Eye On Houston

YMCA of Greater Houston Summer Programs

Ron Hughley from The Drive on SportsRadio 610 sits down with Lindsay Lewis (Senior Vice President of Programs, Evaluation, and Membership for YMCA of Greater Houston) about the summer programs the YMCA is offering for kids of all ages. Visit YMCAHouston.org for more information.

Duration:: 23m
Broadcast on:: 27 Jul 2024
Audio Format:: mp3

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You can hear me every week day right here on sports radio, 16 from two to six, the drive, the drive which Sterner and Hughley, and welcome into the eye on Houston as we are talking to Lindsey Lewis, the senior vice president of programs and evaluation at the YMCA. Hello, Lindsey. How are you? Hi, Ron. I'm doing well. How are you? Great. Great. Can you kind of kind of let people know what your position is at the YMCA? Sure. My name is Lindsey Lewis. I'm the senior vice president of programs, evaluation and membership at the YMCA of Greater Houston. So I oversee the programs and the member experience and staff across all of our 20 locations at the YMCA. And one of our main focus areas is just to make sure that our members feel a sense of connection belonging and achievement. Awesome. And listen, I'll tell you, Lindsey, I've asked him experience there. I've worked for the YMCA for 10 years in high school and college, and that is definitely something that was the focus when I was working there, and it's awesome to hear that it still is the focus there. I know one big thing that I can remember in my time there was swimming and safety and really that being a serious thing. And I am certain that it's still something within the YMCA that is very important. Yes, swimming is one of our main programs. We, many of us in Houston probably know this, but water safety is the second leading cause of death for kids under the age of 14 in Texas. In Texas, the swim lessons, I mean, we can really reduce that by 88%, and it really just takes us focusing on safety and encouraging that we're teaching our kiddos those swim lessons here at the Y and those safety skills that are going to not only be great for today in the summer, but for a lifetime. Lindsey, could you go into a little bit of a depth maybe on what that looks like, what the safety structure is and how you guys go about teaching that with swim lessons? Absolutely. So our programs, we offer any from ages infants up into seniors, 120 years old. So our programs are for everyone. And we really, we have a couple of different types of lessons. So we have our standard swim lessons that are really focused on skill achievement and getting our kiddos and our participants to the next level of swim. But we also have a program called safety around water. And that program is really designed and the curriculum is focused on getting people safe around water and understanding what to do if they're ever in danger. But one of just an example I want to share is my son has been through all programs at the YMCA and just a story to share is he was at a friend's house and he went underwater and he had to figure out how to get back up and he took the lessons that we teach here at the Y through that. And one of this is jump, push, turn, grab. So in our lesson, we teach them to, if you're ever in danger, jump off the bottom of the pool, push to turn to grab the wall. And that skill that he learned in our swim lesson is what saved him that day. Wow, that's an awesome real life story to share and understand. And I'm guessing you guys are able to see real results on what you guys are teaching. As you said, ranging from infants all the way up to older adults. We sure are. And last year, we had 13,000 participants go through our swim program, 13,000 participants in our swim program. So we know it's a need here in Houston. And our main goal is to make sure that not only in our walls and the Y walls, but outside of our facilities that they're still safe in having that swim lesson stick with them. Just exactly like my son had that experience. Awesome. And can you kind of tell people a little bit how they can get involved, how they can be a part of the swim, safety in the swim with the YMCA? Absolutely. So reach is one of our main focuses. So we have 20 YMCA's around the greater Houston area. And so we have lessons and all of our of our Y's. So please go to our website at YMCAHouston.org or call any of our 20 locations. We will be happy to tell you more about the program and also get you registered for one of our lessons. And also with that, I know for me, Lindsey, I have three kids myself that range in the age of four, four, seven, and 10. And I'm just curious, you know, for parents, you know, with that situation, what may be kind of the scale of pay for that? For that swim lesson, sure. So we have our programs range. We have a lot of free programs. We also have programs that you charge. So it depends on who you are and what you want to do here out of Y. So our swim programs, they are anywhere from, I would say up to $109 at this time, but anything in between as well. We also have financial assistance at all of our Y locations. So we never want finances to be a