November 2023 Newsletter
SILVER BAY YMCA TICONDERGA TEEN CENTER
OUR MISSION To provide local youth with a safe space to connect with their community, to engage in opportunities to grow and have the freedom to be their best selves.
PROGRAM OVERVIEW The Silver Bay YMCA Ticonderoga Teen Center is a free drop-in program for 6th12th graders located on the main floor of the Armory at 123 Champlain Ave. Read on for our November highlights!
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STANDARD HOURS
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Mondays: 2:30pm-6pm Tuesdays: 2:30pm-9pm Wednesdays: 2:30pm-6pm Thursdays 2:30pm-9pm Fridays: 2:30pm-10pm Saturdays: 7pm-10pm
Reach us at: youthandteenstaff@silverbay.org SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
BOARD OF DIRECTORS VISIT On November 10th, the Teen Center had a visit from Silver Bay YMCA’s Board of Directors. It was great to show everyone our space and answer questions about the program. We are so grateful for the partnership between Silver Bay and the Town of Ticonderoga that allows us to provide opportunities for the youth in our community.
THANK YOU TO ALL WHO SUPPORT THE TEEN PROGRAM!
TEEN CENTER AWARDED CHARLES R. WOOD FOUNTATION GRANT On November 17th Silver Bay YMCA announced that the Charles R. Wood Foundation has awarded Silver Bay a $8,600 grant to help support the Silver Bay YMCA Ticonderoga Teen Center. “This grant allows us to continue our mission by giving teens a fun and safe place to come every day. We offer opportunities that help teens foster social, emotional, physical, and academic growth in a safe welcoming environment,” says Silver Bay YMCA Youth and Teen Director Jackie Palandrani
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
COLLEGE TOURS On Veterans Day we led our very first College Tour trip! We are so proud of the five students who took advantage of this opportunity and committed to a long day of travel to learn about some Albany area schools and talk about options for their future.
Our first stop was Hudson Valley Community College for their Open House. Our teens were able to break off into informational sessions specific to their areas of interest including mechanical engineering, auto mechanics, liberal arts, and nursing. Tables were set up where visitors could get more information about everything from athletics to housing options. The second stop on our trip was to The College of Saint Rose. Our group had our own session with an admissions officer and a guided tour of the whole campus. The teens were absolutely won over by the dining hall when we got to eat our lunch there. As much pizza, pasta, burgers, fountain drinks, and ice cream as they want? They were sold. Our final stop was SUNY Cobleskill where we were given a tour by one of our very own Teen Center alumna who is currently a senior. We got to see so many cute animals in their agricultural and animal sciences barns. Thank you so much to everyone who made this trip possible for our teens!
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
HOMEWORK HELP Homework support is available at the Teen Center every day after school. We strongly encourage students to ask a staff member for assistance with their academic work at any time, even when there are other activities going on. Our Teen Center team see homework as a priority and will work to accommodate their needs.
TEEN MADE MEALS As part of our cooking program and in support of our mission to meet the needs of youth, teens have the ability to use the kitchen and provided ingredients to make meals for themselves. The supplies we have available are made possible through grants and donations. To help us ensure that there are always resources available, we ask that teens be mindful in determining when they truly have need or should save supplies for others.
“LOOKOUT: GORDON RANSEY IS IN THE BUILDING”
PASTA AND NOODLES ARE STAPLES OF THE TEEN DIET
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
SPORTS As the days get shorter and colder, the gym becomes an even more popular place for teens to play and burn off some energy. When supervising teens in the gym, our staff aim to teach good sportsmanship and hold participants to a standard of respect for the equipment, shared space, and for one another. In additional to providing a fun and safe space, the teen program operates with the Y values of youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility.
