Even though the school year has come to a close, local students don’t have any excuse to sit still.
The Burbank Community YMCA is offering a wide array of programs to keep busy during the summer.
Four summer camp programs get children from kindergarten to eighth grade involved in on-site activities such as swimming and the chance to travel to locales such as Castle Park in Riverside and the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles.
Staff members are also gearing up to start their second Health Intervention Program in the fall. The 12-week session educates parents and children about healthy lifestyle choices.
“We want to simplify people’s lives,” said Yvette Herrera, president of the YMCA Board of Directors. “People like the fact that they can work out in the same place as their kids . . . it really provides services to the whole family.” Parents and kids can take advantage of several on-site facilities such as the youth fitness center, which offers scaled-down versions of fitness equipment for children between 8 and 14 years old. The children also get a special reward for completing the workout circuit: a chance to play popular video game Dance Dance Revolution.
New FitLinxx machines provide adults a similar bonus: the ability to have a personal trainer at the touch of a button. The system assigns each member a specific identification number that keeps track of their seat and weight settings on cardio machines.
“With the obesity problem in this country increasing, people are more aware that it is a problem, but they don’t know what to do,” Herrera said. “We want to provide people options to stay fit without taking them out of their comfort zone.”
Even though the YMCA is doing its part to help the community with a variety of programs, the organization needs some help to address an ongoing parking issue.
The YMCA went to the City Council on July 1 to ask it to consider a proposal to loan funds necessary to buy property at 353 San Jose Ave. in order to build a new parking lot.
“We want to be a support to the community and support healthy lifestyles, and parking is a huge part of that,” YMCA Chief Executive Officer JC Holt Jr. said. “A lack of parking is an easy way to avoid working out.”
The lot would provide 72 additional spaces to members.
Financing from the city will allow the YMCA to immediately buy the land and finally address the parking shortfall, Herrera said.
