Why the

ISSUE 2 June 2012 We build strong kids, strong families, strong communities

Support the Y

Welcome to the second issue of the YMCA of Greater Wellington Why the Y Newsletter. The aim of this newsletter is to tell our stories to our many stakeholders and acknowledge those who have contributed to the success of this fantastic organisation. The YMCA is a not-for-profit organisation. Whilst we do have programmes and services which attract an income such as accommodation and gym memberships, many of our programmes are offered at minimal or no cost in order to remove barriers to participation and to provide important services to the community. Additional funding from donations, grants and contracts is often required to run these programmes. The YMCA of Greater Wellington is a charitable trust registered with the Charities Commission. Donations of $5 or more qualify for a tax rebate on production of an official receipt.

www.ymcawellington.org.nz

This Issue Flag league takes off P1 Sorting out young people’s lives so they can

learn again P2 CE’s Message P3 The Y joins forces with the Hutt City Council.. P3 Pelorus gets behind the Upper Hutt Y P3

Build 2012 P3 Current and Upcoming Events P4 Board Profile-Andy Bogacki P4

Flag league takes off Porirua rugby league players Johnny Tealaga and Sheldon Akavi were on hand to offer advice to YMCA flag league kids at Cannons Creek Park recently. Johnny is pictured here with players from Holy Family School. The appearance of the two premier grade Vikings and Wellington Orcas players at the after-school flag games marked the formation of a partnership between Wellington Rugby League and YMCA Greater Wellington, to develop kids' flag league skills and prepare them for ongoing involvement in the code. "If kids can have an introduction to sport and physical activity with us at the YMCA and then we can provide them with a pathway to further participation through one of our partners like Wellington Rugby League, then we have done our job," said Ben Keat, from YMCA Greater Wellington.

"League is supporting the skills development side of flag league through their 'Leadership through League' KiwiSport programme. The Y's expertise is in delivering the opportunity for young-sters to get involved." Wellington Rugby League general manager Jason Hemson said they were excited to be partnering with YMCA in Porirua. This is the second year that YMCA has been running flag league in Porirua. It fields 23 teams involving about 250 keen youngsters aged between 8 and 11 years. Games are played at Cannons Creek Park after school on Mondays and Tuesdays and in-volve the defensive team removing a flag from the belt of the ball carrier instead of tackling the play-er to the ground. The winner of the March 26 competition was Postgate School. Greater Wellington YMCA also administers netball, basketball, miniball, handball, indoor soccer and unihockey from the YMCA office in Ngati Toa Hall. It also took over the running of school holiday programmes from the city council in the last year, and has developed dance and special needs programmes.

