Program areas at Gateway Region YMCA
Our ymca is committed to nurturing the potential of every child and teen. We believe all kids have great potential and deserve the opportunity to discover who they are and what they can achieve. That's why we help Young people cultivate the values, skills and relationships that lead to positive behaviors, better health and educational achievement.as part of our youth development programs, the Gateway Region y provides academic programs to ensure that all youth graduate from high school ready for the next step in their lives. In 2022, we provided one-on-one reading tutoring to 108 youth and adults. Through our learning labs program, we provided small group support in reading and/or math to 56 children, and 339 youth participated in steam (science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics) learning. Through our teen leaders programs, the y is committed to ensuring that every Young person has the opportunity to become a healthy, contributing member of society. In 2022, 78 teens contributed 5,571 service hours giving back to their community. In addition, 93 teens participated in cooking, podcasting and esports programs, while another 350 teens enjoyed a safe place to meet with friends through our y teen nights. Additionally, 12 teens participated collectively in central leaders, leaders club, and teen camp. Through our Washington university campus y programs, Young adults support communities with blood drives, educational enrichment, tutoring, and mentoring to area youth, and participate in campus leadership roles. Our youth and government (yag) program provided 178 students the opportunity to experience the democratic process and develop the leadership skills needed to become citizens of a participatory society. Throughout our 25-year history of providing inclusive services, our y has been under-resourced to serve that community through youth sports, despite the great need. Unfortunately, children with disabilities have historically been excluded from participating in sports due to the lack of options. That is why in 2022 we launched our new adaptive sports program that served 119 youth in our first year. Youth and Young adults throughout the st. louis Region who have physical or cognitive disabilities now have an opportunity to play sports as a team member in an organized program, and we have plans to grow that program significantly. Our y believes in giving back and supporting our neighbors, and one way we do that is by providing health access to as many people as possible. In 2022, the Gateway Region ymca maintained 7 community gardens that contributed produce to the surrounding areas they serve.working together with partnership for a healthier america, in 2022 we implemented the good food for all program, serving 3,000 families a week for 12 weeks, providing 720,000 pounds of food in an effort to combat food insecurity and create equitable access to healthy and sustainable food to north st. louis. The Gateway Region ymca world service program works in partnership with ys in ukraine, belize, chile, colombia, and south africa. Contributions given to our international partners are used to support youth-led social entrepreneurship, health education and training, climate change action and other civic engagement initiatives that position Young people to lead the change in their communities.