. ·Find community partners ·Don?t claim to be subject matter experts on bullying if you are not. ·Establish the schedule early ·Use a pledge put everyone on the same page (literally) ·Display the pledge where it can serve as a reminder ·Get media and partner agencies involved with the marketing campaign. ·Make sure your campaign meets your specific community?s needs. NOTE: If you know of YMCA's offering innovative programs that positively impact their communities in Virginia, please let us know, we would love to see if they may be able to help our community AND we would love to feature them here. So others can learn about these efforts. ANOTHER NOTE: The Danville YMCA recently built a new facility on the Dan River. It is the first new building in Danville on the Dan River in over a century. This building has won awards for its architectural design and is bringing many new members into the Danville YMCA. The Danville YMCA is in the Virginia Alliance of YMCA and also is in the Nationwide Membership system, so, the next time you are in Danville, you can use your Staunton- Augusta Family YMCA membership to visit this Y and see what it is all about.

VOLTAGE SWIM TEAM ?You f eel like a f amily.? Bailey grew up taking swim lessons at the Staunton- Augusta Family YMCA. Then, as kids tend to do, she found other interests outside of the water. But as she tried a myriad of other activities, her heart drew her back to the water. ?I stopped to do other things, but then I was like, ?I want to do swim again,?? said Bailey, a sixth grader locally. ?It was pretty fun. I signed up again, and I liked them.? At swim lessons, she was encouraged to consider to join the Voltage, the Stanton- Augusta Family YMCA?s swim team. ?I didn?t ever really think about it, but once people said I?d be good at it, I thought, ?Why not give it a shot?? Bailey said. Joining the Voltage proved to the right decision immediately for Bailey. ?The first swim meet of the season, I came in first, and I beat all my times,? she said. ?I had never come in first before. That was the first- ever time. I was so happy.? Bailey soon learned that winning medals wasn?t the only cool thing about being on the voltage. ?You get to have fun, and when it comes to meet, you get to compete and have fun in that,? the young swimmer said. ?We have Christmas parties and end- of- the- year parties. You just have fun. You get to race against people you?ve never seen before, and you get to see how they do, and how you do. You swim and you work out together. You feel like a family.?

JOIN THE FUN THIS SUMMER! VOLTAGE WILL BE TAKING REGISTRATIONS FOR THE YOUTH SUMMER SWIM TEAM IN MARCH. HAVE YOUR BEST SUMMER EVER.

SEEN AROUND THE Y

The st ories and phot os t hroughout t his Newslet t er are t hanks t o Chris Lassit er and t he YMCA t eam of st af f and volunt eers. Thank you all f or making t his possible. For more inf ormat ion on how you can help, please cont act Chris. 10

LEGO ROBOTICS Count Quannell in as one of the Afterschool Adventure Club kids riveted by robotics. Staunton Innovation Labs Inc., the non- profit arm of Staunton Innovation Hub often referred to as SILI, held its inaugural Lego Robotics Engineering Club meeting at the YMCA recently, and the first lesson was given rave reviews. ?It was pretty good,? said Quannell, a fifth- grader at Bessie Weller. ?We get to build bridges and robots and lots of other cool stuff.? The Staunton Innovation Hub was formed by Peter and Alison Denbigh. According to its website, the Staunton Innovation Hub exists ?as a coworking space in the heart of Staunton VA?s Historic District designed to reduce barriers to innovation and help small businesses succeed.? The idea for the Lego Robotics Engineering Club was birthed through the Denbighs watching their own child do something similar at James Madison University. ?Peter said, ?This is something that I feel like our Staunton kids should have,?? said Miriam Burrows, strategic assistant to Peter Denbigh. ?My son was talking about how they are learning a little bit of coding in second grade right now, and there are couple of kids in class that don?t have computers at home. I thought, ?if we have a curriculum, and we have someone to teach, what we need is a bunch of kids that may not have access to this kind of education otherwise.? To the SILI staff, a partnership with the YMCA made perfect sense. ?The YMCA is this great place where they have this great afterschool program,? Burrows said. ?And we thought this may be the perfect audience for us for us to start a Lego Robotics Engineering Club.? Taylor Welsh serves as instructor for the class. ?It?s awesome to play at home with Legos and that sort of thing,? Welsh said, ?but what?s great about this program is we?re teaching who have zero coding experience learn a little bit about the basics of how to code, how to make a program on the computer, and we?re giving them some engineering challenges that they?re going to solve to get them inspired, and then also they?re going to be learning from each other and collaborating and a little bit competing, too.? Staunton- Augusta Family YMCA youth and family director Ashley Cole loves the partnership with SILI. ?We?re lucky to have Taylor Welsh and the Staunton Innovation Hub provide this at no cost for our kids,? Cole said. ?We really hope to offer more programs like this.? Welsh agrees. ?Kids get interested in science and technology and engineering in a way that they are challenged,? Welsh said. ?They?re getting to learn new things. They?re learning that it?s OK to make something that doesn?t work and try again.? 12

