YMCA re-opening June 10
IRON MOUNTAIN – Closed per state mandate since mid March due to the threat of the coronavirus, the Northern Lights YMCA is finally reopening its doors to the community.
The YMCA Dickinson Center is set to open Wednesday, June 10 at 5 a.m. The full facility will be open, including the pool.
“We are so excited to finally welcome our members back again,” said Dickinson Center Director Jonathan Ringel. “The support of our members has helped sustain our operations during this unprecedented closure. We can’t wait to get back to normal operations and help people improve the overall health and wellness of our community.”
During the state shutdown, the YMCA remained opened for early child care services at the Systems Control Little Sparks Child Care center. Nearly two dozen children remained under the YMCA’s care during that time, many of those were children of those considered essential workforce.
Given the forced closure, the YMCA laid off nearly all of its staff and drafted a new budget for the remainder of the calendar year, implementing cuts across the board. The financial situation would have been even gloomier for the non-profit organization if not for continued support from a large percentage of its membership along with help from a Paycheck Protection Program loan from the federal government.
The YMCA asked members in March to remain active with their membership, even offering a 50-percent support level. YMCA officials estimated that more than 80 percent of its membership remained active either at full pay or the reduced support level during the closure.
“We were truly blown away by the outpouring of support from our members,” Ringel said. “We are so thankful for their generosity. It just goes to show how much everyone in our community values having this facility.”
The full scale of YMCA programs and services will resume in stages over the next several months, with immediate priority being given to providing a safe environment for members and offering a summer day camp for area youth. Summer day camp is set to begin Monday, June 15.
“We have been in constant communication with our Board of Directors, our COVID taskforce and local health departments in order to formulate the safest re-opening plan we can for our members,” Ringel noted.
With health and safety a top priority, the YMCA is providing physical barriers where required, adequate means for sanitizing hands of members and staff, and performing additional wipe down and cleaning on hard contact surfaces and equipment.
The YMCA will promote social distancing and screen participants as required. The sauna will remain closed until further notice.
“If you’re not feeling well, we kindly ask that you remain home and do not come to the YMCA,” Ringel said. “The health and safety of all members is our top priority.”
Some additional changes for the YMCA’s reopening include:
-The YMCA will be on summer hours, open 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday–Friday. Saturday’s hours will be 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the YMCA will be closed on Sundays. These hours run through the Labor Day holiday.
-Staffing at the Welcome Desk will be minimal for the next weeks. Please be patient.
-No children under 14 will be allowed in the facility without parental supervision.
-Tot watch will be closed until further notice.
-No youth sports programs will be occurring this summer other than day camp.
-Aquatics programming and swim lesson schedules will be announced in the coming weeks.
For additional information call (906) 774-4076.