Article published in KapiMana News April 2012

HAYLEY’S STORY

Hayley Whanau, 17, went through the despair of depression, then found being the centre of attention when she returned to school after months in hospital just too hard to bear. A combination of issues made her hate being back at school. She got sick of overhearing teachers and students talking about her. She was dropped back a year and, instead of going to normal classes, was put in the learning support unit to finish NCEA Level 1 through correspondence, where she says she didn’t getting the teaching support she needed. At that point Hayley left school for good. Some friends who had enrolled at the YMCA Pathways course showed her the set-up in Willis Street, Wellington, and she enrolled herself in March last year (2011). “I was admitted to hospital in 2010 with depression and was in the health system for probably three months including getting transferred to Richmond House in Napier. When I tried to get back into school in Kapiti, it didn’t really work out,” Hayley says. “Everyone thought, oh, we must look out for Hayley, she’s a brilliant student. But then I couldn’t handle it because everyone looked at me differently and I didn’t like it.” “I would have been in Year 12 but I was dropped down a level so I could finish Level 1 NCEA. It really sucked because we had this meeting with the staff and I thought it all went well but they put me into learning support where I did correspondence. I didn’t actually get the support I needed because the aides that were in support learning, they’re not teachers.” Hayley felt she had no control over how things were going. It reminded her of how she felt in hospital after being sectioned under the Mental Health Act – the feeling that she had no say over what happened to her. “And that was a very scary moment in my life because it made me feel so vulnerable.” Life has changed for the better now and Hayley reckons being at the Y has helped her gain control over her life. She lives with her parents in Paekakariki and travels by train into Wellington to the Y Pathways course. She has now completed NCEA Level 1 and is planning to do Level 2 this year (2012) with the Y. “They’ve also helped me create a CV which I’m really proud of. It’s probably the best work I’ve done here so far. “Just learning life’s skills is really cool and the people I meet here, everyone has a story. It’s just so awesome because we can all learn off each other and ‘stay safe in the city’.” “It’s a really different environment. In some ways I’m still getting used to it, you know, like I get to go shopping now because I’m working part-time at Kapiti Pak’ n Save at the weekends. I love working. I’m more of a practical person than a book worker. I’ve been there for probably two and a half years now in the service deli. I work with awesome people as well. They keep me sane.” “Ever since I came here I’ve felt so much more independent and confident in myself. I’m pretty much in control of my life now with the guidance of the tutors and my parents. I’m just happy I was able to change my life around at that point because, man oh man, that was a really dark time.” Hayley says she’s happy with life because she’s on the right track now. “I still ponder upon that dark side at times. I get through it just talking to everyone here at the Y and talking to Mum and Dad. I learned a lot of techniques through the hospitals and counsellors. I think I’ve done a good job dealing with it - so far anyway.”

While the rest of New Zealand was enjoying the Rugby World Cup opening gala, YMCA’s Lisa Phillips was rehousing five young people to protect them from danger. It was a traumatic night, but sorting out the personal problems of unemployed youth is an essential part of Lisa’s job as an education programme man-ager. Their personal safety is one of the first things she asks about when young people are referred by WINZ or the Justice System to the YMCA Greater Wellington Education Pathways course. “You can’t be expected to study if your life’s in a mess,” she says. “It’s our philosophy to address the issues that are messing up the students’ lives before we try to teach them anything. Once they’re settled, they are way more able to take on their studies.” YMCA Greater Wellington Chief Executive Simon Jackson agrees: “We have a government contract to teach unemployed kids NCEA unit standards so they can get a job or go on to further education. But to make that work, we need to achieve a lot more for them.

“My vision is that we become a centre of excellence for these kids, but that does need more funding. We have to help them take care of the basic necessities of life first – food, housing, safety. They’re not going to learn if they’re hungry or living on the street.” The young people who come to the Education Pathways programme all dropped out of school early without completing NCEA qualifications. They are mostly aged 15 to 18 but can be up to age 24. What they all have in common is person-al upheaval in their lives. Lisa came to her YMCA job in downtown Willis Street, Wellington, after teaching in public schools from Primary to Year 13 for five years. “I saw a lot of students not doing well because they were a challenge to the system and got written off. Here at our centre, we make them feel secure and they are in a relaxed atmosphere with tutors who respect them as individuals and work alongside them. The highly motivated kids are powering through their NCEA unit standard workbooks, often doing several books a week.” The Education Pathways programme is government-funded on the

basis that 60 per cent of the students move on to a job or further training. Wellington YMCA regularly achieves more than that with the 15 to 18-year-old age group, most of whom are referred by WINZ. It’s not a task for the faint-hearted. Lisa says the programme has chewed through a few staff in the two years she has been managing the programme. “It takes a lot of resilience and patience and not taking things personally. You need the ability to see through kids’ behaviour to what is really going on.”

