YMCA/UB Partner In Program To Benefit Area Youth

YMCA Buffalo Niagara to run day camp at Clark Hall on UB’s South Campus during summer months
BUFFALO, NY – Later this month the University at Buffalo and YMCA of Buffalo Niagara will begin a unique partnership that aims at providing local youth, particularly those in UB’s South Campus neighborhood, a unique summer camp experience on UB’s South Campus from June 30 through August 29.

A YMCA Summer Camp, one of many throughout Western New York each summer, will be housed out of historic Clark Hall on UB’s South Campus. The camp aims to give more green space and options to campers in the City of Buffalo, who have reached their growth limit at several of the YMCA’s city locations. Kids will have the unique opportunity to experience what it’s like to go to college through several interactive campus experiences, including demonstrations at the UB Earthquake Center and Center for the Arts. They’ll also enjoy weekly field trips, arts and crafts, sports, and swimming lessons at the Clark Hall pool. Campers will participate in fun character building exercises that foster the YMCA’s core values of honesty, caring, respect, and responsibility. The camp expects to host 50 to 70 children.

The UB summer camp is the eighteenth in Western New York to join the roster of day and residential camps run by the YMCAs. Program director Krystle Feind states, “It’s our first year at UB and we’re really excited. This camp will allow us to reach even further into the Buffalo community and will help us touch many more people.”

The camp came about through the collaborative efforts of the YMCA of Buffalo Niagara, the Division of Athletics and UB’s Office of External Affairs and is further evidence of UB’s commitment to the Buffalo community, particularly in the South Campus neighborhood.

“This was a unique opportunity for us to utilize facilities that are off-peak in summer months, like Clark Hall, and continue to foster a relationship with a tremendous community partner like the YMCA,” said Warde Manuel, UB’s Director of Athletics. “Young men and women will have the opportunity to exercise, learn and grow in a safe environment with tons of green space and educational opportunities around them. Along with the variety of our own sport camps, this is another example of how we are striving to give back to the youth of Western New York.”

The camp will also provide a number of jobs to young adults in the Buffalo area, who will learn and provide leadership skills to the children that will attend the camp.

Interested parties can sign up at the Delaware YMCA (2564 Delaware Ave., Buffalo) or at Clark or Allen Hall on UB’s South Campus or can call (716) 875-1283. Parents are welcome to spend the day with their child at the camp, go on field trips, and donate items throughout the summer. The camp activities run from 8:30 am – 4:00 pm, with extended hours being offered beginning at 7:00 am and running until 6:00 pm at no additional charge.

06/25/2008