Today we are launching a new feature of our Monday Mission Updates called Shout Outs! Shout Outs are opportunities to acknowledge a special Y associate, volunteer, partner or community member that deserves special Y recognition for meaningful impact and/or accomplishment. Not surprisingly, we already have a backlog of Shout Outs to, well, shout out!

A special Y Partner Shout Out goes to McCormick Flavor for Life who, along with many other wonderful programs and Y experiences they have supported all year, have also brought nutrition, taste-testing, fun facts, and healthy eating to Y campers all summer long!

Each week, each camper at our nine Y Center-based camps have experienced a 30-45 minutes Flavor for Life lesson that includes a short nutritional lesson, cooking demonstration, hands on cooking and/or food preparation segment, and best of all – TASTING!

Campers learned about the spices and herbs that flavor our foods and bring nutritional benefits and the simple fact that food can indeed taste great without butter, oils, and salt.

Lessons have also included:

•  a bit of geography – where do all these wonderful flavors come from?
•  healthy eating tips (such as beans are a great option for protein instead of meat; the benefits of fresh vs. frozen or canned foods, etc.)

Some of the campers’ favorite recipes included pizza hummus, pinto bean tacos, and fruit smoothies (I can only hope that my two little campers felt that way!).

This past August 11^th all Y camps participated. Check out the fun:

And, for a special spirit day dedicated to McCormick Flavor for Life, all Y campers made apple sandwiches, painted with spices creating scratch and sniff cards, learned how herbs grow and then are dried, and played a fun McCormick version of Twister. Thank you McCormick Flavor for Life!

This week’s Y Associate Shout Out! goes to Sydnee Holquist, a lifeguard at our Walter and Betty Ward Y in Abingdon, nominated by Ward Y member Emma Ey for being “awesome with the kids and patient in teaching them the skills they need to be successful swimmers.”

Thank you Sydnee! Your work teaching kids to be safe in the water is giving them an invaluable life skill. Thank you for the time and care you take to do it so well. The kids you teach are lucky to have you and we are lucky to have you at the Y!

All the best,

John

John K. Hoey
President & CEO
The Y in Central Maryland