Meet Molly McGuinness, age 10. Molly enjoys singing, drawing, writing and being creative. Molly came to the Y Day Camp and Before and After School program in 2010, which is based out of Waukee Elementary School. According to her mother, Michelle Fidler, Molly has grown tremendously as a result of her participation in the Y program.
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Molly was diagnosed with high-functioning autism as a three-year-old,” says Michelle. “Molly struggles navigating social situations and making good choices. She has also struggled with some behavioral situations that sometimes organizations don’t always want to deal with. When I came to the Y and talked to Gretchen Stanger [Youth Development Director], I was blown away with the way she wanted to partner with me. She was committed to her growth and I really felt she had a stake in her future.”
YMCA programs focus on nurturing the potential of every child. Michelle feels that Cyndi Doerr, Site Supervisor for the program, and the other Y staff have created an environment which allows that to be true for Molly. “
The Y staff are patient. They help her by providing options for making positive choices. They give her guidance and empower her to make the right decisions. When she doesn’t, they provide appropriate consequences. I see her play out some of those choices at home, which she observes from the Y leaders,” says Michelle.
Michelle also shared that making friends can be difficult for Molly based on her social skills. “Molly comes home from camp and is excited to go because she can play with specific kids,” she says. “It means a lot to see her have friends and be excited about camp. One of those friends even came over for her birthday party outside of
the program.”
Molly will be a 5th grader at Vince Meyer Learning Center this fall and will continue to be involved in the program. “I feel we are very blessed to have the Y program,” says Michelle. “I think it has really helped her develop.”
The Y offers a broad range of youth programs that focus on healthy decision making, parental engagement, and character development.
Visit www.dmymca.org for more information or stop by the Y to get involved.
A few Springs ago, I stumbled upon a gardening concept that was gaining traction among city folk and heard a radio interview with Mel Bartholomew, a pioneer of something called “Square Foot Gardening”, and decided to try it out myself. My wife and I had always enjoyed some light gardening as a hobby–we probably spent more money on the water and seedlings than it would have cost to just drive up to the local HyVee for a few tomatoes, or a bunch of cilantro, but the kids and neighborhood critters always enjoyed picking the few fruits that bloomed off the vine. The idea revolves around a raised-bed garden, typically constructed of 1×12, or 2×12 lumber to make a “box” for your soil. Each square foot is then sectioned off, sometime with wood lathe, or strings of twine run from side to side to create a grid of one-square-foot “gardens”, each for a specific number of seedlings or seeds, depending on the species of plant. They overall garden can be any size, but you can start with something manageable like a 4×4-foot box, which would give you 16 mini-gardens. The gardens have many benefits over the type that you or I may have grown up with, including lots of varieties in a concentrated area, easier management, fewer weeds and the ability to plant pest-repelling plants such as marigolds amongst the vegetables, to deter bugs. You’ll also be able to easily cover or cage in the garden, if weather or rabbits get word of your new hobby.