One feature of the course is the outside activities the young people are introduced

to, sometimes with input from other organisations. It’s part of expanding their prospects and their outlook on life. For example, they helped out at the hospice along with volunteers from Westpac Bank. A comment from Hayley Whanau, one of the current students, captures the value of such community-oriented experience: “We get a lot of cool stuff on this course. I really enjoy the activities we do outside. That day we went out to the hospice and met those Westpac guys, those guys were really cool. They said they would help us out if we really needed anything. And I said I’m looking for a job. I want to get into retail because I love helping people.” Simon says, “That’s an example of how we are looking for work with other organisations. We’re exploring ways that we and Westpac can work together. What we do is link the staff and one of our kids. The Westpac staff have a day’s volunteering leave a year to work with community organisations, and that includes the Y.” Currently there are 28 young people on the Wellington course. There are 20 similar courses run by the YMCA throughout New Zealand that have influenced thousands of young lives through the years. National YMCA Youth Services Manager Dave Green says the Y is big on supporting and empowering young people. “Wellington is progressive in developing its youth-focused services. 2012 is going to be a year for us nationally in looking at developing youth skills as assets. The more skills assets young people have, the greater they will achieve. We are always looking at how well our programmes are going to develop the young people we work with.”

Sorting out the messes in young people’s lives so they can learn again Article published in the Ministry of Social Development’s Rise Magazine

CE’s MESSAGE

Often I receive the comment I didn’t know there was a Y, or I thought you only did this or that. Most people seem to have a touch point or a story about their first experience with the Y. Be it accommoda-tion, camps, education, fitness or recreation. I felt it worthwhile to give you a little background.

The YMCA movement was started in England in 1844 in a London in the middle of the industrial revolution where tens of thousands of young men had flocked to take advantage of the available work. These young men worked extremely long hours, away from home and family and most often in poor conditions. The YMCA was initially conceived as a bible study group for these young men – an alternative to the grog shops and other unsavoury places that these young men were drawn to. It quickly became apparent that this fledging organisation was more about providing a safe and supportive environment for young men (and later, young women) who were without the normal support structures of family and community they were used to.

Almost from the beginning, the YMCA has focused on healthy activities for young people and is credited with inventing basketball, volleyball and body building. It is claimed that an early YMCA staff member named the sport of softball (which was in danger of being called “sissy ball”) and of course the idea of camps and camping is said to have originated with the YMCA, as did the concept of “Fathers Day”.

In the Greater Wellington region we continue to fill the gaps. We are working with regional sporting organisations to assist with establishing community sports. Often these are first experiences for kids. Our dance classes have grown to cater for young people with special needs and this has led to our first special needs holiday programme. Lately we have needed to house young people who are in risky or dangerous situations.

Eighty percent of what we provide is for people under the age of 25. So we are primarily a youth organisation that also does some other things for people of all ages.

A Special Thank You!

YMCA of Greater Wellington gratefully acknowledges the following donors over the last two months. This funding helps us continue our mission to build strong kids, strong families and strong communities.

THE Y JOINS FORCES WITH THE HUTT CITY COUNCIL TO DELIVER LOWER HUTT SCHOOL HOLIDAY PROGRAMMES After the successful partnership between the Porirua City Council and the Y in delivering the four Porirua school holiday programmes, the Y has formed a partnership to deliver school holiday programmes previously run by Hutt City Council at Belmont and Gracefield Schools.

OSCAR Manager Emily Robinson says “City councils are increasingly focusing on their core business and letting go of other programmes they had become involved in. The Y is good at delivering programmes for kids and we suit the councils which want to hand over to an organisation that has the same community-building values as them.”

The July School Holidays will mean the first time the YMCA of Greater Wellington has had region wide coverage in one of its programmes. The Y now has holiday programmes across 10 venues throughout Wellington, Upper & Lower Hutt and the Wairarapa as well as the introduction of a school holiday programme for children with special needs based at Chilton Saint James School in Lower Hutt.

BUILD 2012

The second week in May saw the annual YMCA Build conference held at the YMCA Camp Adair in Auckland. Build is a national training event for YMCA staff across the country to liaise and swap ideas, develop relationships to better work together and listen to some industry leaders present across a broad range of topics. This years conference was run by the YMCA National Sport, Recreation and Outdoors committee. Speakers, activities and presentations were tailored towards staff in these areas but was definitely relevant YMCA wide. YMCA Greater Wellington sent seven staff along this year, all of whom have come back with new and refreshing ideas as well as getting many of our innovative and exciting ideas across to other Y’s from NZ and Australia.

