COMMUNITY NEWS 2019: ISSUE 3
BUILDING UP THE BRONX
BUILDING UP THE BRONX
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HIGH FIVES
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THIS LAND IS MY LAND
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BACK TO SCHOOL
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BRIGHT FUTURES
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MAKING OUR VOICES HEARD IT TAKES A VILLAGE A FLYING START
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TWO NEW YMCAS ADVANCE IN THE BRONX
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onstruction is well underway for two new YMCA facilities slated to open in the Bronx in 2020: the La Central Y at the Hub and the Northeast Bronx Y near the Edenwald Houses. Y supporters and community leaders have visited both sites to see how they are progressing and understand the layout of the new facilities. In preparation for next year’s openings, teen participants in the Y’s
Summer Youth Employment Program identified services and resources in the surrounding neighborhoods of the two new YMCAs. Teens interviewed local leaders such as Michael Brady, Executive Director of the Third Avenue BID; Max Griffith of Internships for Bronx PIC; Joshua Rivera, Director of Government and External Relations for Hostos Community College; Kevin Reilly, Community Director for NYS Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie; George Torres,
District Manager for Community Board 12; Walter McNeil, President of the Edenwald Tenant Association; and Al De Castro and Lethia Williams, long-time community activists. •
Y supporters tour the sites of the Northeast Bronx Y (left) and the La Central Y (above).
(above) Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr. visits the site of the Aquatics Center at the new Northeast Bronx Y. (left) SYEP participants and Y staff with community activists Lethia Williams and Al De Castro. 1
HIGH FIVES
THE Y CELEBRATES AN ENRICHING SUMMER FOR 13,000 CAMPERS ACROSS THE CITY
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camps served up an amazing summer to approximately 13,000 children, nearly 4,000 of which attended free of charge with support from the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development. Campers gathered at schools and YMCAs in all corners of NYC, and at the Y’s idyllic 1,000+ acre camp in Orange County, NY, to enjoy a wide range of activities. Over 1,000 counselors aged 18-24 packed each day with activities such as arts projects, reading games, swim lessons, STEM activities, museum outings, and healthy eating workshops, helping campers develop plenty of new skills while reinforcing much of what they learned during the school year. The end result? An unforgettable experience that had kids begging parents to let them sign up for one more week. •
Congress Member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez talks with teen campers from the Bronx Y.
(left) Volunteers from Morgan Stanley read to campers at the McBurney Y. (right) State Senator Julia Salazar reads to campers (and Executive Director Marjorie Jean Jacques) at the North Brooklyn Y.
(left) State Senator Alessandra Biaggi joins in the fun at the Bronx Y summer camp. (right) Mr. Met and players Robert Gsellman, JD Davis, and Tyler Bashlor lead campers at the Flushing Y in a Mets On the Move Clinic. 2
2019: ISSUE 3
THIS LAND IS MY LAND THE Y’S NEW AMERICANS INITIATIVE EXPANDS PROGRAMMING
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s part of Welcoming Week, the Y’s New Americans Initiative opened a seventh New Americans Welcome Center (NAWC) at the Flatbush Y. The Flatbush Y has been offering classes and workshops for New Americans for several years, but as a NAWC it will provide more robust programming through direct and referral services, community partnerships, and bridgebuilding strategies. Welcoming Week is an annual event that brings together immigrants and U.S.born residents to celebrate diversity. By
hosting events across the city. The Y celebrated with events such as a midautumn festival at the Chinatown Y that promoted Chinese culture; a National Constitution Day event at the Flushing Y; a culinary celebration featuring West African, Yemeni, and Dominican food at the Harlem Y; and the sharing of arts representing diverse cultures at the Prospect Park Y. Earlier in the year, the New Americans Initiative honored its first class of Home Health Aide (HHA) students for receiving their Home Health Aide certification.
These dedicated students completed the Home Health Aide Training program at the Flushing Y’s New Americans Welcome Center through funding from the New York State Education Department under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). The New Americans Initiative also receives support from the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development, Con Edison, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, and the Vidda Foundation. •
(above, l to r) 70th Precinct Police Officer Natalie Michel; Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office on Immigrant Affairs Bitta Mostofi; Flatbush Y Executive Director Jamel Davis; Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte; YMCA President and CEO Sharon Greenberger; Flatbush Y Board Member Marceau Edourad, Jr.; and Council Member Farah Louis celebrate the official ribbon cutting.
(left) Students at the Flatbush Y’s New Americans Welcome Center lead the Pledge of Allegiance. (right) Students and instructors from the Flushing Y’s first Home Health Aide Training program. 3
BACK TO SCHOOL
WELLS FARGO AND CAPITAL ONE SUPPORT Y EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS
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ells Fargo and Capital One are investing in New York City students by supporting the Y’s educational programs at sites across the city. Wells Fargo supports Y Afterschool, helping the Y deliver quality afterschool programming at nine elementary schools where we serve 875 children and families. Wells Fargo also supports the Harlem Y’s bai program, which includes a tour of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), a mentoring program, a summer internship program, and annual scholarship awards. Capital One sends volunteers into Y programs to teach coding to middle school students. This fall they also donated 1,000 back-to-school STEM-themed backpacks to students at the Bronx, Chinatown, and Flushing Ys. Each backpack included books, a flash drive, a notebook, ear buds, colored LEDs, copper foil tape, and a coin cell battery. •
Capital One volunteers teach coding skills to students at the Chinatown Y’s Beacon program.
