Police Chief Scott Bieber makes a special visit to the Pre-School kids

22 May 2013

Walla Walla Police Department Chief, Scott Bieber made a special visit to the Y's Pre-School program to talk about safety tips. The kids got to check out his police car and listen to the sirens. The Y wants to thank Scott & the Walla Walla Police Department for making this a special day for our kids!

Spring Round Up Results

21 May 2013

On Sunday, May 19th from 1:00-4:00pm the YMCA held the "Spring Round Up", a free family event. The event captured 140 children, approximately 80 adults, and 45 Volunteers. Activities included pony rides, a roping station, face painting, stick horse barrel racing, and other kid-friendly activities. Safe Kids Blue Mountain provided free food for the event. Mike Wagoner provided great music that added the right touch to the afternoon setting. A special thank you goes out to all who participated and volunteered with this event.

Short Video Recap

Join Safe Kids to Protect Kids!

09 May 2013

A goal of Safe Kids Blue Mountain is to raise awareness about the ways we can protect our children from preventable injuries, and to raise funds to support our local and national injury prevention programs. Please visit our Safe Kids Day fundraising page to join us in support of life-saving programs.

The Y gets a hot air balloon visit!

08 May 2013

This hot air balloon got an early start on the Walla Walla's Balloon Stampede. For more information on the Balloon Stampede put on by the Walla Walla Valley Chamber of Commerce go to their website.

YMCA Spring Round UP

All ages are welcome at this free YMCA family event.

Summer Registration is Now OPEN!!

15 April 2013

Beat the heat and start planning your Summer now! The Walla Walla YMCA has opened Summer registration for all programs. To view a program guide, download it here. To register online, click here.

April's People of the Month

01 April 2013

Employee of the month Maggie Yant- Congratulations to Maggie Yant for being recognized as the Employee of the Month for April.  Nominated by her peers for embodying the values and mission of the YMCA, Maggie has been an exemplary ambassador for the Y. Maggie works in the Group Exercise department specifically teaching Yoga and Indoor Group Cycling.

Maggie was a member about 5 years ago after her daughter was born but like many had to put her fitness on hold with the busy life of a new mother.  She rejoined the Y in December, 2012 when she began working here.  Maggie has said “I am really glad I did! I really missed the Y!” Maggie went to Bozeman High School in Bozeman Montana; she attended college at the University of Oregon in Eugene and Portland Sate.  In Maggie’s free time she enjoys long runs with her dog, hiking and camping with her family.  Maggie loves to cook and work in her garden.  
She also enjoys reading, listening to great music and her hobby of refinishing
furniture.  

She was encouraged to work here to try and reach as many yoga students as possible and the Y seemed like a great fit.  She is also excited to be part of the fitness industry, learning to teach more classes and maybe even become a wellness coach or personal trainer.  She also
really loves the positive atmosphere and team spirit of the Y members, volunteers and
employees.

Maggie is really passionate about what she does and it is evident throughout her classes.  She loves it during her Yoga classes when all the members are breathing and moving in unison.  “It’s a wonderful thing!” Maggie says.  The transformation that people undertake after participating in a class is absolutely amazing and inspiring. The most rewarding part of her job is watching how members grow in their practice and do things with their bodies that they never thought they could do.  

Thank you and congratulations to Maggie Yant for being named Employee of the Month!!!

Member of the Month Duwain Werner -Each of us have our own history, our own family and our own experience with exercise. For Duwain Werner, he has grown up working outdoors and getting his physical exercise from everyday tasks on the farm. In the last year and half the YMCA has had the privilege of Duwain working out at the YMCA.

Growing up on a farm in Saskatchewan, Canada as the only son of German parents, exercise came in the form of plowing fields using horses, riding his horse to and from school, and working alongside his dad. His father bred a race horse with a Percheron draft horse, to produce a strong work horse and fast saddle horse.

Duwain has two sisters, one who is two years older and one who is 11 years younger. He had a brother who passed away when he was one month old.

Duwain also got exercise from a summer job as a young college student by going door to door selling religious books. He was taking religion courses at the Seventh-Day Adventist College, in Lacombe, Alberta, Canada. He also loved to sing in the choir and conduct music.

Throughout his life, it has been this mission to “reach souls” for the Lord and it continues to remain the burning light of his life.

As a young father of three girls, he was a wheat farmer and owned cattle and sheep. Duwain later moved to Walla Walla Valley. He enjoys the evening walks with his family and their dog, hikes up South Fork, and horse back riding.

He worked in construction as a salesman and then continued to work with his cattle in Canada. All throughout, talking with people about the Lord was his most important topic.

Duwain has four grandchildren, all boys who live nearby.

Duwain continues to workout in the Wellness Center.

Magnificent people of March

Member of the Month Clint Rehn was born in Kahlotus, Washington and has been living in Walla Walla for 35 years now. He graduated from Lewis and Clark High School and attended the Spokane Falls Community College. Clint is happily married to Colleen and they have one daughter together. Clint is happily retired from Qwest Telecommunications. Clint enjoys walking, bicycling, gardening, and helping with their grandchildren. He has been a member of the YMCA for over 2 years. He first sought out the YMCA when Dr. Gardner suggested the On the Edge Diabetes Program to him. Clint participates in our RIPPED and Power Pump classes. Clint’s favorite YMCA memory is completing his first RIPPED class. He feels the YMCA has continued him to be healthier and happier. Clint believes one of the most important things about the YMCA is the positive, optimistic, and healthy outlook all the staff and members exhibit. We have selected Clint as the YMCA Member of the Month because we believe he embodies what the YMCA stands for. That is, Honesty, Caring, Respect and Responsibility. Clint believes that our mission statement has reiterated the importance of the YMCA principles in his life and has helped to him influence that importance to others. This belief has brought all generations in to enjoy the YMCA as much as Clint does!

