LOCK HAVEN - The YMCA has just opened a whole room full of new equipment and will welcome more in a few weeks.
With a new face in management and new energy coming from its board of directors, the facility at 142 E. Water St. is poised for a growing future.
Excitement is building toward an open house on Saturday, Sept. 11 when the public can see the new fitness equipment, explore options and learn about a membership special.
Fall programs start Sept. 13.
"We want to be the center of the community, which is what we believe the YMCA should be," said Cheryl Orndorf, interim executive director/CEO. "We want to be the best Y around."
Orndorf has been at the helm since June.
Although she was tapped to step into the position part time, she has devoted long hours to shepherding the project of acquiring and setting up 22 newly-leased pieces of cardio-vascular exercise equipment, Board President Mark Traister said.
The Expresso Virtual Reality bikes, and Precor recumbent bikes, treadmills, adaptive motion trainers and elliptical cross-trainers are set up in one of the long front spaces that has become the cardio room.
The futuristic bikes offer interactive workouts with graphics, realistic rides and in-ride games on more than 30 virtual courses. Members can ride together and see each other's progress around the virtual course.
Each piece of the new cardio equipment also allows users to watch TV or listen to music channels through a media package with a personal screen and IPod connectivity.
The change-up in equipment was overdue, Traister said. It helps make the YMCA a local leader in fitness again.
"You would be hard-pressed to find as nice a cardio room anywhere else," he said.
Previously, the cardio workout equipment was in the same front room as strength-training, so the move has allowed more space for machine weight-lifting.
More upgrades are in store, with the free-weight room and swimming pool next up.
The Y has already done some work on what is the only publicly-available indoor pool in the area, Traister said, including renovating the locker rooms. The additional renovations on the drawing board should take it through the next decade and beyond.
The facility also has made a $22,000 investment in the free-weight room, with new equipment slated to arrive the beginning of next month. The weights area will move across the hall from its current location to accommodate the new equipment, while its current location will become an aerobics room.
Mark's business, Traister Contracting, has donated the remodeling work needed to make the transition possible.
The old cardio equipment was traded in on the new, Orndorf reported, but the current free-weight equipment will be donated to Keystone Central School District.
The new free-weight pieces will be delivered off a tractor-trailer, and volunteers will be needed to carry them inside and do set-up. The YMCA is hoping area groups and organizations looking for a quick service project will step up to help. Those interested should call the Y at 748-6727.
Staff members also are going above and beyond their normal duties, painting and fixing up around the building. Harlan Dickey, property manager, has been at the center of the recent changes.
"Whenever anything's going on, he steps up and saves this place money by not having to hire out for the extra work," Traister said.
The other staff members are Pam Bowes, administrative assistant; Beth Bartlett, child care director; and Chad Walsh, program director.
More cosmetic improvements are planned in the near future, to make the facility even more attractive.
"Next year at this time, the Y will have a totally different look," Traister pledged.
A GREAT TIME
TO JOIN
Membership numbers are on the rise, Traister reported, and the current discount of 30 percent off any six-month or annual membership, new or renewed, should help boost that upward trend. The discount is good on both new and renewed memberships and is available through Sept. 17.
Memberships come in a variety of categories, from preschoolers through senior citizens, for two-parent families, single-parent families, couples and students. A military discount also is available.
Three-month memberships are popular in the winter, Orndorf said, attracting people who like to get their exercise outdoors in milder weather.
The Y wants to accommodate as many users as possible, she said, and has offered punch cards for classes, even monthly fees for people who are in the area for just a short time.
Because the local facility is part of the larger YMCA system, Orndorf said, it also honors memberships held at other Y's, if they are more than 50 miles away.
SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
Here you can find the latest exercise trend, Zumba, a fun dance-based cardio workout. And this fall, Aqua Zumba in the pool will be added to the roster of fitness options.
"Zumba is a lot more fun than your typical aerobics," Orndorf said. "It's for someone looking for a good cardio workout, but it's also a way to have fun and not feel like you're working out."
Interest in aerobics continues, so the YMCA will keep right on offering those classes, along with such options as kickboxing, "Butts and Guts" and more.
Personal training, weight training, sports leagues for adults and a rock-climbing wall with experienced, longtime instructors also are important components of the facility's fitness offerings. Access to the rock-climbing wall or other Y features can even be rented for birthday parties...
And, the Y offers much more.
The child care program, for infants through school-aged children, is growing.
The recent summer day camp for school-aged kids involved 40 to 45 children, Orndorf said, who took field trips and conducted a collection for the Clinton County SPCA.
The Y also offers youth programs before and after school at satellite locations, and in turn, Keystone Central's 21st Century After School Program uses the YMCA facilities.
There is so much going on, Orndorf said, the Y is looking into providing fitness classes off site, a practice that is becoming common throughout the YMCA system. It allows for more possibilities beyond the finite space the building affords, she said.
"The Y is a very important and much-needed enterprise in this community, without a doubt," Traister said.
"Whether you are 2 years old learning to swim or 90 years old and walking on the treadmill, we want to be here for you," he said.
SERVING THE
COMMUNITY
He and his wife, Catherine, chair of the Lock Haven University Health and Physical Education Department, met through their YMCA associations - Mark was an aerobics instructor at the Williamsport Y when she was the Lock Haven facility's physical director.
"Mark really has a love for and dedication to YMCAs," Orndorf said. "It's good to have him on the board and as involved as he is."
Board members come from many different segments of the community, she said, and include LHU employees, a police officer, the district attorney, the school district's athletics director.
Steve Turchetta is the board vice president, Tammy Rich the secretary and Carrie Pase the treasurer. The other members are Keith Kibler, Tom Shearer, Matt Fisher, Judy Lovette, Diane Miller, Sue Weller, Cori Myers, Carl Poff, Craig Russell, Mike Salisbury, Jim Strouse and Judith Petruzzi.
New members have brought fresh thinking to the table, Traister said.
"This board is aggressive," he said. "We want to put out a good product."
Although memberships are up, fundraising hasn't brought in as much this year as in the past, he said. The Y relies on donors to both keep dues reasonable and finance upgrades.
The board wants to invest a major amount of money in the pool renovations, Traister said, and a campaign to raise those dollars is in the offing.
"There's growth that can happen out there," he said.
"The times are a little tougher than they usually are, but we are one of the few independent Y's left around the country. Y's group together, but with the size of our community I think we need to remain independent and concentrate on serving our area," Traister said.
"Lock Haven is a proud community and the Y is a part of that."
