Galowich Family YMCA — Greater Joliet Area YMCA

Greater Joliet Area YMCA Invites Area High School Students to Participate in Summer Day Camp Volunteer Program

March 19, 2025

Are you looking to take an active role in bringing about meaningful, enduring change right in your own neighborhood? The YMCA’s summer day camp volunteer program is for you!

Area high school students, entering grades 9-12, can now sign up to volunteer at YMCA Summer Day Camp locations throughout Will and Grundy Counties. With flexible schedules, and a variety of volunteer roles available, you will be sure to find a volunteer opportunity that piques your interest and proves to be a rewarding experience.

At the Y, we strive to create a summer day camp experience like no other. And we are proud to say that volunteers play an important role in the success of these programs. By working together, we can ensure that all children will have the opportunity to benefit from an engaging and impactful camp experience. Students can apply online today by clicking below.

Youth Volunteer Application

To learn more about becoming a YMCA Summer Camp Volunteer, please contact:

Dori Fugate, Volunteer and Special Events Director
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (815) 744-3939, ext.

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Save During the YMCA’s 2025 Spring Sports Leagues Sale

March 18, 2025

When kids play sports, they do more than just exercise. Besides being physically active, they develop higher self-esteem, perform better in school and work better in groups. Youth sports programs at the YMCA teach kids the fundamentals of the game while emphasizing the importance of teamwork. Above all, kids who participate in YMCA youth sports have a lot of fun!

YMCA Spring Sports Leagues Sale
March 21-24

Families that register for a YMCA spring sports league during our four day sale will SAVE $10!

Use promo code: LEAGUES25 when registering online

PLEASE NOTE: Valid at all Greater Joliet Area YMCA locations. Limit one per member, per league. Cannot be combined with any other offers. Some restrictions may apply.

Learn more about spring sports leagues available at your local Y branch by clicking below:

C.W. Avery Family YMCA
Offering NFL FLAG Football, T-Ball/Coach Pitch Baseball/Player Pitch Baseball, and Soccer
REGISTER ONLINE

Galowich Family YMCA
Offering NFL FLAG Football
REGISTER ONLINE

Morris Hospital YMCA
Offering NFL FLAG Football and T-Ball/Pinto Baseball/8U Softball
REGISTER ONLINE

If you have any questions, please contact:
Maria Freeh, Sports Director
C.W. Avery Family YMCA
[email protected]
(815) 267-8600, ext. 217

Zach Jarosz, Sports Manager
Galowch Family YMCA
[email protected]
(815) 744-3939, ext. 317

Chris Interial, Sports Director
Morris Hospital YMCA
[email protected]
(815) 513-8080, ext. 514

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My Y Rewards Special March Earnings Event

March 13, 2025

DOUBLE THE FUN FITNESS CLASSES

Spring is the perfect time to refresh your health and wellness routine with YMCA group fitness classes. And now, My Y Rewards members will have double the fun exercising during our Special March Earnings Event!

Greater Joliet Area YMCA Facility Members, ages 16 and up, enrolled in the My Y Rewards program will receive double rewards points for every group fitness class they attend between March 17-23!

Learn how to enroll by clicking below.

ENROLL TODAY

Upon enrolling in the My Y Rewards Program, you’ll also earn points each time you check-in, take a class, or refer a friend to the Y. In fact, you’ll earn your first 50 points for simply enrolling in the program. You can then redeem your points for fun Y swag and program and membership credits.

If you should have any questions or any feedback on the My Y Rewards Program, please be sure to stop by the Membership Desk during your next visit or email [email protected].

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Celebrate Healthy Kids Day at the YMCA

March 12, 2025

The Greater Joliet Area YMCA is so excited to celebrate Healthy Kids Day at each of our branch locations! Each site will feature fun educational activities and active play to keep kids moving and learning, helping them maintain healthy habits and academic skills to achieve their goals and reach their full potential. Healthy Kids Day events are free and open to the community.

GALOWICH FAMILY YMCA
Friday, April 25
5:30-7 p.m.

In addition to participating in a fun series of health and wellness activities, attendees will also gain entrance into special raffles. Prizes include Y swag and a free month of membership.

Gym
Kids will be able to participate in sports demonstrations like flag football, basketball, and pickleball throughout the evening and get the chance to play in our inflatable bounce house!

Fitness Studio
Get your heart pumping with a family friendly bootcamp class circuit!

Lap Pool
Dive in for open swim and water safety education activities. Swim lesson evaluations will also be available.

Innovation Center
Stop by for healthy snack making as well as art and writing class demonstrations.

Staff will also lead tours of the wellness center where teens can learn about wellness center certification. YMCA partners and local organizations will be on hand to provide families with important information.

PLEASE NOTE: Registration is required and children must be accompanied by an adult. Please register all individuals that will be in attendance.

If you have any questions about YMCA Healthy Kids Day, please contact Youth and Family Director Tracy Wrase at [email protected] or (815) 744-3939, ext. 315.

MORRIS HOSPITAL YMCA
Saturday, April 26
10:30 a.m.-Noon

Stop by the Y and enjoy:

-Health and wellness demonstrations with Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers
-Games and activities for kids including an inflatable bounce house in the gymnasium
-A family group fitness class
-Arts and crafts

And so much more!

PLEASE NOTE: Registration is required and children must be accompanied by an adult. Please register all individuals that will be in attendance.

If you have any questions about YMCA Healthy Kids Day, please contact Youth and Family Director Jordan Overton at [email protected] or (815) 513-8080, ext. 513

C.W. AVERY FAMILY YMCA
Saturday, April 26
11 a.m.-1 p.m.

