Thank you for your support of the mission of the Valley of the Sun YMCA! I have served as a YMCA volunteer for over 30 years, but have never seen the YMCA make as much of an impact on the community as it has in the past year.

The Valley of the Sun YMCA is providing emergency childcare, preschool, and meal programs for healthcare workers, first responders, and those unable to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March 2020, we began offering these programs at 9 YMCA locations and in May 2020, we expanded to 13 YMCA locations across the state. In August 2020, as many parents struggled with meeting the needs of their children for virtual and distance learning, 13 of our branches began Y Academy, which provides a staff supported classroom space for online learning.

• YMCA childcare programs provides safe, enriching, and financially accessible childcare, preschool, and meals for children who would otherwise experience food insecurity. In partnership with our emergency childcare locations, the YMCA will provide meals (breakfast, lunch, and snacks) to all those enrolled in the childcare, preschool, and Y Academy programs.
• The program is inclusive and designed to serve children ages 12 months to 13 years.
• This program operates Monday through Friday, from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Both part-time and full-time programs are available to support working families, and accommodations are made to support children with disabilities.
• Our childcare programs follow best-practices national Y models and incorporate specific elements to help children develop intellectually, physically, socially and emotionally.
• Curricula includes health and wellness, techniques that help prevent the spread of COVID-19, academic support, STEAM education, leadership development, service learning, arts, and global learning.

In 2020, we served 6,417 children with 333,801 meals and snacks. Many of these children would have experienced food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, Valley of the Sun YMCA branches will serve more than 7,000 low-income Arizona residents with childcare, preschool, Y Academy Learning Hub, and meal programs for children who may otherwise experience food insecurity.