Member Stories

From Y Kid to Y Family-Celebrating Our Community

by Colleen Scholer, Auburn/Lewiston YMCA Family Member

Splash, splash, splash, I can see my mom’s hands slip into the water ahead of her as she swam laps next to me while my sister and I participated in the open swim in the other half of the pool. After she finished her exercise, she swam under the lane line to join us. I can remember her telling us stories of how she would have tea parties under the water with her friends and showing us how to do it.

This isn’t the only YMCA memory that I have. I remember making green eggs and ham after reading the famous Dr. Seuss book in my YMCA preschool classroom, playing with other children in the YMCA babysitting room while my mom swam laps, years of swimming lessons that eventually led to joining the YMCA swim team. I remember having a father/daughter sleepover as part of a special father/daughter program called Indian Princesses and gymnastic classes. The memories go on and on and included several years at YMCA Camp Cory, a sleepaway camp where I later worked.

Through all of those experiences, I developed my own love of community and fitness and found that they are a seamless part of my life. Over the years, when I have moved to a new town, I always look for the library and the local YMCA. When our first child was born, the Auburn-Lewiston YMCA was the first place we brought him to swim. He was 4 months old.

Now we have three young children and I can’t imagine our lives without the Y. Our kids have enjoyed the excellent sports programs and swimming lessons and my youngest is still enjoying attending the ChildWatch Room while I participate in yoga two mornings a week. I credit this special routine that she and I have with helping me be able to work from home. I work a lot of evenings as editor and publisher of Macaroni Kid Lewiston-Auburn, lewistonauburn.macaronikid.com. Yoga has helped me with my flexibility and focus. My youngest also loves having special time with her friends and the volunteers in the ChildWatch Room. She smiles when I tell her that we are on our way to the Y.

The Y has been more than my place to run on the treadmill, do Group Power, yoga, group cycle and other forms of exercise. It has also been my family’s place to celebrate community.