Invest in Your Community

When you give to the Y, you make a meaningful difference in your community.

You know the challenges that we face in our community. People of all ages and backgrounds are struggling to reach their full potential. More and more children face seemingly insurmountable learning gaps. Families find it difficult to spend quality time together. Playing outside has become a rarity. Face time happens through a phone. And instead of seeing the income gap shrink, it seems all we do is watch it grow. But where society falls short, the Y - and donors like you -- step in. Together we make a difference in the lives of thousands of people and a huge impact on each individual we serve. 

The Y Matters – Safe Childcare and Our Economy

Here’s the challenge our parents, and our economy, are facing: Remote teaching while parents are attempting to have their littles ‘logged onto’ a classroom for 6 hours a day? What if the parents have to work remotely
from home? Or at their offices? How on earth will they manage both their children at home ‘going to school’ and their jobs simultaneously demanding their undivided attention?

The truth is, they simply won’t. They can’t.

Those who have the resources will hire tutors and nannies and pay to be part of a ‘pod’ of children to work through this pandemic. Those who do not have the means will simply continue to fall behind. Behind in their own jobs, behind in their children’s’ schoolwork, behind in their house payments and rent- Simply behind.

Shared Story: An 8-year old boy, responsible for his own virtual learning AND the learning of his two younger siblings, had to make sure everyone was logging in at the right time and helping them with their work while his single mom worked at her job. He was so overwhelmed that he was not logging onto his own classes and failed
miserably last spring. When he was told that remote school was happening again in the fall he burst into tears and said he couldn’t do it. He’s 8 years old. Of course he can’t do it. This is an untenable situation for the
entire family.

Here’s the solution: Our goal is to make it possible for these parents to rejoin the economy while providing safe spaces for their children to flourish and complete their homework in a CDC compliant environment.

For the past 2 months we have been touring community facilities-Churches, city buildings, schools-anywhere we might be able to transform a currently unused space into a CDC compliant childcare area. Additionally, we are working with funders to help augment this. The CDC compliance makes this financially unattainable, so putting together funding to provide care for these children will enable parents to return to work and keep businesses flourishing rather than closing.

There is simply no way our economy can survive and thrive if parents cannot go back to work.
Because of you we can offer financial scholarships to those who need us the most. This will be key to reigniting and regenerating our economy and providing safety for young students.
Thank you for making so much possible for so many. Please take care of yourselves and one another. Our community is strong, and together, we will get through this.