Stop by the Y and enjoy:

-An energetic family fitness class
-An interactive gardening demonstration
-Crafts to help support mindful breathing
-Fun in our bounce houses
-Swimming in the Family Pool from Noon-1 p.m.

And so much more!

PLEASE NOTE: Registration is required and children must be accompanied by an adult. Please register all individuals that will be in attendance.

If you have any questions about YMCA Healthy Kids Day, please contact Youth and Family Director James Wagner at [email protected] or (815) 267-8600, ext. 234

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Teamwork Happens Here: Celebrating a Successful 2025 Youth Basketball Season

March 11, 2025

With the 2025 Youth Basketball League (YBL) season having drawn to a close, we’d like to send our sincere thanks to everyone who helped to make this winter such a memorable experience for young athletes in our community. With the support of our volunteer coaches, generous league sponsors, and community partners, we welcomed more than 1,200 kids to basketball courts in Joliet, Plainfield, Morris, and Coal City this season.

At the Y, we know that our youth sports programs help to keep kids physically active. But, as we reflect on the past several months, we know that the impact YMCA programs can have on young athletes reaches way beyond what happens on the court during practices and games. In addition to staying active and healthy, kids who play sports develop higher self-esteem, perform better in school, and work better in groups. The YMCA’s YBL program teaches kids the fundamentals of the game of basketball while emphasizing the importance of learning to work together as a team. Most importantly, kids have a lot of fun!

YBL BY THE NUMBERS

1,253 – Athletes
115 – Teams
426 – Games Played
165 – Volunteer Coaches
More than 3,000 Volunteer Hours Served

We’d like to thank all of the athletes and their families, our volunteer coaches, and staff who participated in our YBL programs this year. We’d also like to thank our generous sponsors for helping to make this season possible:

C.W. Avery Family YMCA:

Associated Orthodontists
Backroads Burger & Bar
Contractors Association of Will & Grundy Counties
Edward Jones – Mike Pfaff
Edward Jones – Ryan Peterson
MJ Integrity Insurance
Plainfield Rotary
Gus P. Rousonelos
Stockton Wealth Management
Turk Furniture

Galowich Family YMCA:
Associated Orthodontists
Antione J. Edwards
Contractors Association of Will & Grundy Counties
ExxonMobil
Filotto Roofing
Gifted Elite Academy
Greg’s Body Shop
Hoopers 4 Life
Hustling Hawks
Jack Anderson Insurance Agency Inc.
MulticultuREAL
Pam Gant Sports Club
POSTNET
Rathbun Cservenyak & Kozol LLC
Ron Tirapelli Ford
Supermercado Casa Blanca
Turk Furniture
Unidos Marketing Network
We Finance E-Z Auto Joliet
Howard Wright State Farm

Morris Hospital YMCA:

Advantage Realty – Steve Barr
Associated Orthodontists LTD
Automotive Performance
Brandt Builders & Excavating, INC
Busey Bank
Crosstown Realtors – Dana Hathorn
Edward Jones – Grant Whybark
Edward Jones – Mike Pfaff
ExxonMobil Refinery
E-Z Auto Sales
Feeney’s
Findlay Real Estate Group
KJ McKeons
Midwest Realty
Painters Local 33
Ron Tirapelli Ford
Roth Jorstad Insurance Agency
TNT Construction Enterprises, LLC.
Turk Furniture
Vital Signs Solutions, Inc.
Village Christian Church
Weits Cafe
Zabel & Associates, PC
Zig’s Fairway Auto Repair and Towing

We can’t wait to see everyone on the court next season!

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Ignite Your Passion: Jeannie Howell’s Y Story

March 10, 2025

At the YMCA, we are always proud to support members as they strive to maintain a healthy lifestyle and reach their goals. This includes individuals like Jeannie Howell, who says she has experienced life changing health and wellness results since joining the Galowich Family YMCA in 2008.

“In 2007, a nurse that I worked with helped me make a New Year’s resolution. She said ‘Let’s exercise for at least an hour once or twice a week.’ At that point in time, I weighed 287 pounds and my knees would pop when I would go up and down the stairs. Since then, I’ve lost more than 100 pounds and I’m now off 2 diabetic medicines that I had taken for 30 years,” she said.

Jeannie says her Y journey began with water aerobics classes and that she eventually found opportunities to explore one of her life’s passions – dance.

“When I joined the Y, I thought to myself ‘If I start working out here it’s possible for me to become the dancer that I always aspired to be.’ It was step classes, it was line dancing, it was Zumba, it was everything. I was so winded at first because I couldn’t keep up, but my love for dance allowed me to keep going.”

Jeannie said the process of losing weight was slow and measured, but with each step she gained more confidence, eventually participating in local dance competitions.

“I saw changes along the way that gave me confidence. I was able to stay on the dance floor longer and longer. That’s when I knew everything was working,” she said.

In addition to improving her health, being at the Y allowed Jeannie to build lasting friendships.

“I’ve made so many connections at the Y. I’m still friends with everyone I met in the first water aerobics classes from 2008. And when I meet up with friends from Zumba classes, sometimes we end up doing the dances right in the bar when music comes on,” she said.

When offering advice to others seeking to improve their health, Jeannie emphasizes that patience has been the most important factor in her health and wellness journey.

“You can’t be in a hurry and you can never quit. Bad habits die hard and it’s never easy. You have to find something you enjoy. So try some of everything and find something that you like. It takes time but it becomes a lifestyle,” she said.

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