We moved to Rye about a year and a half ago. Our neighbor was the one who recommended that we look into the Y; she referred to it as a hub. And there’s a lot going on, a lot of activities.
I wanted to take steps to become part of the community because we’re so new and we had moved from the City—we didn’t know anyone. So it was important to me that the kids have multiple access points to the community. We have two kids—nine and six—and they both benefit from the programs. My son has been taking karate for nearly a year and a half and my daughter has taken part in various activities and classes and today they’re doing the camp.
My daughter made her current best friend in the Child Watch room. And I had no idea. I just kept hearing about this little girl that we’d run into at a certain time. Then we ran into each other on the street and as it turned out, the family lives around the corner. So, significant experiences like that really helped the kids feel part of the community. My kids feel part of the community and I feel part of the community.
I like to work out. I use the fitness center. Sometimes I do classes. I like that there are options and there’s child care and it’s in the center of town so it’s accessible. There are different events that we can come to as a family, so it’s not just a place to work out or a place to stash the kids during vacation.
I like that it’s easy to try new things here. Certainly classes fill up here, but it’s not a competitive thing. I’m not competing with the other people in my class or that I’m working out with. I can just come to the gym and work out and be where I’m at, and that’s cool.
What surprised me is how many people I run into here at the Y, people I know. It’s not necessarily something I was looking for, to constantly run into people, but it happens. And, the friendships that have come from that, or [from] our kids taking classes at the same time…the friendships have blossomed. I never had a gym membership quite like that.
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