YMCA Youth Travel Exchange participants in Oakville are holding a fundraiser on Saturday, February 20, 2016 at the Peter Gilgan Family YMCA. The youth exchange participants have set a goal to raise $3,300 to offset some of the costs of hosting their guests from the YMCA of Northern BC such as food, transportation and activities.
Starting at 1:00 p.m., the youth exchange participants will collectively climb the distance of 3,954 m – the same distance they will climb up Mount Robson when they visit BC as part of the exchange – in the indoor rock climbing centre. Pledges are being collected all week to sponsor participants.
Later that evening, the group invites families to a movie night fundraiser that begins at 6:30 p.m. with the screening of two movies in the YMCA gymnasium. The animated adventure comedy, The Book of Life (rated G), will start the evening off, followed by Marvel’s The Avengers film (PG-13) at 9:00 p.m. Admission is free and popcorn and drinks will be sold. A bake sale and silent auction will also be taking place to help raise funds.
Youth exchange participants from BC will arrive in Oakville on March 19 for a week-long stay to experience the sights and sounds of Southern Ontario. Oakville participants will travel to Prince George on March 10 to experience some of the local culture.
The YMCA Youth Exchange program is the first exchange program of its kind between the YMCA of Oakville and the YMCA of Northern BC. Most of the primary fees for the program are covered through the YMCA Youth Exchanges Canada Program. The program is designed to give participants the opportunity to gain leadership, team-building and collaboration skills through planning of program curriculum. A total of 20 youth (13-17 years) from Oakville and Prince George were selected from applications received in January.
To find out more about how you can support the YMCA Youth Exchange Program, contact Katherine Dziedzic or Derek Banks at 905-845-3417. For more details about the exchange program, visit the YMCA of Oakville’s website at www.ymcaofoakville.org.