barrier. Our goal is to serve people and especially creating safety around the city of Houston. Awesome. Lindsey, curious, I know we're talking about swim and safety. What potential other programs do the Y, does the YMCA, the over 20 YMCA's in the Houston area provide? We like to say we have it all. We have all the programs for all the people and we have, this summer, so many programs that are happening right now. Our centers are just booming with activity. Right now we have our summer day camps that again are at all of our 20 plus locations. We also have an overnight camp that is located near like Livingston. My son actually just got back from that camp a week and a half ago and he came back more independent and started doing his laundry. So he will go back next week next year as well. So our camps are just such a great summer program, just to name a few. So we have swim lessons, definitely our summer camps, but a variety of options and not just camp at our local Y, like I said that camp down near Lake Livingston. We also have sports programs, whether it's soccer or basketball or flag football or volleyball. We have programs for our sports participants too if they're interested in that as well. I think it's really cool as we're talking about a lot of the programs, but I remember being in high school Lindsay and trying to find a job and I didn't want to work in fast food or sales or something. And I remember when I was 16, I found the YMCA and did some front desk stuff and refereed some games. I'm curious, what if you have a team? What if you have someone who is interested in maybe going to the Y for employment? What's the age that they can start and how could they go about doing that? My goodness. We would love that. That's fantastic. I actually started at the YMCA when I was 18 years old and we have roles or jobs anywhere from age 16 and up. So whether our community members want to be a lifeguard or they want to be a camp counselor, maybe they want to be on the membership team that really encourages members to be a part of the Y or serve them in another way. We have our healthy living team who's really focused on ensuring that our team members and our members are reaching their goals, whether that's from a personal training course or a group X program. Our group X instructors are electric. So if you love dancing or if you love working out another position as our group X instructors, they are phenomenal. Also, again, because I remember when I was in college, I did a before and after school. Is that still activity that the YMCA offers for kids before and after school care? Absolutely. So before and after school, we want to make sure that our kids are safe before and after, especially for those working parents who need that extra convenience and family support. We actually already started registering for the next school year. And so anyone who's interested in being a part of after school or before care, we do have that registration open right now for anyone who needs it. Just to share a little bit about that, we have after school right in some of our elementary schools. So there's no additional transportation. It truly is just convenience for the parent that once their school day is, once the kiddo school day is complete, they go into the after school room at that school to make it even easier for the parent. Awesome. I do it while making coffee. I do it in the car. I do it when the kids are asleep. What are they all doing? 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It feels soft where you want it and supports where you need it. Purple mattresses instantly adapt when you move. You don't sink in and get stuck like with memory foam. And thanks to over 1,400 air chambers in the gel flex grid, you will sleep cooler on a purple mattress. Purple has a wide variety of mattresses from the original purple mattress to the restore hybrid collection that combines gel flex grid with coils and the rejuvenate lux collection, the height of luxury. With over 112,000 to five star reviews to prove it, visit purple.com to find the perfect purple for you and enter code podcast 10 to get 10% off. I did want to before getting you out of here, Lindsey. I did want to get your thoughts of, hey, why is it so important to the YMCA for young kids from, as you said, really, really young elementary age all the way up to high school. Why is it so important to the YMCA to really have so many activities and options for them during the summer in particular? What we've learned is achievement is important for all people, not just youth. And when they, I'm just going to talk about sports, for example, if a child is in a sports program, they're more likely to succeed in school. They're more likely to be more strong in social, emotional knowledge and also being able to have more relationships with kids. I mean, even from, from my child's example, he's been on our sports programs, our swim lessons, our camp. And I can truly see a difference in him because he's around kids his age. They're learning about the same thing together. It truly makes a difference not only from social and emotional growth, but also their confidence. I've seen him gain