Wow! Last week was a busy one, to say the least! On top of the ‘normal’ array of activities and responsibilities that we all attend to at any one given time (can someone define normal?), last week we also celebrated three milestones: the official start of Y camp 2017, the launch of an exciting new program and the celebration of a 10 year anniversary!

That’s kind of how we roll around here.

Y on the Fly! An exciting new partnership with McCormick Flavor For Life and PNC!

We were pleased to announce the launch of Y on the Fly, a program funded by PNC and McCormick Flavor For Life. Y on the Fly will introduce Baltimore City youth to healthy living through 90 minutes of nutritional engagement and physical activity with a mobile, interactive program. Over the summer, the Y on the Fly mobile van (pictured below) will reach approximately 1,500 youth with coordinated stops at 40 locations throughout Baltimore City’s most challenged neighborhoods. McCormick’s Flavor For Life tent will be set up at each stop, giving children the opportunity to taste different spices and help with food preparation. Each child will also receive a Flavor For Life recipe card to take home. The van will also be stocked with sports balls, hula hoops, jump ropes and more to promote physical activity.

Y on the Fly officially launched last Thursday at the Weinberg Y in Waverly with a kick-off celebration, ribbon cutting and program demonstration. Our guest speakers included PNC executive (and fabulous Y Board member) Matt Martin, and Scott Robinson, McCormick’s Senior Manager of Corporate Communications. Summer campers demonstrated Y on the Fly activities and participated in a McCormick Flavor For Life hands-on recipe creation station.

McCormick Flavor For Life and PNC are both wonderful partners with the Y. Both organizations demonstrate consistent leadership that benefits the community in countless ways. Their support of Y on the Fly is just one more example of many that underscores the deep commitment each has to the health and well-being of children and families in our community.

The Walter & Betty Ward Y In Abingdon Celebrates Ten Great Years in Harford County!

Because we believe in the adage “go big or go home,” on the same day we launched the Y on the Y we also celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Walter & Betty Ward Family Y in Abingdon! This beautiful Y opened in 2007 as a 30,000-square-foot Y Center and expanded in 2013 to 50,000 square feet. Now a hub of Y programs and services in Harford County, this center enables us to reach over 15,000 children and adults throughout the County with healthy living, youth development and social responsibility programs and opportunities– up from the 3,700 we were serving in 2007 when the center first opened.

Today, the Ward Y in Abingdon has more than 12,000 members and includes two pools, a climbing wall, family room, fitness floor, group exercise, gymnasium and multi-purpose space and more.  Volunteerism and other mission-driven charitable opportunities and services are also facilitated by the Ward Y, including free swim lessons for children whose families could otherwise not afford them. In 2016 alone, community volunteers and Y associates raised more than $244,000 in financial aid to help more than 1,100 families and individuals in Harford County access Y memberships and programming.

We celebrated the Ward Y’s 10^th anniversary in typical Y fashion by opening our doors to the whole community to enjoy all the Y has to offer! We were also honored to be joined in the celebration by County Executive Barry Glassman, Harford County Council President Richard Slutzky and Councilmen Curtis Beulah, James McMahan, Mike Perrone and Chad Shrodes, along with the Harford County Community Leadership Board Chair Paul Fallace and many other community volunteers and leaders.

​We are deeply grateful to the Betty Ward, her late husband Walter and the whole Ward family whose generosity enabled the building of this Y ten years ago.  Thanks to them, the Y has a solid foundation for continued investment in the health and well-being of Harford County’s children, families, adults and seniors.

Y Camp 2017!

Because Y people aren’t particularly good at resting, last week also saw the start of yet another exciting camp season as hundreds of eager campers streamed onto our campuses and other Y camp and enrichment sites to begin yet another summer filled with fun, adventure, new skills and new friends!

When the summer is over, we will have made summer meaningful, fun and enriching for over 5,000 young people who will have productively used their bodies the Y’s associates, volunteers and partners for their boundless energy and tireless commitment to our cause. Our entire community is enriched for it!

All the best,

John

John K. Hoey
President & CEO
Y in Central Maryland