RUSSELL HEINRICH "ABOVE & BEYOND"

Russell Heinrich feels right at home in a fitness facility. As a teenager ? which was ?a while back? he admits with a laugh - Heinrich made it all the way to Arizona for the national teen powerlifting competition. As a member of the YMCA, a poster advertising a wellness room attendant position caught Heinrich?s eye. He decided to apply, and YMCA fitness director Wendy Shutty is so glad that he did. Not only has he been the model employee, Heinrich recently completed his certification to become a Rock Steady Boxing coach. ?Russell was a natural choice for me to make when thinking of additional coaches for Rock Steady,? Shutty said. ?He has all the qualities that we are looking for in a coach? dedication, professionalism, empathy, and the ability to make people feel comfortable, not to mention a good solid background in fitness. Our boxers enjoy his presence in class, his singing and his dancing. We love to work, but we love to have fun and Russell fits right in.? Heinrich enjoys his work at the Y, and Rock Steady holds a special place in his heart. ?You get to see people who are driven because of their situation, to not just get better but improve their quality of life,? said Heinrich, who also serves in ministry and is a softball umpire. ?It?s also a wonderful community that they?ve developed because of their commonalities, not just their disease but the fact that their families are involved. It makes a really big difference.? Heinrich was certified online. He went through ?15 rounds? of online training and including a final exam that he had to pass. One of his favorite parts of working with ?Parkies? ? the loving term in which class members self- identify ? is seeing the improvement during the assessments. ?We do them every six months,? Heinrich said. ?You can actually see where individuals have improved in flexibility, mobility, strength and balance.? Shutty believes that the fitness staff improved by adding Heinrich. ?As a member of staff, you could not ask for someone as dedicated to our mission and to the fitness of our members,? the YMCA fitness director said. ?Russell has a knack for getting to know people thru conversations and observations and is respected by everyone for his knowledge and his way of making you feel welcomed. He is truly someone who goes above and beyond when help is needed whether it is to help out with an extra shift or commit to a program that helps others.?

We are current ly recruit ing f or: Front Desk St af f (f ill out applicat ion) Night Cleaning Crew (applicat ion) Yout h Development St af f Summer Camp Posit ions e- mail: Nicole@saymca.org Volunt eer Opport unit y We are also saddened to say that Bill the Bike Guy is no longer able to repair bikes for us to sell and give away. Bill is willing to turn over some of his equipment to someone who is willing to continue this tradition as a volunteer for the Y. If you are interested, please see Josh for further details. Thank you, Bill. We appreciate all you have done to support the children in our programs! 15

FEB R U A R Y 2 0 2 0 SUN

MON

TUES

WED

THURS

FRI

SAT 1 Rally f or t he Y Begins - see Jef f

Plan Your Summer: Camp Regist rat ion st art s Mar. 2

Ticket s: Apr. 3 Rut h Graham Talk on Sale

Lit t le Y's Drop- In Playgroup @ 10 AM

Try Fusion Fit w/Sheree@7:30 AM

Swimming is a lif elong act ivit y.

PNO@5:30 PM

Volt age swim meet @ Salem Middle School Mayhem @ 7:15 PM

MMBS @ 9:00AM

Try St ep & Shape wit h Avis@1:30 PM

MMBS @ 9:00 AM

SAYMCA Talk in Woodst ock@Noon

Vet erans Cof f ee @ 9:30 AM

Try Tabat a @ 5:45 AM w/Lisa

Valent ine's Day Luncheon @ 1:00 PM

Sat Swim Lesson Sign ups (M)

Boot camp w/ Teley@5:45 AM

LaBlast Demo Class in t he Pool@12:30 PM

March newslet t er will be available! Please look f orward t o more st ories of our impact .

Middle School Mayhem @ 7:15 PM

Program Comm. Mt g. @ Noon

Sat Swim Lesson Sign ups (NM)

MMBS @ 9:00 AM

Child Saf et y Team Mt g @ 6:00 PM

Try AquaZumba w/Melissa @ 6:00 PM

25t h Ann. Comm.@3:30PM

Try Gent le Flow Yoga w/ Billie@4:00 PM

MMBS @ 9:00 AM

Lit t le Y's Drop- In Playgroup @ 10 AM

Regist er f or t he March Lif eguard Class.

Program Commit t ee discuss programs t hat you t hink could help us impact t he communit y. Child Saf et y Team: See page 3 PNO: Parent 's Night Out (Regist rat ion Required)

Overheard at t he Y: "Get t oget her! It is good f or your brain. You need t o be wit h ot her people." - St udley Robson

MMBS: Monday Morning Bible St udy M: Members NM: Non- Members

We t hank you all f or being here at t he Y and being wit h ot her people. We hope you have a wonderf ul February.