the child minding has limited age (can't remember right now but my son is too old and he is only 7)

There need to be opportunities in the gym for families to play a variety of sports together without having to compete with large groups of older youth and/or adults. Currently, you drop off your child in a program (e.g., soccer, drop-in gym) and must leave. Sometimes, the sessions are well-attended and having a parent play along would be feasible but is forbidden. Alternatively, during regular "open gym", you almost always jockey for a basketball (the only available sport to play) net among adults, most of whom are playing fast-paced, half-court, five-on-five, leaving very little room for a parent/child. Moreover, this creates an unsafe environment for the child. It is also intimidating for the parent/child alike to squeeze to a side net as the adult groups inevitably take one or both of the end nets and you are always trying to stay out of their way. The way "open gym" is currently structured (and it includes some very long chunks of time on the schedule), it would be more suitable to call it "adult basketball". Perhaps using the gym wall more often and having a "family-friendly" side (with Y-staff facilitating the use of various equipment) would be worth considering at least a few times per week. The youth squash program is phenomenal. Frank is an awesome coach! We are saddened that the program is moving to Sunday mornings as weekends often conflict with other youth organized sports. The weekday nights were preferred. Ultimately, a choice of both would be best for families. Booking a court for extra parent/child play has been very good and the availability of equipment to borrow is appreciated. The drop-in gym sessions are good but, as noted above, it would be better if parents had the option to participate. Callista is an awesome facilitator! Perhaps this program could be offered more frequently with at least some of the opportunities being "family" sessions. The soccer sessions are generally well run but, again, not really well-attended. There have been a variety of coaches, most of which have been very good. Perhaps this slot in the gym could be used more effectively and be offered more frequently. Lane and open swim availabilities could be increased (far too many large blocks for outside groups) but, when available, usually function well for families. It is disappointing to see the second pool frequently unused except for training. Having this pool available during lessons, water polo, etc. would be a nice way to increase swimming opportunities. It would be great to see pickle ball made available more often, particularly at times outside of the school day. The only opportunities we've had to play pickle ball were a PD Day and a Snow Day. Again, kids need to be exposed to a variety of sports and, generally, the wide array of equipment available in the gym storage room doesn't really see the light of day for youth and their families. Thanks for reading.

Squash

Excellent activities and counselors.

Very active, daily swimming and time for crafts

Swimming section in day camp

This is the fist time we brought our liitle one to YMCA . Loved it. Thanks for the swimming experience. It has helped immensely and now she loves swimming.

It's my 6-year-old daughter who attended March break camp at Center Branch. She was really happy and it is a well organized program for kids and highly recommend it.