DODGEBALLERS PAUSE FOR A GROUP PHOTO
With the help of some Leaders Club volunteers, our staff lit up the gym for a glow in the dark basketball event. They marked all the court lines with glow tape and led lights and changed out the nets and balls for self illuminating ones. The teens had a blast shooting hoops in the transformed space. GLOW BASKETBALL NIGHT
November saw several spirited games of dodgeball as well as the usual basketball, volleyball, and soccer. Kickball is still extremely popular among our younger crowd and has inspired an upcoming tournament on Saturday December 2nd starting at 7pm. @YMCATEENCENTERTI @SILVERBAY_YMCA_TITEENCENTER
SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
GAMES The Teen Center has lots of games available during all of our open hours. Uno is always popular, but so are some sillier games. Two from the game company Exploding Kittens were very popular this month: Poetry for Neanderthals and Unstable Unicorns. The first is a Taboo style game in which players may only use one syllable clues to help their team guess words for points. The second is a game in which you “build an army of unicorns and betray your friends. Unicorns are your friends now.”
November also saw the near completion of a communal Teen Center puzzle, some hilarious games of Four Square in the Air, and some highly competitive Trivia. The winners of each trivia round won a snow cone from the Leaders Club store!
TEENS FLEX THEIR MINDS AND MUSCLES AT TRIVIA NIGHT
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
BAKING The teens absolutely love to do baking activities. Nothing motivates them to engage in a program activity quite like the promise of a tasty treat. The teens tried out a few new recipes this month. They made oatmeal raisin cookies, pumpkin cookies with homemade icing, and zucchini bread.
COMMUNITY COOKIE KITS Some of our Leaders Club members volunteered to help staff make 150 cookie kits which were handed out at this year’s tree lighting ceremony in town.
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
ARTS & CRAFTS We love to try new crafts at the Teen Center. In November we did a tissue paper stained glass activity. Teens used colorful pieces of paper cut into geometric shapes like they were pieces of glass to fit and layer together into a design. Once sealed together and made shiny with mod podge, they became pretty collages that let the light through when placed in front of a window.
GETTING CREATIVE WITH TEEN CENTER CRAFTS
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Drawing and painting are always available and it is always a joy to discover when teens have a hidden talent.
SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
THANKSGIVING FIELD TRIP TO SILVER BAY It has become tradition for the Teen Center to do a big Thanksgiving meal for the November family style dinner. This year we had the unique opportunity to bring teens on a field trip to Silver Bay’s main campus and use the dining hall’s commercial kitchen. Those who signed up got to work with Teen Center favorite Chef Anthony Basile to help prepare a Thanksgiving feast for the community and invite their families to share dinner with us. Teens learned how to practice safety measures in a professional kitchen, how to prepare several classic dishes in a large batch, and how to decorate cookies using piping bags.
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
WREATH MAKING During our Thanksgiving field trip, once the food was ready to go in the oven, we got to take the teens over to the Boathouse to enjoy a hot chocolate break in front of the fireplace and try their hands at wreath making. It was all great fun and we are so appreciative of all the friends and family members who came out to support the teens and eat the wonderful meal they helped prepare.
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
THANKSGIVING DINNER AT SILVER BAY
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318
November 2023
UPCOMING All teens are invited to our December Teen Center Dinner and Holiday Party on the 15th! Arrive by 6 to make sure you don’t miss any of the festivities. Any dietary concerns? Let a staff member know, we want to make sure everyone can participate and enjoy a good meal. All teens present will receive a gift in a white elephant style exchange. Teens DO NOT need to bring a gift in order to receive one, though we do welcome contributions from community members of teen appropriate gifts under $10 leading up to the event. Permission slips for the annual lock-in are available now! This is the not-to-miss event of the year. Pick up an info sheet and permission form at the Armory today. Make sure teens turn in their paperwork as promptly as possible to secure their spot!
REGISTER TODAY! BECOME PART OF THE TEEN CENTER REGISTER TODAY AT: HTTPS://SILVERCAMP.CAMPB RAINREGISTRATION.COM OR BY SCANNING:
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SILVERBAY.ORG/YOUTH-TEEN/ 518-503-5318