Page 29 - Healthcare News Jan/Feb 2023

Florence Bank Pledges $100,000 to Hampshire Regional YMCA Campaign
FLORENCE — Florence Bank has pledged $100,000 to Hampshire Regional YMCA to support its $1.5 million mission- expansion campaign to expand available program space by developing an outdoor exercise ‘airnaseum,’ or open-air gymna- sium.
Julie Bianco, CEO of the YMCA,
said campaign leaders are still gather- ing corporate sponsorships in this early phase of the project, and so far, $361,000 has been pledged. The YMCA hopes to break ground on the project in the spring and evolve it over several years, as funds are gathered. The airnaseum and other improvements will benefit both children and adults.
“Florence Bank has been a longtime supporter of the YMCA,” Bianco said. “We really appreciate the bank’s commitment to the community. They always show up when they are needed.”
She added that Florence Bank’s support was critical during the pandemic. “They were there to offer opportunities to get us through. They understand the community because they live and work here. They understand the community’s needs.”
The pandemic was the ultimate inspira- tion for the airnaseum project. Prior to 2020, the YMCA had begun planning capital improvements as member activity had greatly increased over the years. “We were always looking for space for classes,” Bianco said. “Program space was a valu- able commodity.”
The idea was to create more indoor space for programming, and then COVID made it impossible — and later, uncom- fortable — for people to gather and exer- cise indoors, in close quarters. People still wanted to exercise and socialize, though, so Bianco said the Y held its classes outdoors in the upper parking lot, which was not in demand, as few members were using the building at that time.
“Then we began researching other ways to expand our program space outdoors and came upon the idea of an airnaseum,” she explained. “That concept is popular
in warmer climates and is getting more
Florence Bank President and CEO Matt Garrity, left, awards a ceremonial check for $100,000 to YMCA staff, includ- ing, from left, Mark Cabral, Basil Bartlett, Diana Carcamo, Genevieve Ledbetter, Jennifer Allen, Stephanie Kirkendall, and CEO Julie Bianco.
popular in the Northeast. We have a won- derful property here, and people still want to exercise outside.”
Leaders of the YMCA worked with Berkshire Design Group to research and study all options, as well as create the project design, which has been approved by the Northampton Zoning Board of Ap- peals. Keiter Builders will be the contrac- tor.
The outdoor exercise space will be located underneath a pavilion outside the gymnasium, where a grouping of picnic tables sits now. Equipment containers,
called container gyms, will be purchased from Beaver Fit to hold the necessary gear for group classes and will be installed at one end of the airnaseum.
Installation of the outdoor space will happen in phases, with the first kicking off in the spring, when the floor of the space will be poured. “We hope to also put on the pavilion roof,” Bianco said, noting that the space’s sound and lights will be condu- cive to the neighborhood.
Future phases will involve updating and expanding the outdoor sports courts, improving the parking lot, and installing
fencing and permanent shade sails that can be raised or lowered to provide cover from the sun.
“These spaces will provide more op- portunities for families to connect and
be together in a safe outdoor space,” she said. “We’re going to be able to expand the footprint of the space we have available to offer programming.”
Girls Inc. Eureka! Scholars Present Check to Rays of Hope Foundation
HOLYOKE — Girls Inc. of the Valley Eureka! scholars presented a $300 check to the Rays of Hope Foundation follow- ing the students’ Pink Rally fundraiser on their November Day of Service this past fall.
Twenty-one Girls Inc. of the Valley students observed the November Day of Service, raising $304 in just under two
hours for Rays of Hope. This donation will support breast-cancer survivors and further breast-cancer research.
“Breast cancer affects so many women in our area,” said Meghan Bone, Eureka! high school director at Girls Inc. of the Valley. “Many of our scholars know wom- en who are battling or have battled this disease, which is why our scholars find
supporting Rays of Hope to be particularly rewarding.”
The check presentation took place on Jan. 27 during a Eureka! family dinner event celebrating the accomplishments of Eureka! students.
Girls Inc. of the Valley is a nonprofit organization that offers transformational youth programs that support the personal
and professional-development journeys of students throughout the Valley at no cost to their families. Eureka! is a five-year college- and career-readiness program that provides hands-on summer activi- ties, internships, and workshops focused on science, technology, engineering, and math at no cost to students and their families.
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