Paul Szmal: Good morning, it's 8.15, it's FLX Morning Thursday. Erin Johnson is Senior Program Director and also Aquatic Director at the Auburn YMCA. Good morning and welcome back.
Erin Johnson: Good morning.
Paul Szmal: We have a couple of things we're going to cover today, starting with the well-known and renowned Auburn Stingrays, the YMCA's competitive swimming team. It's for kids ages 5 through 18, so tell us about the Stingrays.
Erin Johnson: Yeah, we're really looking forward to this upcoming season. As you mentioned, it's a long-standing program that the Y has endorsed and is a program within the rest of our youth programming. It is a competitive swim team. We do have a trial, come try Stingrays, see if it's something that you're interested in. That's going to start September 23rd and it runs Monday through Thursday, 5 o'clock to 6 p.m. People can come any or all of those days, whichever fits your schedules, because this is a busy time of year. But it's just an opportunity to meet the coaches, see what a practice is like, kind of see where you stand with your swimming abilities and whether or not you think Stingrays would be a fun opportunity to fit into your life.
Paul Szmal: So what are some of the things that kids and parents should think about when considering whether to make that leap? You're a recreational swimmer, you do it for fun, what are some factors to take into account to make the jump to competitive swimming?
Erin Johnson: Sure, it is a commitment. The season runs from September to early February, mid-March, depending on different qualifications and things like that. It's a team. We want everyone to feel comfortable and be competitive amongst themselves and within the team itself. But honestly, it's just determining whether or not you really like that recreational swimming to put it into your life a couple times a week. And we will help people along the way with their stroke, with different aspects of the swimming that, you know, coaches will help the swimmers with. But again, it builds friendships, it is a time commitment, but we really have fun and kids enjoy it. It's a team, but it's also an individual sport. So we celebrate everyone's accomplishments week in and week out. So it's really exciting.
Paul Szmal: Yeah, that's what I was going to say. It's an interesting sport because you compete individually, it's you against the water, but then you also build that feeling of team and you celebrate each other's accomplishments. So it gives the swimmers some goal setting and they're able to see their progress and they're able to be part of something bigger, which is a swim team.
Erin Johnson: Right, absolutely. Absolutely. The kids work together, but again, like you said, it is you against the time. And we see improvements through kids, like I said, week after week. And it's really exciting, particularly for the younger ones to see those improvements so much throughout the season. Because as with anything, you put the time and effort into it and you're going to get better. So it's fun to watch.
Paul Szmal: If you go to the website, auburnymca.org, you'll see the link that takes you to the Stingrays, the swim team clinic for ages 5-12, September 23-26, 5-6pm each day. And I know that some of the members of the Stingrays have really done impressive things over the years.
Erin Johnson: Yeah, we have a good group of kids. We always pull from different communities, so it's not just the Auburn community. But again, it builds friendships and most of our swimmers are leaders amongst different after school activities or clubs. And whether or not they swim competitively in their futures, the things that they learn through Stingrays and the friendships that they make and the connections they have really do take them on to bigger and better things outside of the swimming world. And then some of them do great things within the swimming world. It really just depends on where your life takes you, but there's so many parts of development that Stingrays touches on and it makes it fun.
Paul Szmal: Programming note for swimmers at the Y Pool, it's closed through Sunday and will reopen on Monday. Is Emerson Park Pool still open at this time of year or do they close when school starts?
Erin Johnson: Oh, sorry. Well, we have Emerson Pool. So we have two pools within our facility. Yes. So even though, yep, our larger competitive pool is currently down for some maintenance and cleaning and should reopen next week. But we do utilize the Emerson Pool, which is a little bit smaller, to accommodate all of our programs in the meantime.
Paul Szmal: And so just before we move on to our next topic, just give us a quick overview of the aquatic programs, all kinds of lessons and things that you offer at the Y.
Erin Johnson: Absolutely. We are actually starting our next swim lesson session the week of September 9th and we will run another session immediately after that. So if for some reason you're interested in swim lessons and you weren't able to participate in this particular session, we will have another one coming up in October that will run through Christmas. So we kind of run our swim lessons consecutively throughout the season. We do offer private swim lessons for those that either have a need for a one-on-one instructor or the group lesson session just doesn't fit their times and needs. So that is an additional option for us as well.
Paul Szmal: Talking with Erin Johnson from the Auburn YMCA, let's talk about a new program called THREAD. The acronym stands for Teamwork, Honesty, Respect, Equality, Awareness, and Discipline. This combines boxing and anti-bullying. So tell us about THREAD.
Erin Johnson: Yeah, we are really excited to be able to offer this opportunity. Randy Smith, who has created Combat Recovery, he has worked with us before in different events, special events, and we know that there's a need out there for our tweens and teens in terms of helping them build confidence, understanding, discipline, and empathy, and safety, and not just being kind of mean, I guess, in a sense, but we really just want to be able to offer this opportunity for the kids. Randy is super engaging. The times that we have used he and his staff before, the kids are fully engaged in what he is saying, and he has their attention, and he does do exercises in boxing and just help build confidence. And so it's exciting because everybody struggles at times with mental health or different issues in their lives, and I think this is a good opportunity to utilize physical activity and help combat those things. And so we're really excited about it. I think it's going to be fun.
We are doing a free workshop on September 17th for those ages 9 and up, and that is free. You do have to register for it, but that is on our website, and just if you want to come and see what it's all about. And then there is a four-week session that'll be Tuesday evening starting in October, and the age groups will be 9 through 12, and then 13 and up. And as I said, Randy is great. He has a history of boxing, but he is great with the kids, and we've really enjoyed the opportunities that we've had to work with him in the past, and happy to bring this collaboration to the youth in the community.
Paul Szmal: And this is neat, like the Stingrays, you can go to this workshop and check it out and see if it's for you, and if it is, sign up for the program in October.
Erin Johnson: Absolutely, yeah.
Paul Szmal: The website is auburnymca.org, so maybe you want to think about doing some competitive swimming with the Stingrays, or try the Thread program. Tons and tons of other things. As always, check them out again at auburnymca.org. Erin, thanks for the visit. We appreciate it.
Erin Johnson: Thank you. Have a good day.
