Courtesy of The Glens Area Youth Center
By LEE COLEMAN
The Glens Falls Area Youth Center has embarked on a capital campaign to raise $900,000 for an addition onto the center at 60 Montcalm Street in Glens Falls.
The center serves students in 5th grade through 12th grade, many of them at risk, lacking resources and food security at home. Ninety percent of the youth center members are from families below the poverty line and qualify for free or reduced lunch at their schools.
Molly Congdon-Hunsdon, the daughter of the late youth center founder Matt Congdon, said the capital campaign will fund a 3,000-square-foot addition to the existing 6,000-square-foot center.
“We want to start construction in June of 2025,” said Congdon-Hunsdon, who is the center’s executive director. The center’s current building opened in 2000 and more space is required for the health and wellness of the members as more children use the facility.
Congdon-Hunsdon said that on any given day during the school year between 70 and 90 children come to the center in the afternoon and evening. During summer months, when school is out, between 40 and 50 students come to the center each day.
“They need access to things like academic support, technology, or even a quiet space to do homework,” according to the center’s website (gfareayouthcenter@gmail.com).
“We help the kids as a whole: their physical, mental, and emotional health,” Congdon-Hunsdon said.
“We want to create a Wellness Center to allow us to greatly improve our health and wellness programs,” she said.
“The youth we serve are the future leaders who will significantly impact the quality of life in our community. To support their development into productive adults we must motivate them today,” she said.
Children and teens spend more time sitting, often dedicating hours each day to screens – smart phones, computers, tablets, TVs and gaming systems – leaving them limited opportunities for physical activity. Congdon-Hunsdon said the new Wellness Center will enable the youth center to restore its study room, a place for students to do homework and receive tutoring. Since COVID-19 this room has been filled with hygiene products and essential items like socks, clothing and school supplies.
The addition will allow the center to repurpose its current weight lifting area (all the machines will be moved into the new Wellness Center) to create a dedicated STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics) area that will accommodate VR headsets, iPads, and Chromebooks, enabling children to log into their school accounts and complete assignments as required.
Donations to the new capital campaign can be made through the center’s website (gfareayouthcenter@gmail.com) or by sending a check to the center’s mailing address: Glens Falls Area Youth Center, P.O. Box 469, Glens Falls NY 12801.
The center serves young people from Warren, Washington, and Saratoga counties. They come from school districts in Glens Falls, Queensbury, South Glens Falls, and Hudson Falls. Some students even come in from outside these districts.
“They need a place where they feel like they are safe and belong. Here they are welcomed, wanted and most importantly loved,” Congdon-Hunsdon said.
Congdon-Hunsdon has been working at the youth center since she was 17. She attended Union College and New York University and pursued a career in journalism. After her father passed away, she decided to return to the center full time.
“It’s such a privilege to watch these kids grown up into seniors in high school,” she said. Congdon-Hunsdon has certifications in a variety of physical and educational areas focusing on young people.
She is helped by her fellow staff members. Carly Lamay (Merrill) is assistant director, Anthony Rivera is program supervisor and food program leader (the center has a full kitchen that serves daily meals and provides snacks) and Nate Mattison, program coordinator and recreation leader (the center has its own gym).
Congdon-Hunsdon said the non-profit center relies on this professional staff and does not use volunteers. The staff members all have certifications in a variety of youth-centered skills. They are able to build lasting relationships with the youth center members.
“The center provides a safe, secure environment for all,” she said. “At the center the students exercise, do homework, eat play and compete. We need to invest in them so they thrive, and so will the community”.