A cool place to go to school

Parents like the Waynesboro YMCA preschool program because “they know that we care,” preschool director Rebecca Patton said.

“There are places you can go that are high-tech. You don’t come here for that. You come here for the quality of care. Your kids are loved, they’re welcomed. We have kids from all backgrounds. Single-parent homes, grandparents raising kids. All in one mixing bowl,” Patton said.

Patton has been the Y preschool for 10 years, her first seven years as a preschool teacher.

“I love being able to do stuff with the kids. That’s why I do so much stuff in the classroom. It was a hard transition to give up my room,” said Patton. Read more

The man behind the whistle

You just assume that John Spears was always the John Spears that we all know and love – the basketball coach who knows how to get the most out of his players, the high-school and college referee who can bring a hostile gym or arena to silence or an uproar with a single whistle.

It all started because Spears got hooked on noontime basketball at the YMCA 32 years ago.

“I was working second shift at the Howard Johnson’s, and somebody told me about noon ball at the Y. I came down, and I got hooked, and the rest is history,” said Spears, the director of youth sports at the Waynesboro YMCA.

In addition to his coaching and refereeing, Spears oversees the year-round basketball program at the Y, which currently has 225 kids in leagues for children ages 5-14. Rec-league ball is the focus right now, and in the spring and summer, it’s AAU time, with the work running the age gamut, from the elementary-school set to high-school upperclassmen. Read more

Get in the pool

High-intensity aerobics, low-impact activity, a mix of both at lunch.

No, we’re not talking about the exercise room upstairs. We’re talking about the indoor pool at the YMCA downstairs.

“It’s a busy place,” said Denise Hill, the head of the aquatics program at the Y, which offers programs ranging from the water-aerobics classes to youth and adult swim lessons to lifeguarding classes for teens and young adults.

The class schedule includes:

- Sunrise Splash – (Monday – Friday 8:15 a.m.)
Wake up your senses with this high intensity aqua class to start your day off right. The class concentrates on strength training components for upper- and lower-body, including water-resistance equipment. Great for cross-training and all levels of fitness.

Read more

Rise ‘n shine

 

People can’t believe that Doug Wharam is at the YMCA by 5:15 every morning, but to Wharam, his daily routine is nothing extraordinary.

“The kids are here, and they work hard, and I love what I do. That makes it easy,” said Wharam, who was hired in August to lead the Y’s Shenandoah Marlins Aquatic Club – SMAC – competitive-swimming program.

Wharam oversees the training and competition regimens of 85 young SMAC swimmers, from learn-to-swim 8-and-unders to elite teens who compete at the national level.

Wharam came to Waynesboro most recently from Providence, R.I., where he was an age-group coach and volunteer assistant at Brown University. He has roots in Central Virginia, though, having competed on the club swimming team at the University of Virginia, where he also serves as a volunteer assistant coach.

“The opportunity to come back to this area was too much to turn down,” said Wharam of his move back to Virginia. Read more

Get your sweat on

 

No more excuses, folks.

“You can be at any skill level and get in an optimal workout. You can do it in 15-minute, 30-minute circuits, and get a great workout and really enhance your productivity,” YMCA director Jeff Fife said at the Oct. 6 grand opening of the new Nautilus Center.

The Nautilus Center features 19 sets of new Nautilus One machines designed to allow for shorter, more targeted workouts.

The machines are ideal for seniors and people with mobility issues.

“You can literally just reach over and twist a dial and get a great workout in,” Fife said.

She has the Y

Lucille Graves had just retired from DuPont. She was borderline diabetic, and had been dealing with high blood pressure for several years.

“I knew I didn’t want to sit around and watch TV the rest of my life,” said Graves, who joined the Waynesboro YMCA 20 years ago, and is preparing for her 82nd birthday in February by walking 20 miles a week on the treadmills upstairs.

“I try to keep at 3 miles per hour,” said Graves, who attributes her continued good health to her six-day-a-week routine at the Y.

“I’ve had three surgeries since I started,” said Graves, the most recent being a hip replacement that put her in physical therapy for a time.

“And I’ve been able to come back strong all three times,” Graves said. Read more

Making a difference

 

The YMCA has made a difference in the life of young Makayla Davis.

“Her Sunday-school teacher even mentioned that she just couldn’t believe the difference in her behavior and participation at church,” said Makayla’s grandmother, Ann Criser.

“I gave the credit where it was due – to the daily environment here in childcare at the YMCA,” Criser said at the event marking the kickoff of the Y’s Annual Campaign on Oct. 30.

Makayla, 4, has had what her grandmother gently calls an untraditional upbringing – being separated from her mother and father for long stretches.   Read more