More kids' activities planned for community centre

The Niagara Youth Collective and the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake are collaborating to bring open court activities to NOTL youth at the community centre.

Amidst pickleball, volleyball and ping pong on a recent Friday evening, organized by a town and youth collective partnership, young people made new friends, developed new skills, and enjoyed themselves in an unstructured, but supervised environment, Caroline Polgrabia told The Local.

Polgrabia is an organizer of the youth collective based at Cornerstone Church, with a group of people dedicated to providing opportunities for young people in NOTL. For the past two years they have been offering cooking classes, social nights and “try it” experiences, such as visits to Grape Escape, F45 and the lawn bowling club.

However, during that time the collective has been “riding on the backs of parents,” said Polgrabia. “It’s a huge amount of human resources, and it’s exhausting as a parent. We got to a point where it’s like a part-time job.”

Recently, organizers for the collective gathered information from all activities that young people can access in NOTL and discovered that “there’s tons of stuff for kids to do,” said Polgrabia. “The town offers opportunities, as well as the museum, Yellow Door Theatre, GeoKids Club, cadets, scouts…”

However, there were gaps, she said, particularly on Friday nights, for something for kids to do. Youth “just want a welcoming space that they felt belonged to them.”“

This sparked a conversation with Emily Kujbida, recreation program coordinator for the town, who offered to open up the community centre gymnasium on Friday, Jan. 3, to see if there was any interest in a night of open court activities.

Polgrabia deemed it a success after counting 22 participants ranging from grades four to 12. “We had lots of positive feedback,” she said of the first Friday night trial.

The town has agreed it was a success, and has now announced it will continue opening the community centre auditorium until Feb. 28.

They are also opening the track and fitness area for youth aged 13 to 18. On Thursday, Jan. 30, the town is hosting a one-night trial for youth interested in fitness. They will have two time slots, 7 to 8 p.m. or 8 to 9 p.m., and each group will meet with a certified personal trainer at the start of the session to review fitness machines, warm-up and cool-down routines, proper etiquette and responsibility within a gym atmosphere. The trainer will supervise the session and provide tips and tricks for an effective workout.

Participants must register for this free opportunity. Keep an eye on the town and the youth collective’s social media for more information.

Town spokesperson Marah Minor said that if the Thursday evening program is successful, the town will continue offering it once per month.

Back on Jan. 3, parents Emily Foster and Breanne Pohorly, both teachers, prepared for the return to school by working in the cafe while their children participated in the first Friday evening gym activity program.

Foster’s kids are aged 12 and 13, and “they really wanted to come out to the community centre,” she said. “There are a lot of video games happening over the holidays so when I heard about this I said let’s do it.”

Breanne Pohorly said that for her 12- and 13-year olds “it was an easy sale, for sure. They liked the unstructured part, that it was just coming to play around in the gym. And if they want to come and check in and say they’re done or ‘I’m tired,’ then, because it’s very low commitment, we can leave.”

The Friday night program will continue to be offered free, and is intended for youth between the ages of 10 and 18. Participants ages 10 to 12 must have a guardian present within the facility.

The town also offers a drop-in activities time for ages two to 12 from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. each Saturday morning until March 1.

Town program staff are present to facilitate a variety of sports activities for the older participants, such as badminton, pickleball, table tennis, and soccer. Activity options will rotate weekly.

Children ages two to five will have a separate activity space with soft play toys, balance bikes and creative stations, and must be accompanied by a guardian in the auditorium. Participants ages six to 12 must have a guardian present within the facility. The cost is $5 per child or $10 for two or more children in the same. household.

Other youth collective programming can be found on their Facebook page at Niagara Youth Campus.

These programs will be advertised on the Town and NOTL Youth Collective’s social media.