All Together Now: YC Family Connects Through Fitness and Art
Youth Challenge has the unique ability to serve people with physical disabilities of all ages, from early childhood through adulthood. Mini Camp, regular programs, teen nights, and alumni programs allow YC participants and volunteers to connect with people their own age through programs tailored to their specific needs. However, sometimes it’s nice to come together as a whole family! This fall, Fitness Circuits and Open Art Studio were open to everyone in the YC community.
At Fitness Circuits, led by Volunteer Manager Abbie Fitzgerald, the youngest participant was 4-year-old Immy, and the oldest participants were alumni in their 20s and 30s. Each session started with an opportunity to reflect on Wellness Goals. Goals ranged from wanting to get better sleep to building muscle, staying hydrated, participating in a race, getting stronger, spending time in the sun, and more! After everyone shares their goals, the group warms up with dynamic stretching and cardio. Then, the group rotates through their stations, or circuits. The three stations are the exercise machines, free weights, and resistance band work. At the end of the session, the group does a finisher or burnout workout together.
Participants, volunteers, and alumni had the opportunity to unleash their creativity at Open Art Studio, a YC program open to any project and any person. Artists were able to create any project they wished—some drew, some colored, some painted, some sculpted, and one person even made a picture collage! Everyone enjoyed making new friends and feeding off each other’s ideas. Arts Manager Megan Smith provided supplies and shared information about arts shows and contests people could enter, including the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities Winter Card Contest, Accessible Expressions Ohio, and, of course, YC’s own Holiday Show on December 13. That’s right—you will be able to see YC artists’ original creations on display at our annual Holiday Show, this year at the Sari-Feldman Auditorium at the Parma-Snow Library. RSVP for the Holiday Show here.
YC participants, volunteers, and alumni loved connecting with and learning from one another at Fitness Circuits and Open Art Studio and hope to do more programs in a similar format in the future.