Volunteer of the Month Peggy Needham has been volunteering at the Y since her now teenage boys were youngsters. Peggy grew up in Walla Walla, attending WA HI and Walla Walla Community College. She helps with the Peach Basket Classic, is on the organizing committee for the AAU Basketball tournament, is a campaigner for our Youth Sustaining Campaign and was a valuable volunteer in our garage sale last fall. We can always count on Peggy to make time in her busy schedule to help out. When asked what she likes to do in her free time she responded, “What free time? With three teenagers free time is when you sleep!” Peggy also has a big heart for seniors as displayed by her years of service coordinating RSVP and conducting Fall Prevention assessments and education in our area. Her aging family members are on the receiving end of her caring heart as well as she tends to their ever increasing needs. Peggy believes in giving back to her community. Her children have grown up participating in summer camps, basketball and swimming programs at the Y so she wants to do her part in helping others have that opportunity. She says that the Y provides a safe and healthy environment for youth and families and feels that it is important to support the Y’s mission by investing her time and finances. We are pleased to recognize Peggy Needham as our Volunteer of the Month.

Employee of the Month Meghan McGuire graduated St. Anthony Village High School in Minneapolis, MN and graduated college at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee. Meghan enjoys being outdoors, biking, running, reading, drinking coffee at the local Patisserie, and enjoying delicious meals with friends in her spare time. After she graduated college she wanted to combine her passion of health and wellness with working with youth in a community setting which led her to the AmeriCorps and then eventually to the YMCA. She has been an employee of the YMCA since September 2012, working as the Youth Development facilitator. Meghan’s loves to connect with the afterschool camp children one on one, building relationships with each of them. She loves to watch them grow and being there for them to talk to, laugh with, or just simply kicking the soccer ball around with. Her favorite part of the YMCA is simply spending time with them, being there for them in whatever way they need and thrive from. We have selected Meghan as the YMCA Employee of the Month because we believe she embodies what the YMCA stands for.  That is, Honesty, Caring, Respect and Responsibility.  Meghan demonstrates these beliefs and acts as a role model for our younger generation. Congratulations Meghan for being chosen the YMCA’s Employee of the Month!

Learn to Swim

Free program for children ages 5-11 who are not members at the Y.
April 1-4, 2013 (Spring Break Week)
Register Online!

Bring your swimsuit and towel to the Y’s Learn to Swim week! Learn to Swim week is supported by donations made to the Y’s Annual Youth Sustaining Campaign and is designed for children in our community who are not members of the YMCA  to receive free swim lessons for one week.
Leading into the Spring and Summer seasons water safety becomes an important factor. During the Y’s Learn to Swim week swimmers will learn different swim strokes and water safety skills to help prepare them for a Summer full of swimming.

February's All-Stars

07 February 2013

	Member of the Month: Sharon Schmatt Sharon Schmatt was a member of the YMCA four years ago and has recently rejoined. She first sought out the YMCA to get back in shape and to make a commitment to her health. Sharon enjoys using the wellness center and also attends gentle yoga. Her favorite YMCA memory is seeing how dedicated the members are that are still coming from over four years ago. The YMCA has continued to keep Sharon in shape while losing ten pounds and has made her stronger. We have selected Sharon as the YMCA Member of the Month because we believe she embodies what the YMCA stands for.  That is, Honesty, Caring, Respect and Responsibility.  Sharon believes that our mission statement has reiterated the importance of the YMCA principles in her life. She believes the most important thing about the YMCA is how devoted the staff and members are.
	Volunteer of the Month: Jeremy Gilpin Choosing Jeremy Gilpin as our Volunteer of the Month was an easy decision.  Although Jeremy has been in Walla Walla for a short time he has already made a big impact on the community. Before moving to Walla Walla to work for Baker Boyer Bank, Jeremy was very involved serving in Baker City, OR.  He was on the Northeast Oregon Economic Development Committee, Rotary International, the Chamber of Commerce, the school board and the United Way Allocations Committee. Jeremy is currently filling the role of co-chairman for our Youth Sustaining Campaign, along with past Volunteer of the Month, Don Linke. When he is not volunteering he enjoys working out and vacationing at the beach. Jeremy says he volunteers to give back to his community in a meaningful way and wants to help create a community that will be strong for generations to come.
	Employee of the Month: Leslie Tunmore Leslie come to our staff team through the Americorp program, she currently is a Youth Development Program Coordinator and works in the Youth Department.  She began her involvement with our Y back in September she was not a member before joining us on the staff team.  Leslie went to Clarence High School and attended college at the University of Buffalo.  In her free time Leslie enjoys reading books, watching sports, hitting the gym and long walks on the beach in the moonlight.  Leslie is passionate about rectifying our countries current issue with childhood obesity.  That and the idea of moving across the country is why she wanted to work here at the Y. The most important part of working at the Y is … the kids and learning from them.  Thank you Leslie for your work and effort the staff and members salute you!