COMMUNITY NEWS 2018: ISSUE 3
DIGGING IN
DIGGING IN
THE Y BREAKS GROUND ON A NEW Y IN THE NORTHEAST BRONX
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ith great joy and hope for the future of this community, local leaders and public officials joined more than 200 Y supporters to celebrate the groundbreaking of the new YMCA in the Northeast Bronx.
President Rubén Díaz Jr., Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, State Senator Jamaal Bailey, YMCA President and CEO Sharon Greenberger, and Bronx County District Attorney Darcel Clark) dug in at the new construction site.
After rousing speeches from supporters such as Mayor Bill de Blasio, special guests (pictured below, l to r: Public Advocate Letitia James, NYC Comptroller Scott Springer, Congress Member Elliot Engel, community leader Shirley Fearon, community leader Al de Castro, Council Member Andy King, Bronx Borough
The brand new facility will serve the Edenwald neighborhood of the Bronx, offering two swimming pools, a fulllength basketball court, gym facilities, a wellness center, a childcare facility, and multi-purpose rooms. Construction is expected to be completed in late 2020. •
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BROOKLYN BEAUTS
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A WORLD OF ADVENTURE
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READY TO SHINE
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BEST FOOT FORWARD AS EASY AS PI IT TAKES A VILLAGE CHARTING A COURSE
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(top l) Community champions Al de Castro and Shirley Fearon look on as their years of advocacy bear fruit. (r) Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr. gets a laugh from YMCA President and CEO Sharon Greenberger and teens and staff from the Vanderbilt YMCA. (bottom l) Y teen/Teens Take the City Mayor Ethan Viera and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie share a moment.
BROOKLYN BEAUTS
THREE BROOKLYN Y’S MAKE IMPROVEMENTS TO RECREATIONAL SPACES
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s part of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Vital Brooklyn initiative, the Bedford-Stuyvesant, Flatbush, and North Brooklyn YMCAs have undergone improvements to recreational spaces. From upgrading flooring, to reconfiguring spin rooms, to updating gymnasiums, the renovations will serve to connect community members with improved recreational opportunities.
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The Vital Brooklyn initiative is designed to target resources toward schools, housing, health care facilities, and recreational spaces in a 46.5-square mile area of central Brooklyn. The state anticipates funding approximately 8,800 projects by the end of 2020. • The Flatbush Y shows off new flooring in a multipurpose space (below) while kids play in the updated gym at the North Brooklyn Y.
2018: ISSUE 3
A WORLD OF ADVENTURE Y SUMMER CAMPS EXPAND EXPERIENCES FOR NYC KIDS
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here can you experience the World Cup, the Renaissance, the magic of Harry Potter, underwater adventures, and fairy tales all in one place? Why, at Y summer camp, of course! Each week this summer, unique themes transported campers to other dimensions in which they learned new sports, created new crafts, read new books, and had an all-around fantastic
time. Over the course of eight weeks, the Y shared enriching experiences with more than 13,000 youth. In addition to theme-based activities, campers practiced camp songs, played games, went on field trips, and took part in special activities such as Summer Reading Day to address summer learning loss.
Camp programs were made possible by 1,300 camp counselors—as well as support from the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development, Macy’s, YMCA of the USA, and Council Members Adrienne Adams, Rubén Díaz Sr., Bill Perkins, and Donovan Richards. •
(left) State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. (with Ridgewood Y Executive Director La-Vena Francis) visits kinder-campers at the Ridgewood Y. (right) Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr. reads to campers at the Bronx Y.
