Social Responsibility
There are many ways throughout the year the Y responds to its call to action to be socially responsible.
The movement looks to help meet the needs of society in many different areas.
In many ways, as Social Responsibility is an area of focus, the Y's other areas of focus Healthy Living and Youth Development feed Social Responsibility. As the Y endeavors to engage youth in swim lessons (drowning being the second cause of death in children) to obesity intervention and diabetes education, the Y becomes socially responsible while tackling these issues that our community and most times our whole country faces.
There are other times in where the Y will have specific programs that fall under Social Responsibility for example hosting a Red Cross Blood Drive, hosting free community events that engage children and families in healthy, fun and educational ways to hosting seminars for seniors with their changing needs for medical insurance to health screenings. This is where historically the movement from many became misunderstood. The vast array of programs and activities almost made the Y seem like a service oriented movement with no goal, mission or organization.
Since the re-branding in July of 2010 most of that has changed. The Y movement today is focused, organized and communicates what the Y does, and how we do it. The reason for being, the reason why the Y does what it does is to build the foundation of community. When there is an issue in the community, the Y responds. This is why not every Y is the same-every community is different and has different needs. This is also why you'll see different programs in different Y's. This lends itself to Social Responsibility.
This section of our website should be checked often. The activities that are part of Social Responsibility will always be in other areas of our website (like our programs or news events) but most often we find the fuzzy, feel good activities or the "thank goodness I really needed that" type of activities that make participants feel really good about themselves, their families, and their children are found here.
The Garfield YMCA Food Pantry
The Garfield YMCA has a fully functional client choice pantry located in our main facility, 33 Outwater Lane. The pantry hours are Wednesday and Thursday 9:30-11:30am also with the newly added third Wednesday of each month from 6:00-8:00pm and last Saturday of every month from 9:30-11:30am. . Hours and dates are subject to change based on availability of food. All you will need is your id and a reusable bag! If you have an emergency and need food on days besides our regular pantry days please contact us and we will help you get what you need ASAP!
If you do not need items from our pantry but would love to assist please follow this link to our wish list! All donations are welcome. We also need volunteers for all areas of the pantry from donation distribution, data entry, stocking, cleaning and more! Please contact Tara if you are interested in volunteering!
If you have any further questions or concerns please contact Tara Campistrous at tarac@garfieldymca.com
Togetherhood
Member-led Community Service program
Togetherhood invites Y members to activate their social responsibility by participating in the Y’s cause to strengthen community. Togetherhood provides Y members with fun, convenient and rewarding ways to give back and support their neighbors.
Togetherhood is the YMCA’s Signature Program for Social Responsibility. This program invites Y members to lead and participate in volunteer service projects that benefit the community where they live.
The program is run through individual Y branches as a partnership between a committee of members and a Y Staff Advisor. It is designed to be a simple, fun and rewarding way for members to identify ways that they can give back and support their neighbors through their own ideas, skills and energy, and the network of the Y
If you'd like to participate or have a cause, a concern or an area of the community you'd like to see improvement on-please contact our program adviser Tara at tarac@garfieldymca.com
**We run a blood drive with the American Red Cross every quarter. To fill a social need, come make a donation. One donation can help save up to 3 lives
Scholarships
Through the generosity of Y contributors, our goal is to have sufficient funds to ensure our Y remains available to all. Thanks to our generous donors to our Annual Campaign, we are able to make the Y accessible through our Financial Assistance Program. These gifts provide scholarships for individuals and families who want and need Y programs, but cannot afford them.
To apply for financial assistance, please click here to download an application or pick up an application at your branch. When completed and supporting documentation is ready please drop off the completed application with documents to 33 Outwater Lane. You will be called after the application is reviewed If paperwork or supporting documentation is not complete, the request will not be considered. For more information please email info@garfieldymca.com
Financial assistance is supported in part through contributions to the Annual Campaign. To learn more about how you can support the Garfield YMCA please contact Cheryl at cherylb@garfieldymca.com