Campaign for Summer Jobs Lobby Day

"I had the opportunity to join the Campaign for Summer Jobs coalition to lobby for summer jobs last Wednesday, October 22. We met with New York State leaders in Albany to discuss the importance of getting more funding for the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). Some of the points mentioned were: the increase of minimum wage and how that affects the number of participants we serve and the numerous participants that apply but are left out because there’s not enough funding. We met with a number of Assemblyman and Assemblywoman Representatives. I had the pleasure of meeting with the Staff Director of Assemblyman Herman D. Farrell, Jr (the assemblyman for our district), he was very happy to see someone from the community. We shared some statistical information with him, showing how the SYEP program needs more funding to continue. I also had the opportunity to share the touching stories of our SYEP participants and how we changed their lives with the program.

Overall it was a really good experience, the staff were all very supportive of the program."

- Karina Munoz, SYEP Director

Medieval Festival 2014

We were so excited to see so many of you at the Fort Tryon Medieval Festival this year. The weather was perfect for the event, and all the creative costumes made it even better. Take a look below for some pictures from the event.

Putting the “camp” in campaign

                Every year, parents inevitably think about summer plans for their children. The questions then become “where will my child go?” and “how will I pay for it?” For Sharonica Williams, the first question was easy to answer. After a successful summer in 2013, her 9 year old son Julian had his heart set on the YM&YWHA of Washington Heights and Inwood’s (The Y) Camp Yomawha. As for the second question, Sharonica and Julian came up with a more creative answer.

                “Julian attended camp Yomawha last summer for the first time and he loved it” says Sharonica, and Julian had his heart set on returning for a full summer. He was eager to participate in some of his favorite camp activities like swimming, nature walks, and more. Julian was especially excited for Camp Yomawha’s new 3-day overnight adventure where day campers get a taste of sleep-away camp life. Unfortunately, a full-summer camp program can be out of reach for a single mom working hard to provide for her family even with generous scholarships, but that wasn’t going to stop them from making Julian’s dream come true. “I became determined to make it happen.” Sharonica began to explore new ways to raise the funds for Julian, and her search led her to crowd-funding. “A colleague told me about Indiegogo so we decided to try it.  I created the campaign through the website and Julian and I created ‘perks’ or incentives to encourage people to donate to his summer camp fund.” Sharonica was skeptical, but she knew it couldn’t hurt. Julian got very excited about the project. “I thought it was a great idea because we have tons of friends!” No one could have predicted what happened next.

                Through social promotion among friends alone, Sharonica was able to send Julian to Camp Yomawha for the entire summer. She was even able to purchase Julian a brand new bathing suit and camp necessities like towels and sunblock. “It exceeded my expectations” said Sharonica. “I was humbled and feel so blessed that people came together to help us.” With the help of community-wide donations and a single private donation of $1,000, Sharonica was able to raise over $4,000 for Julian. You can see the progress Julian made on his campaign here:  https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/help-send-julian-to-camp-yomawha-for-the-summer/x/7925114

                “Julian is clearly a camper that loves camp” says Adam Benmoise, Camp Director at Camp Yomawha.  “You can see it in his face every morning when he runs for the bus, and throughout the day at activities.  The fact that he took this incredible initiative on his own to make this summer happen for him is absolutely remarkable.  It's an incredible example for other campers and staff as to what one individual is capable of when they care enough about something.” 

"As an institution committed to youth engagement, our goal is annually to provide as much in the way of scholarship as possible to our families” said Alan Scher, Managing Director of Youth and Family Services at the Y. “Thanks to the generosity of our funders, we are able to assist many families who are struggling financially to participate in our programming, but there is always unfortunately a limit. We hope Julian’s inspirational story can provide a template for future philanthropic investment from our incredible community."

Random Acts of Kindness

What goes around truly comes around. 

Rosie (16, Beacon High School) and Sasha (16, Stuyvesant High School) are both members of the Random Acts program, with a mission to "encourage people of all ages to perform their own acts of kindness wherever, and whenever, possible." "I saw a lot of people on Tumblr participating in Random Acts so i decided to join" said Rosie. "It was really fun so this year I convinced Sasha to join with me."

"It's a mixture of a few silly tasks but also more going around and helping your community and seeing people in need and helping them out" said Sasha. For this particular activity, participants were encouraged to deliver flowers to local senior citizens. When deciding on a venue, Sasha knew just the place.

"I basically grew up here." Sasha has been coming to the Y since nursery school. After graduating, she continued with music lessons, and was a part of our teen program. She also helped serve Sunday lunch at the senior center. Sasha's sister also attended the Y nursery program. "When I saw random Acts was delivering flowers to senior centers, I thought this place would be a good place to do it."

When we see people like Rosie willingly giving back to the Y, we can't help but think we are doing something right. We work hard to instill the values of community and kindness into our youngsters, and Sasha proved just that by giving back to our seniors. The look on the unsuspecting faces of our members receiving flowers during coffee hour proves just how far a small act of kindness can go.

The Center for Adults Living Well @ the Y thanks Sasha and Rosie for their thoughtful gesture, and we hope to see them again soon.



 

I ain't afraid of no ghost bike!

This week, the Uptown Collective  posted a story from a 2009 New York Times article about the mysterious Washington Heights "Ghost Bikes". Do you remember seeing one? Ever wonder what it was? Take a look at this article to find out.

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/04/a-ghost-bike-mystery-in-washington-heights/

The UJA-Federation recognizes one of our own

On 4/24, the UJA-Federation held its annual Volunteer Recognition Ceremony. This year, our very own Linda Salmon was recognized among 36 volunteers across the city. We are proud of the work that Linda does each and every day here at the Y.

She teaches an exercise class that includes stretch, balance and strengthening.  She is a member of the Advisory Council for the Center for Adults Living Well.  She helps in the dining room and in general is willing to do whatever is needed and always with a smile. 

To read about all of the honored volunteers from this year's ceremony, click here.

To read an article that describes UJA-Federation’s volunteer recognition efforts and highlights Thursday’s ceremony, click here.

Congratulations Linda!

Linda Salmon (L) with UJA Director of Volunteer Services Alaine Waldshan

Check Out Those Moves!

Gloria Clavijo, runner and long-time practitioner of Iyengar yoga, poses with some of the props she recently donated for classes. Gloria is a popular and engaging volunteer teacher whose posture-based classes are appropriate for all levels. She teaches 10 to 11 a.m. each Wednesday.