(middle left) Volunteers from Morgan Stanley read to campers at the McBurney’s Y’s program at P.S. 33 and help with follow-up crafts projects. (right) Volunteers from the Turner Construction Company read with young campers at the Chinatown Y. (bottom) Volunteers from JP Morgan celebrate Summer Reading Day with campers at P.S. 126 in Chinatown. 3
READY TO SHINE
COLGATE SUPPORTS Y TEENS IN PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE
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t the Cross Island, Dodge, McBurney, Staten Island, and West Side YMCAs, teens engage in hands-on career training experiences through the Y Step program. Supported by the Colgate-Palmolive Company, Y Step empowers youth to explore career options in the culinary arts, youth development, aquatics, or fashion design, while developing skills in business etiquette and professionalism. By 2020 the program will have served 500 public school students in grades six through twelve. •
BEST FOOT FORWARD MACY’S SUPPORTS Y TEENS AND FAMILIES
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olunteers from Macy’s hosted a dynamic professional development event for teens from YMCAs in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Queens. Participants learned to dress for success—tying proper ties, selecting outfits, and applying make-up/ cosmetics. They also received one-onone support to develop and improve
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upon their resumes. Macy’s employees finished off the event by conducting mock interviews and sharing tips for securing a job. Macy’s also hosted a Family Summer Fun Fashion Show at their flagship store in Herald Square. •
2018: ISSUE 3
AS EASY AS PI
THE Y CONNECTS YOUTH WITH STEM OPPORTUNITIES
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cross the city, the Y engages young people in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) activities designed to stimulate their learning, help them envision a broader range of career options, and ultimately find creative solutions to address challenges in their communities. For instance, at sites in Chinatown, North Brooklyn, and Long Island City, Capital One has hosted a coding program that enabled more than 100 young people to receive coding classes from volunteers. Volunteers helped
youth experiment with application development and design, and explore software engineering using the Android platform and MIT App Inventor. Approximately 20 youth received free laptops at the culmination of the 20172018 school year.
environment in a garden. Children plant seeds with soil made from compost, harvest vegetables, and create dishes in a mobile mini-kitchen, all while learning about the life cycles of plants, how our bodies use food, and the science behind cooking techniques.
At the Greenpoint Y’s afterschool program in McCarren Park, the Y has partnered with the Garden Kitchen Lab and New York City Department of Parks and Recreation to teach children about healthy living and smart eating habits in a fun and hands-on
At other sites, the Y partners with organizations like the Girl Scouts and NY Audubon to implement STEM curricula that support youth in celebrating scientific discovery and using STEM to address engineering and environmental issues. •
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IT TAKES A
THE Y AND ITS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE LEADING BY EXAMPLE The Flatbush Y’s Executive Director, Meishay Gattis (above left, pictured with Community Board Chair Alvin M. Berk and District Manager Shawn Campbell), was honored with Community Board 14’s Service Award for his support of the youth in the Flatbush community.
WELL, WELL, WELL Assembly Member Eric Dilan (at center with EmblemHealth’s Nazneen Rahman, North Brooklyn Y Senior Program Director Michael Garcia, Fire & Ice Basketball Director Keith Norris, and North Brooklyn Y Executive Director Marjorie Jean-Jacques), Council Member Rafael L. Espinal Jr., State Senator Martin Malavé Dilan, and Female District Leader Darma V. Diaz teamed up with EmblemHealth to sponsor a wellness week at the North Brooklyn Y.
JUST IN CASE Elected officials and advocates (l to r: Assembly Member Marcos Crespo, Y New Americans Initiative Director Rachael Rinaldo, State Senator Jeffrey Klein, and State Senator Diane Savino) celebrated the signing of a bill allowing undocumented immigrants to assign a standby guardian. 6
GOOD CATCH Former MLB Baseball Player, Darryl Strawberry shared his inspirational story about his struggle with addiction, and his road to recovery, at the YMCA Counseling Service’s annual brunch. Strawberry was joined by (l to r) Counseling Service Board Chair Celia Iervasi, YMCA Counseling Service Executive Director Jacqueline Filis, Richmond County District Attorney Michael McMahon, Chief Assistant District Attorney Paul Capofari, ADA Jason Cohen, Detective Jeff Ward, and HOPE Director of Navigation Amanda Wexler.
