Community Spotlight: Westchester Family YMCA

Community spotlight: Westchester YMCA looks to the future after reopening

The YMCA is back! After most of its programming was put on pause due to the pandemic, on June 15 the community hub fully reopened its doors for members who were ready to get back to exercising on the treadmills, swim lessons, group classes and so much more.

While the pandemic understandably caused a drop in membership, the Y’s Reimagining Taskforce is ready to take the nearly 70-year-old neighborhood institution to the next level with more programs and offerings, while making sure the Y is always mindful of serving its community.

Get the scoop on this month’s spotlight by reading below and hear from YMCA Senior Executive Director John Loussararian.

Q. The YMCA fully reopened recently after more than a year of most of its regular programming being paused. How has the last year impacted the Y? A. The closure caused our active membership to fall by 81 percent, but we were able to forge new partnerships as we responded to immediate needs in the community. The benefits from those partnerships will outlast the challenges that the membership decline presents.

Being forced to pivot due to COVID-19 restrictions amplified the need for us to re-imagine our Y’s strategic focus, since our programming has always been based around responding to community needs. A “Reimagining the Y Task Force” was formed and an expanded list of priorities came about as a result.

Q. During the last few months, the Y has implemented a lot of new services and community outreach programs, like the Painted Pantry Project, blood drives and free produce distribution. Will these continue now that the Y has fully reopened? A. To accommodate the increasing numbers of our returning members, we’ve discontinued the shower program, but will continue with our community pantry, blood drives and produce distributions (Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Y’s Annex), as long as the need exists and our partners in those programs are able to participate. In addition, we’ve been able to begin offering swimming instructions to students participating in our remote learning program and look forward to continuing our Youth in Government led “Finding Common Ground” webinar series, bringing back traditionally popular programming such as the Adventure Guides, family/ summer camps, youth sports leagues, and expanding on the number of

Top: Y fans show their support for the organization. 2. Kids have fun in the after-school program. 3. The Y celebrates the opening of their outdoor food pantry, which is open 24/7.

exercise classes available now. Finally, we also look forward to relaunching our school-based Health & Wellbeing programs including youth yoga, which we provided pre-pandemic at 11 partnering schools, serving more than 3,900 students on school days.

Q. Membership has understandably declined during this time. What is your plan for bringing people back and gaining new members? What are some of the Y’s goals for the year? A. We’ve managed to regain more than 42 percent of our pre-COVID membership since restrictions began being lifted in May, and as we are able to continue to bring back staff and programming relevant to them, additional members are returning. Our goals are to continue to add back programming as we are able, to convert program participants into full memberships and to attract new members through inperson community outreach and communications. organizations, groups or people you’d like to give a shout out to? A. That is absolutely correct, and we have too many partners and supporters to adequately list! First and foremost, a huge shout out to our members who kept their memberships active despite our closure as a contribution toward our emergency COVID response fund. We couldn’t have responded to our communities‘ needs without your support–thank you!

We are also extremely grateful for our relationship with: the Inglewood Unified School District, which allowed us to provide distance-learning and pre- and post-school daycare to students from 85 families during this past school year; Aerospace Corporation, with whom we’ve partnered to bring STEM programming to our middle school summer day camp curriculum; and Clark Construction, who helped us provide construction career orientations.

And, we’d be remiss to not recognize our most generous donors who have supported the Y since our beginning, including the Drollinger Family Charitable Foundation, Bob Abernethy, and the William H. Hannon Foundation, all of whom contributed toward our COVID response efforts.

Q. Is there anything else the community should know about the Westchester Family YMCA that you’d like to share?A. While health and wellbeing are central to our core mission, the YMCA is much more than a gym and swim.

We have identified key needs in our community, including senior support, learning recovery, food insecurity, drowning prevention and equity and inclusion, and we will continue focusing on them through our partnerships and programming moving forward.

We encourage everyone to come by for a visit, or to give us a try. Our pool, basketball courts, racquetball courts, and workout facilities are open and available, and we are adding additional programming options regularly. We have an app for class sign-ups, as well as court/pool reservations, and we look forward to seeing you there!

Joining the Y is like joining a family, and a strong Y is great for the community.

Visit ymcala.org/wc or facebook. com/westchesterfamilyymca for more information.

We love highlighting great community businesses, organizations and people in our spotlight series. Email us your suggestions on who to feature next at westchesterhometown@yahoo.com.

Pictured: Members of the Westchester Elks Lodge have fun at the Westchester Team Challenge at Loyola Marymount University. The event is back this year on Saturday, August 7.

It’s Westchester Team Challenge time!

Get ready for the high fives! The Westchester Team Challenge (WTC) is back, and you’re invited to create a team for a day of friendly competition, neighborhood spirit and field games.

The WTC was started in 2019 by longtime Westchester residents Grant Francis and Amy Frelinger as a way to promote community, while getting some fresh air and exercise! After taking a pause last year, organizers are excited to be hosting the second annual event this summer.