PELORUS TRUST GETS IN BEHIND UPPER HUTT Y

For some time now YMCA Upper Hutt has been working in conjunction with Parkinson’s Society to deliver a group fitness class specifically tailored towards sufferers of the disease.

We have seen fantastic benefits for all our participants, many of whom come each and every week.

Part of the development of these sorts of classes as well as catering for our older membership base and those members suffering from injury or illness is having the right equipment available.

The YMCA has been fortunate enough to receive funding from the Pelorus Trust to purchase a couple of pieces of equipment vital to the ongoing success of these programmes.

We will be going back to our equipment provider to purchase a recumbent cycle and a hand grinder. This will allow many of our members and users who cannot use traditional exercise equipment to get the same benefits out of their work out as our abled bodied members.

The YMCA would like to acknowledge and thank the Pelorus Trust for their support.

Kim in the press again in the newly revamped YMCA Masterton Rec Centre

Special Needs Dance Class at Upper Hutt School

Simon Jackson

Chief Executive, YMCA Greater Wellington

Current and Upcoming Events

Y-Camps Have you heard about YMCA Greater Wellington Y-Camps? Campers will notice a few changes on past years including new bunk beds and the fantastic new flying-fox. Hundreds of kids each year aged 7-15+ learn independence, teamwork and leadership skills, whilst having heaps of fun each school holidays. July’s programmes kicked off on the 15th. The latest edition is the new GIANT SWING which will be unveiled during the July programmes.

School Holiday Programmes

School Holiday Programmes are about to get underway in July again. These are now held all around the Greater Wellington Region, We have centres in the Wairarapa, Upper & Lower Hutt, Porirua and Wellington City. Programmes include dance, drama, outdoor activities, visits, theatre and movies. Many children attend the week-long programmes on a regular basis, a testament to the fun, care and learning they experience. Y-Camps and School Holiday programmes are funded jointly by the Ministry of Social Development and by parents. For families unable to afford the full fee and ineligible for a WINZ subsidy, the YMCA offers its own subsidy programmes to reduce barriers to participation.

Y-Dance

YMCA of Greater Wellington has recently developed a Y-Dance programme for children. Y-Dance is a recreation based dance programme that is tailored towards the needs of the participants. We run classes at our centres as well as at schools throughout the region. The in-school classes can also be focused on children with special needs. If you would like to hear more about Y-Dance contact Special Programmes Coordinator Melissa Sims on melissasims@ymca.org.nz

YMCA of Greater Wellington

67 Pilmuir Street, Lower Hutt PO Box 30247, Lower Hutt

Ph: 04 568 3252 Fax: 04 568 9528

www.ymcawellington.org.nz

Board Profiles

The YMCA of Greater Wellington has an amazing governance team. The board is full of very experienced leaders in their respective fields and we would like to introduce one of them in each edition of this newsletter.

Andy Bogacki Andy has been involved in the Construction, Development and Property industries in New Zea-land since 1973 with the major-ity of that time devoted to Property Analysis, Corporate Accommodation, Consultancy and Property Development.

Having been involved in the development and construction of over 40 significant buildings in the Wellington area, Andy founded Bogacki Property Consultants Ltd in 1988 and has since then been corporate property adviser to a multitude of major New Zealand companies and government departments. Andy is also a founding director of Colourlock Industries Ltd, a company specialising in innovative solutions to industry through the use of science. Colourlock is the joint-venture developer of the Klenzion™ Agwash™ Stockwashing System which is in use throughout the New Zealand meat processing industry. Andy’s interests include skiing, fishing, tramping, mountain biking and overseas adventures. Check out Andy’s website www.bogacki.co.nz

We build strong kids, strong families, strong communities

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