HONORING SENIORS The Bronx Y held a senior appreciation event attended by over 300 seniors, as well as State Senator Jeffrey Klein (pictured with Bronx Deputy Borough President Marricka ScottMcFadden, Bronx Y Executive Director Sharlene Brown and Glebe Center Director Selenie Villar), State Senator Luis R. Sepúlveda (right), and Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark (not pictured). ALL THAT JAZZ The North Brooklyn Y hosted a Jazz Brunch honoring Darma V. Diaz (center), State Committee Woman and District Leader of the 54th Assembly District. Special guests included (top, l to r) North Brooklyn Y Executive Director Marjorie Jean-Jacques, North Brooklyn Y Board Chair Phyllis White-Thorne, Executive Producer Brooklyn Savvy and Director of Regional & Community Affairs at Con Ed, Toni Williams, and Juliet Lewis of Con Edison; and (bottom, l to r) Assembly Member Walter Mosley, Former Congressman Ed Towns, North Brooklyn Y Executive Director Marjorie Jean-Jacques, YMCA VP of Field Operations Dordy Jourdain, and North Brooklyn Y Senior Program Director Michael Garcia.
2018: ISSUE 3
VILLAGE
PARTNERS DEEPEN IMPACT IN COMMUNITIES
SHAQ ATTACK Former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal and NBA Draftees Marvin Bagley III, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Mikal Bridges stopped in for a surprise visit with Y teens at an event sponsored by JCPenney. (photos courtesy of Jordan Rathkopf, Brooklyn Paper)
THIS LITTLE LIGHT OF MINE Two students in the Y’s New Americans Initiative completed culinary training at Emma’s Torch, a restaurant that provides intensive training for refugees and immigrants. (above, l to r) Student Kesnelfils Joseph, Y Program Director Lorna Blancaflor, student Nagela Moise, and Y Job Readiness Counselor Beatrice Jean Claude celebrated their accomplishments.
EMPOWERMENT THROUGH THE ARTS The Jamaica Y hosted an arts event with Get Empowered, led by Jamaica Y alum and performer Obba Babatunde (seen above with State Senator Leroy Comrie, Assembly Member Alicia Hyndman, and Jamaica Y Executive Director Cedric Dew).
GAME, SET, MATCH 30 campers from the Jamaica Y attended a tennis clinic at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, where they worked on their tennis skills and met former tennis pro Billie Jean King. Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield supported the program and donated to YMCA programs promoting health. BACK TO SCHOOL The Ridgewood Y, Congress Member Nydia Velazquez, and School District 32 co-hosted the annual Bushwick School Fair. District Director Evelyn Cruz and Community Liaison Julio Salazar came out to represent the congresswoman at the event.
REACHING OUT IN ROCKAWAY Assembly Member Stacey Pheffer Amato (with Y Vice President of Public Affairs Sharon Levy and Rockaway Y Interim Executive Director Erika Rautenstrauch) visited the Rockaway Y to connect around issues of health and civic engagement. 7
YMCA of Greater New York 5 West 63rd Street, 6th Floor New York, NY 10023 212 630 9600 ymcanyc.org
CHARTING A COURSE
THE Y PILOTS A COMMUNITY HEALTH NAVIGATION PROGRAM IN CONEY ISLAND
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he Y’s New Americans Initiative and the Coney Island YMCA, in partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the YMCA of the USA, launched a six-month pilot project in January 2018 to navigate community health resources. The project supported community members in addressing their own social determinants of health (access to health care, food resources, domestic violence, crime, etc.) with the aim of decreasing inequities in the Coney Island community. Working in collaboration with local partners such as the Alliance for Coney Island, the Family Health and Cardiac Center, the local Head Start Health Services Advisory Committee, and the Jewish Community Council of Greater
Coney Island, the project served over 150 individuals with blood pressure screenings, A1C testing, glucose screenings, support with a community garden, and other services.
The project not only helped community members connect with local resources but also provided information for a new toolkit to help other local YMCAs replicate health navigation services. •