Y’s 26-Day Challenge starts on June 1

Press Release

The Southington-Cheshire Community YMCAs are preparing for their annual 26-Day Challenge to raise $36,500 total for both communities to support the Race4Chase Youth Triathlon program.

The goal is to raise $20,000 in Southington and $17,000 in Cheshire ($10,000 of that goal has been raised to date).

Each participant in the 26Day Challenge has been asked to raise monetary donations with an overall goal of $510 per person to help make up the remaining $27,000.

The challenge will kick-off on June 1 with YMCA CEO Mark Pooler, followed by 26 volunteers in both Southington and Cheshire.

Volunteer athletes include YMCA board members and staff, teachers and faculty, business owners, Y members and community leaders.

All will be running, biking or swimming 2.6 miles for 26 consecutive days in memory of Chase Kowalski and the other students and teachers who lost their lives at Sandy Hook Elementary School on Dec. 14, 2012.

Chase Kowalski competed in his first triathlon in the fall of 2012 and now his memory lives on in the young athletes he inspires each summer.

The Race4Chase Youth Triathlon program, offered for free to young athletes, is run at over 29 sites across Connecticut, Rhode Island and South Carolina.

The programs in Southington and Cheshire allow young athletes from the two communities to train for six weeks and compete in a real triathlon on Aug. 5 at YMCA Camp Sloper.

On June 1, Mark Pooler will begin running and exercising for 26 days in a row.

Each day after June 1 another runner in each community will join him and run or exercise each consecutive day until June 26.

If you are interested in joining the challenge and helping the SouthingtonCheshire Community YMCA reach its $37,000 goal, contact Julie Gianesini at jgianesini@scccymca.org.

In Brief

Reader app

The OverDrive reading app has been discontinued. The Cheshire Public Library is advising patrons to switch to Libby, OverDrive’s newer app. For more details about the switch to Libby, visit cheshirelibraryblog.com.

Cheshire FD

Applications for membership to the Cheshire Fire Department are always welcome. Visit cheshirefd.org.

Symphony

The Cheshire Symphony Orchestra is in its 37th season under the direction of Dr. Hilarie Clark Moore. For information about joining, visit cheshiresymphony.org.

Yard clean-up

The Town of Cheshire provides a container at 1304 Waterbury Road (adjacent to the Town Garage) for disposal of residential grass clippings and leaves.