$3.5M in expenses

Youth development: nurturing the potential of every child and teen is a core value for the regional YMCA. Providing opportunities and encouragement for children to learn and grow, and discover what they can achieve, is what we do best! 361 children were served at our childcare centers in 2024, with $116,993 in financial assistance provided to struggling families. YMCA childcare program means that parents have a safe and welcoming place for their kids to go so that they can continue to work. Our preschool childcare, before & after school care, and school readiness programs offer a safe and nurturing environment and are designed to meet the individual needs of children and provide them with learning skills to help them in school. Our children's center in bethel operates year-round and serves children 3 to 12 years of age, offering 62 school readiness funded slots for 3 & 4 year olds, making preschool a more affordable option for many families and giving children the opportunity to be better prepared for kindergarten. Our center is naeyc accredited and licensed by the state of connecticut; we follow all state regulations and naeyc criteria. O programs follow the hepa (healthy eating and physical activity) guidelines and classroom curriculums are designed with these concepts at the forefront. We have a children's garden with 25 raised garden boxes which are planted, cared for, and harvested by the children and teachers. O in addition to the extensive education and professional development opportunities that our teaching staff participates in year-round, staff were able to participate in numerous remote sessions. Other programs, such as leadership development, youth sports, youth swim lessons and day camps, offer a range of activities that allow children to have fun, build self-esteem, develop interpersonal skills, and make lasting friendships and memories. These programs provided $68,117 in financial assistance, affording opportunities for children that otherwise might not be available to them. YMCA camp greenknoll is an area leader in providing children with a safe, fun, and educational summer camp experience. In 2024, 865 children from pre-k through 10th grade spent the summer engaging in programs designed to challenge them both mentally and physically. Our camps provided $43,469 in fee assistance.o camp allowed these children to reconnect with old friends and make new ones and gave parents the ability to work knowing their children were active and being cared for in a safe place. O various activities were scheduled throughout the camp day. From games and sports, arts and crafts, and outdoor adventures to science and technology, activities such as these take children out of their comfort zone, push them to try new things, and foster a sense of confidence in completing difficult tasks. Our climbing tower and zip line, plus our low ropes elements and archery are just some of the fun and exciting activities that can enrich a child's experience and help them achieve their best selves. O YMCA camp greenknoll went through some much-needed renovations which were introduced in 2023. Most notably is the introduction of our program village, which provides dedicated spaces for campers to explore their creative side through arts & crafts, woodworking, nature, and s.t.e.a.m projects. Additional areas were renovated as well in order to update the facilities for our campers. O at the y, we have heard so many parents (and kids) say that they made friends, and actually felt that they belonged within their group, something they may not feel at school. They feel they can be themselves while trying new things, learning new skills, and making new friends, all so important in building confidence and self-esteem. O but most importantly, camp greenknoll provides opportunities to reconnect with the simple joys of being a kid: swimming, laughing, singing, dancing, crafting, discovering, swinging, sliding, hiking, playing and more!through our youth leadership programs, 44 local middle school and high school students participated in a broad range of activities designed to develop their personal and leadership skills, done in an environment that fosters academic success. This year's highlights included:o the youth & government program exposes high school students to connecticut's legislative, legal, and journalistic processes and shows them how they can play a significant leadership role in their community. Students participate in a mock government process where they practice critical reasoning, debating and public speaking skills. 22 students spent many hours preparing for the 2025 state legislative convention. Students met regularly from august 2024 march 2025. At the convention, the danbury students won one outstanding bill award, 2 outstanding delegate awards and one outstanding debater for youth & law award and were nominated to go to the national judicial competition. All 8 bills put forth by the danbury students were passed and signed by the youth governor. One danbury student was elected speaker of the house for the 2026 session. O achievers, a mentoring program for disadvantaged low-income students from the greater danbury area, is designed to produce first generation college bound teens. Using a combination of academic and career mentoring, leadership skills building curriculum, and exposure to "college life," we helped 22 middle and high students reach their full academic potential and open their eyes to their potential to succeed in college and beyond during the 2024 school year. O students participated in numerous community service projects. The race 4 chase program is named for chase kowalski, an amazing little boy from sandy hook, who loved to run. The program strives to empower kids, ages 6-12 years, to reach their full potential through a fun, skill building, life-changing experience by introducing them to the sport of triathlons. The regional YMCA is one of 31 participating ymcas, and in 2024, we had 35 participants. All competed in a triathlon at the end of the program, with 16 completing their first event, a major feat! Promoting healthy lifestyle choices to children, including proper nutrition and physical activity, is a key focus of the y's youth programs. Access to fruits and vegetables is crucial to encouraging children to eat fruits and vegetables. We have installed 10 garden beds at our greenknoll branch, and more than 25 beds at our YMCA children's center in bethel to teach students about proper nutrition. In y swim lessons, participants learn and practice swimming skills and feel a sense of achievement from mastering something that they can enjoy the rest of their lives, all while learning water safety and increasing their physical activity levels. The importance of water safety, especially in a lake community such as ours, has never been greater. Most people do not know that drowning is the leading cause of accidental deaths for children ages 1-4. Here at the regional YMCA, we are dedicated to helping everyone learn how to be safe in and around the water. In 2024, we were able to provide swim lessons to 1,569 children in the greater danbury area. Our mako swim team has 278 children, in multiple competitive groups. This team is about much more than just swimming. These children are learning dedication, patience, sportsmanship, and leadership. They are figuring out what it means to be part of a team and develop skills that will carry them through their adult lives.with the support of the y, children are developing the values and skills that lead to positive behaviors, better health, and educational achievement, and parents can be assured that whatever activities their children are engaged in, they will have a safe, positive environment in which to play, learn and grow.