BRIGHT FUTURES
BANK OF AMERICA’S STUDENT LEADERS SUPPORT THE Y’S WORK
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ach summer, the Vanderbilt Y hosts three interns through Bank of America’s Student Leaders program. The program, now in its 10th year with more than 2,000 alumni, provides civicminded high school students with a paid summer internship at a local nonprofit
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and participation in a leadership summit in Washington, D.C. The Student Leaders, who applied through a competitive process and were chosen by a Local Market Selection Committee, worked alongside Y staff
for eight weeks. Upon completion of the project, one student volunteered to support the Y’s Census 2020 efforts during her senior year of high school. • Bank of America Student Leaders Nicole Rozelman, Menasha Thomas, and Summer Shabana discuss their future goals
2019: ISSUE 3
MAKING OUR VOICES HEARD THE Y PROMOTES CIVIC ENGAGEMENT ACROSS THE CITY
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or the third year in a row, YMCAs across the city hosted voter registration drives as part of National Voter Registration Day. Registration drives were led by community partners Brooklyn NAACP, Brooklyn Voters Alliance, Chinese Progressive Association, Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, League of Women Voters, NALEO Educational Fund, Pi Kappa Omega Chapter of AKA, and the Queens Board of Elections, as well as by Y staff and volunteers.
In addition to registering or updating registration forms for more than 120 people, our teams handed out forms for people to bring back to family members, and talked with community members about early voting, ballot initiatives, and the 2020 Census. Community partners also planned additional drives at Open House events, and made plans to return to do education and outreach for community members who expressed hesitance to register.
The Y also worked with the League of Women Voters to provide civic engagement training to staff leading teen programming, and began planning for a civic engagement-themed teen event in January. Four Ys—Coney Island, Cross Island, Prospect Park, and Rockaway—also served as polling sites for New York State’s inaugural season of Early Voting. The Y also hosted several informational workshops and a recruitment event for the Census, and began planning for educational and outreach activities to take place throughout the city. • (below) Voter registration drives at the Broadway Y, Flushing Y, and Long Island City Y, and multilingual flyers to promote civic engagement.
Community leaders (l to r: Eric Bottcher, Chief Of Staff to NYC Council Speaker Corey Johnson; Sharon Greenberger, YMCA President and CEO; Susie Gomes, League of Women Voters; Ayirini Fonseca-Sabune, NYC Chief Democracy Officer; Jan Combopiano, Brooklyn Voters Alliance; Juan Rosa, NALEO Educational Fund; and Julie Kerr, Brooklyn Voters Alliance) come together to promote National Voter Registration Day.
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IT TAKES THE Y AND ITS PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
TRAILBLAZERS Campers from the North Brooklyn Y attended the ribbon cutting of Shirley Chisholm State Park, the largest state park in New York City, and enjoyed being the first players on its brand new basketball courts.
NATIONAL NIGHT OUT (l) Congress Member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bronx Y participants and (r) Lifeguard/Instructor Elijah Olenja and State Senator Luis R. Sepúlveda engaged in community-building activities for National Night Out.
PRIDE & JOY YMCA staff and participants took part in the annual Pride Parade, where they ran into Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr. and Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer. 6
RETAIL PROS Teen participants from the Bronx, Jamaica, McBurney, Vanderbilt, and West Side Ys headed to Macy’s to learn how to create a professional LinkedIn profile, maximize their wardrobe, and prepare for job interviews. After learning how to apply the finishing touches through grooming and beauty products, teens left with goodie bags with product samples!
2019: ISSUE 3
A VILLAGE PARTNERS DEEPEN IMPACT IN COMMUNITIES
PLANNING FOR SUCCESS Teen Counselors-in-Training at the McBurney Y visited Google and got career inspiration from Google Vice President Torrence Boone (above), as well as Global Client Lead and McBurney Board Member Jessica Bindman.
MAKING AN IMPACT Volunteers from Deloitte lent their service to projects at the Jamaica, Cross Island, and Harlem Ys for their Annual Impact Day.
BUILD IT TOGETHER BNP Paribas Americas and Impact4Good organized an event at the West Side Y where 54 volunteers built bikes that were then generously donated to a group of amazing kids.
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YMCA of Greater New York 5 West 63rd Street, 6th Floor New York, NY 10023 212 630 9600 ymcanyc.org
A FLYING START
THE BROADWAY Y PILOTS HEALTHY WEIGHT AND YOUR CHILD PROGRAM
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n partnership with Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC), the Broadway Y piloted the Healthy Weight and Your Child program to help Staten Island families address childhood obesity through education, healthy eating, physical activity, and group support. Through the partnership, the Y will host 25 sessions of this holistic, evidencebased, lifestyle-change intervention, while RUMC provided referrals to children with a 95% Body Mass Index (BMI) and will provide ongoing BMI, blood pressure, and lipids testing for participants. The Broadway Y was one of 20 YMCAs in the nation to receive funding from YUSA for this program. •
(left) Staten Island Borough President James S. Oddo speaks about the importance of collaboration in supporting families challenged by economic concerns and limited access to healthy foods; (right) Broadway Y Executive Director Joe Verhey at the program launch.