confidence just because he has another place to belong, another group of people that now consider him a friend. I want to share one more thing about our camp colon, which is near Lake Livingston. He spent a week there with these kiddos in the same cabin being just a part of the group. And then when he got back that next Saturday morning, I heard him on the phone at 6.30 a.m. Talking to his friends that he met at this camp. So he's made lifelong friends and that for me as a parent, that's enough for me to make sure I'm going to go back again. That's awesome. Real quick. I know the summer is getting started as we're heading to July. Is there still opportunities for parents to sign kids up for summer programs? Absolutely. Our summer programs are still open. We have at any program, we just started our youth sports registration. So that's open and live swim lessons, again, all 20 locations. We have some lessons readily available. Same thing with all of our camp programs as well. Awesome. Lindsay, you said you started your 18. What did you start? What was your... What did you start? Please, I'd like to hear this. I was a welcome center staff member at the front desk. And I greeted people and I registered people to be a part of the Y. That was my first journey. And I feel like I've fulfilled every role within the Y since 22 years later. And so the Y is just such a great, great place to start. And when I started 18, I didn't know it was going to be my career for life, but it's truly changed my life. And it's been such a great, great addition to my family and my life. That's awesome. Lindsay, one more time. Could you just let folks know how people can get involved and how people can learn about these activities and where exactly they can go to get information? Absolutely. So on our website, YMCAHouston.org has all of our information about our programs. I just want to encourage one more thing. Please call any of our 20 plus centers if you're interested. There's a Y in most of our communities in Houston. We also offer a three-day no-charge connection pass where you can just come in to any of our Ys for three days, try us out, just get more information about our programs, be a part of the Y, at least for those three days and hopefully longer. Wow. Three days. Now you just, I mean, anybody listening, now you just really don't have any reason. I mean, they're just giving it to you now. They're just giving you an opportunity to learn. And it was so great to hear about so many of the programs, unique programs. And I'm telling you, Lindsay, as a parent, especially with swimming, I am someone that's very concerned, I'll tell a quick story. When I was working at the Y, it was just really interesting that we were talking a lot about the swim and safety. And I worked before and after school care, and I think it was every Wednesday, we would go swimming. And I had my post area in the pool as we're watching the kids, and we had a really serious situation with a young lady who, I think she was about eight or nine years old, and she swallowed water and was just kind of there. And luckily, my training kind of kicked in as someone being employed there from the YMCA. And we're able to run her from the middle of the pool and start CPR. But she came right away about a few seconds after, but it was something that always stayed with me in my time there, and understanding like, oh, man, all these trainings that the Y provides for us, and you actually had to use it, and really kind of put in perspective how serious and how serious safety is within the water. And as I said, as a parent of three young kids, that is something that I have been looking for and me and my wife look at a lot with our kids. So I would advise anybody to at least follow up with these awesome programs otherwise is providing. I'm sorry you had to experience that. I mean, it is nothing to mess around with or around, and this is what I love about our swim program, our lifeguards and our swim instructors go through an intense training program. It's not just a one and done type of training program, they are training continuously through the entire year. They have in services to go through, and they have to complete hours and requirements to pass tests. We take this so seriously, we have lives in our hands and it's something we take very seriously. Yes, yes. That is awesome. Well, Lindsey, again, thank you so much for joining us and guys, three days, three days, you can go in and just see what the YMCA offers and hopefully as you say, you stay longer. Once again, thanks for joining us on the Eye of Houston. This is Ron Hugley. I do afternoon drive every day on Sports Radio 16. You can listen to us weekdays from two to six on Sports Radio 16. Appreciate you joining us again, Lindsey. Thank you so much, Ron. We're here to welcome all of you at the Y. Thank you for listening to Eye on Houston. Remember, you can catch me, Ron Hugley, every day weekdays on Sports Radio 16 on the drive with Sterner and Hugley on Sports Radio 16. I do it while making coffee. I do it in the car. I do it when the kids are asleep. What are they all doing? 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