The WTC is scheduled for Saturday, August 7 and will be held at Loyola Marymount University’s Drollinger Field. The goal is to gather 10 teams of 10 people–businesses, nonprofit organizations, clubs, friends, neighbors–who will compete in a morning of field day games like the three-legged race, football toss, bocce ball and more. The winners will receive bragging rights for the year, a trophy and will have their pictures published in the September issue of the HTN. All net proceeds from the event will be donated to the Westchester Streetscape Improvement Association, which helps beautify the community. For more information and to register a team, please visit westchestercateamchallenge.com or email westchestercateamchallenge@ gmail.com.

Head to Qargo for coffee and croissants.

Qargo Coffee recently opened in Westchester’s Playa del Oro Shopping Center in the former location of Coffee Bean.

This is Qargo Coffee’s first location in Los Angeles, and it’s a family business run by partners Dr. Ashis Mukherjee, Kingshuk Mukherjee and Kushal Mukherjee.

Qargo serves coffee sourced by world-renowned producer, Lavazza, and they want to become the neighborhood destination for hot and cold beverages, as well as buttery croissants and other tasty pastries.

“Our main goal was to create a family business. Each of us brings different skills and experiences to managing a business and we loved the quality and taste of the Lavazza coffee product. Qargo Coffee was a great fit for us. We’re proud members of this community, and we’re especially proud to operate a local hospitality-oriented business here,” said Kingshuk Mukherjee.

So far they’ve gotten great feedback from the community, said Mukherjee, and they plan on adding more vegan and gluten-free options to the menu.

Check out Qargo Coffee at 8601 Lincoln Blvd. in Westchester.

Qargo Coffee owner, Kingshuk Mukherjee,whips up a latte. Qargo opened at the end of May in Westchester’s Playa del Oro Shopping Center.

Mental Health Guild readies to host vintage treasures sale.

The Westchester Mental Health Guild is hosting a “Vintage Treasures and Memorabilia” sale on Saturday, July 17 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. All the proceeds will benefit Airport Marina Counseling Service and the sale will take place at 7839 Henefer Ave. in Westchester. Items have been donated for sale by members and include antique glassware, crystal bowls, Lladro and Hummel figurines and other collectible items.

The Guild is a nonprofit organization with the sole purpose of fundraising to support AMCS. During the pandemic, they’ve found new ways to raise funds, including virtual events and takeout dinners. AMCS is located at 7891 La Tijera Blvd. in Westchester and provides affordable mental health counseling to the community, while also training therapists. The clinic is currently undergoing renovations to get ready to welcome back clients for in-person appointments. For more information, please visit westchestermhg.org or amcshelps.com.

10th Anniversary Best Of Voting ends July 7th.

It’s your last chance to vote for your favorite local businesses, organizations and people in the HomeTown News’ Best Of Readers’ Poll.

Voting ends Wednesday, July 7 at 11:59 p.m. and readers are invited to pick their favorites in more than 90 categories.

This is the HTN’s 10th anniversary of launching its Best Of, the community’s longest running readers’ poll, which is meant to celebrate all the outstanding businesses (continued on next page)

Westchester pup Koufax looks majestic in his family’s entry for the Second Annual Fourth of July Home Decorating Contest. The winners will be announced at the parade. (continued from previous page) and organizations that make up the Westchester/Playa/Marina area. The August issue of the HTN will have a special printing date of Thursday, August 12. For more details and to vote, visit thehtn.com.

Fireworks in Marina del Rey.

The Marina is hosting fireworks again this year on the Fourth of July, but if you’re planning on viewing them at Burton Chace Park, you’ll need to plan ahead. Fireworks will kick off at 9 p.m. and will last about 10 minutes. Organizers are recommending arriving in the area as early as 1 p.m. and staying in the Marina to avoid traffic to view from the park.

New this year is that Burton Chace Park will be closed to the general public on July 4th.

Pre-registered guests will be allowed entry from 5 to 10 p.m., and capacity is very limited. There will also be no in/out privileges. Parking will be available for a special event rate of $20. For more information and street closures, please visit visitmarinadelrey.com.

Have info to share about your business or nonprofit? We want to hear from you! Email us at westchesterhometown@yahoo.com. for a chance to be featured.

birthday on June 24!

Surrounded by family and members of the PEO Chapter MP Westchester, a Christian philanthropic educational organization that raises money for scholarships for women across the world, Betty enjoyed sharing stories and pictures of her life over the last century.

Originally from Tennessee, she and her family moved to Westchester in the 1970s for her husband’s job in aerospace. Betty quickly became an active member of the community through volunteering with organizations like PEO, the YMCA, Westchester United Methodist Church and the Woman’s Club.

Happy Birthday, Betty!

If you’ve been thinking of selling, now could be the time to make a move. Looking to trade up or trade out?

Call me, let’s discuss.

Amy Frelinger

DRE# 01484711 O 424.281.7603 M 310.951.0416 amy.frelinger@elliman.com