The Summit Area YMCA will open its doors to non-members for 10 days of free programming starting Thursday, Sept. 10, with activities at both its Summit and Berkeley Heights branches.
Welcome Week, running Thursday, Sept. 10 through Sept. 19, carries the theme "Where Every Neighbor Belongs." The YMCA calls it an annual effort to bring immigrant and U.S.-born neighbors together. The event coincides with a national Welcoming Week organized by Welcoming America, a nonprofit that coordinates similar events at YMCAs and community organizations across the country.
Anyone 16 or older can walk into either branch between 5 a.m. and 8 p.m. during the 10 days to try classes and use facilities at no cost. No sign-up is required.
Sept. 11 tribute
The schedule includes a full day of 9/11 tribute activities on Friday, Sept. 11, the 25th anniversary of the attacks. Both branches will set up a thank-you card table in the lobby for local police, fire and EMS. Members and visitors can also complete a 110-floor StairMaster climb, a 2,001-meter run or row, or a 110-floor memorial stair climb on the Summit YMCA's front stairwell. The stair climb covers 16 laps, the equivalent of 2,071 steps, and runs from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Highlights across both branches
Berkeley Heights offerings include a two-hour Zumba dance party from 8–10 a.m., a 45-minute outdoor cardio cross-training session from 8:30–9:15 a.m. and puppy yoga from noon to 1 p.m., hosted with Home for Good Dog Rescue.
A new PWR!Moves Parkinson exercise class, led by instructor Carolina H., will also launch at the Berkeley Heights branch during the week. The class uses dance-like movements set to music, targeting rigidity and coordination challenges common in Parkinson's disease.
At the Summit branch, family open swim sessions with beach balls run from noon to 1 p.m. and 2–3 p.m. on multiple days. A teen open house at the Summit Teen Center runs noon to 4 p.m. with games, tournaments and prizes, open to members and non-members. Teen pool volleyball is scheduled from 3:30–5:30 p.m. for ages 13–19.
Other Summit events include a Release & Restore neck and shoulder therapy workshop from 7–8 p.m. in the yoga studio and a Les Mills Launch morning from 7:30 a.m. to noon featuring BODYPUMP and Strength Development formats.
Collection boxes for donations will sit in the lobbies of the Berkeley Heights YMCA, Summit YMCA and The Learning Circle YMCA throughout the week.
The full day-by-day schedule is available on the YMCA's Welcome Week page.
Upcoming in the Summit area
The Union County fishing derby for residents with disabilities takes place Sept. 13 at Warinanco Park. Union County hayride ticket sales are open for five October dates. Lincoln-Hubbard PTO's playground fundraising campaign continues into the new school year.