$2.5M in expenses

Membership: the regional YMCA is a cause-driven organization, committed to strengthening our community through youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. We are a positive force, and everything we do is in the service of building a better community. For over 160 years, the regional YMCA has worked to create bright futures for children and adults in the greater danbury area, through a multitude of means, and as a result, more than 10,300 local community members are receiving the support, guidance, and resources they need to achieve greater health in spirit, mind, and body. This is particularly important as our community faces new challenges each day, such as an obesity crisis, chronic disease, disconnect within families, and isolation felt by growing numbers of older adults. Our myriads of programs help shape different facets of people's lives, whether it is teaching children to swim and the value of water safety, encouraging teens to become leaders in the community or educating people young and old about the importance of fitness and nutrition. Our programs promote connections, support systems and friendships between members and staff, as well as building self-confidence and self-esteem. Members are encouraged and supported in becoming their best self. Because we believe everyone has the power to make their lives better, we open our doors to all no matter who they are or where they come from. The regional YMCA brings together people from all backgrounds and supports those who need us most. At the regional YMCA, no child, family, or adult has been turned away for an inability to pay, and financial assistance is offered to all who cannot afford membership. In 2024, we were able to provide $62,041 in financial aid, allowing people access to the community of the regional YMCA.

$238K in expenses

Heal thy living: they is our community's leading voice on heal TH and well-being. We help people and families build and maintain healthy habits for spirit, mind, and body in their everyday lives. People engage in our heal thy living activities, such as family wellness, group exercise classes, personal fitness, programs for active older adults, water activities, diabetes prevention & management, and healthy lifestyle and nutrition education. These programs aim to provide education, increase activity, raise awareness, and showcase the ability one has to take control of their life through making heal thy choices.but they means more than exercise and heal thy living programs to so many people. A huge part of being heal thy and active is the social aspect. We have so many programs that connect people, offer them support and resources it's amazing. They strives to be a place where people feel safe and comfortable, a friendlyenvironment. We're connecting people through our core values of caring, honesty,respect and responsibility. We're open to everyone in the community and ourinclusive setting makes us a place where people of all walks of life can meet up anda place where new friendships form through common interest.we held our 13th lose to win competition in 2022 with 42 participants to help peopleget on track with their heal TH while connecting with others and receiving thesupport and encouragement of a team. Participants lost a collective 356 pounds!we are also a participating partner with renew active, a program offered to activeolder adults through their medicare supplement insurance which offers a basicmembership and access to amenities. Over 971 seniors stayed fit and active throughthis program in 2023.we've expanded our nutritional and heal thy living programs, taking a stand againstchronic diseases such as diabetes, and giving people the tools to make betterdecisions regarding their health. More than 140 participants engaged in ourevidence based heal TH programs in 2023. See the following details.1 in 3 u.s. Adults has pre-diabetes; most of them don't know it. As many as 50,000 adultsin our service area are at risk of developing diabetes. We've teamed with areaheal TH leaders to screen and identify residents with pre-diabetes and invite them toenroll in our diabetes prevention program. Now in its eighth year, the programteaches participants about heal thy eating, portion control, reading packagelabels and exercising - small lifestyle changes that will have lasting effects ontheir health. 600+ participants have either graduated from the program or arecurrently enrolled, getting the support they need from our specialists on staff.enhance fitness, a 16-week intervention for older adults, improves mobility andimproves strength and flexibility to prevent falls, the leading cause of disability inour older adult population.the blood pressure self-monitoring (BPSM) program targets individuals with highblood pressure to assist them in managing and monitoring their blood pressureconfidently. The program also offers essential nutrition programs to promotedietary practices that can improve hypertension. This past year, 40 peopleparticipated in the BL-lingual program, both virtually and in-person.our president is a member of the steering committee for the community heal thimprovement plan (CHIP). This group provides chronic disease prevention programs,such as the YMCA diabetes prevention program, to members of our community,especially high-risk and low-income seniors and hispanic residents living in thegreater danbury area.as the area's heal TH & fitness leader, we continued to take our heal TH expertise andprogramming into the community to combat one of the region's greatest heal ththreats: childhood obesity. All of our childcare programs are following hepastandards (heal thy eating and physical activity standards), serving only heal thysnacks and beverages, including holiday and birthday celebrations, and screen timeis kept to the minimum needed for students to complete homework assignments. Allour programs have made a tremendous effort to make sure children in their careare physically active on a daily basis through play time, snow time, swimminglessons, and indoor fitness.these programs are examples of how we deliver the resources and support thatempower our members to effect lasting personal change. We're here day in and dayout to provide the resources needed by our community, the greater danbury area,to address the most pressing social issues.