LETTER FROM THE CEO: MAY 2015
It’s spring, so I’m cleaning house in this month’s letter with a bunch of updates about facility closures, a camp warning and a thank you.
The next few weeks at the Y are like the calm before the storm. School’s out soon and camp will begin shortly after, the bubble will come down and the hot dog cart will roll out (yes, a hot dog cart is our newest poolside feature). I know, it’s so exciting you can’t even stand it. The new indoor cycling bikes came in at Arapahoe — after sitting in the containers in California for many weeks. Our members really like them at Mapleton, so I hope the Arapahonians enjoy them as well.
To help us take the Ys from spring to summer, we will shutdown the Arapahoe Y on May 9-17. We will work on the gym and studio floors as well as give an upgrade to the locker rooms. We’ll also touch up paint and do some other spring cleaning activities.
The No. 1 complaint during a shutdown is the lingering smell from the gym floors. We use a low-emission finisher, but it is chemical based. The smell lingers and some people don’t like it or react poorly to it. I am sorry, but there is no way around the smell. The floors need to be taken care of, or they become slippery and injuries can occur. As always, you can use the other Y during this time to minimize the impact to your routine.
The shut down for Mapleton will be June 29–July 5. You may have seen the sign at Mapleton that says we have a new parking lot coming soon. We will be repaving our lot at Mapleton and the Y lot located across the street. The Y owns the little paved lot across the street by the Boulder Rock Club as well as all the spaces across from BRC that face the wooden fence line. Park over there all you want! And the whole parking experience at Mapleton will improve 100 percent with this upgrade.
We just hosted two after proms at the Arapahoe Y, and they both went very well: no incidents and all of the kids had a safe night. Statistically, prom night is one of the most lethal nights for teens, and this is a good way to help keep them safe. I know it may have disrupted your routine on those days, but these young lives are worth the inconvenience to all of us. I thank you very much for your patience as we try to do good work in the community. There were more than 200 volunteers from Peak to Peak and Centaurus high schools who were involved, and we all owe them a debt of gratitude.
In equipment news, we will begin to work on the fall cardio equipment purchase for Mapleton in the next couple of months. If you have any input to give, please let Jerry Hernandez know so he can begin to consider how many pieces of equipment are needed. We don’t solicit input over the brand of equipment, because that becomes about personal opinion. What we have found over the years is that the quality varies year by year, so we get data from all of the Ys across the country about who is doing a good job with any particular piece of equipment.
Lastly, I need to touch on day camp and resident camp. Thousands of kids will be going to summer camp next month, and parents often want to know how to pick a safe one for their kids. I know you want to look at fun, but here are a few tips to consider (whether you pick a Y camp or not):
Look for a licensed camp and/or an ACA-accredited camp (American Camping Association).
How long does the staff undergo training? Make sure that your kids’ camp counselors have plenty of preparation.
Licensed day camps will require a minimum of 500 hours of working with children.
What is the hiring process for staff? How do they select the people who will work with your kids?
On field trips to swimming pools, are staff members required to watch the kids or do they just leave it to the local guards?
Do you have the camp director’s cell phone number? Make sure you can always contact your camp director.
The ratios of staff to kids.
What are the emergency procedures? Can your child’s site director or camp counselor explain them to you?
How does the place look? A clean camp is usually a pretty well run camp.
How does the camp address bullying issues? Bullying is the No. 1 fear of kids.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it will definitely give you an idea of what to look out for when selecting a camp. If you want more advice or any clarification about anything on this list, just contact me at the Y and I will be happy to chat.
As always, don’t hesitate to email me with any concerns you may have about the Y, [email protected].
Thank You,
Chris Coker
CEO/President of YMCA of Boulder Valley