Traverse City, MI – From Dec. 1-14, shoppers at the JCPenney at Grand Traverse Mall are invited to round up their holiday purchases to the nearest whole dollar and donate the difference to Grand Traverse Bay YMCA to support quality afterschool programs in their community.
The Y has partnered with the local JCPenney to provide children in need with access to life-enriching afterschool programs that foster social skills, provide opportunities to be physically active and achieve academic success in school.
“The availability of affordable afterschool programs continues to be a vital need for many parents and caregivers in our community,” said Dagny Monette, YMCA director of child care, families, and camps, “Support for JCPenney’s ‘Round-up’ campaign will help us enhance our efforts to impact the lives of as many children as possible after school with meaningful, quality programs.”
The Y believes that all kids deserve the opportunity to discover who they are and what they can achieve. Recent studies show that one out of every four children in the U.S. is unsupervised after school.* Afterschool programming at the Y provides children and teens with a safe and nurturing environment around caring adult role models. Combining play with academics, the Y’s afterschool program promotes creativity, a love for learning, social and emotional development, and character building. It also fills gaps in schools and in communities by offering enrichment through arts, music, physical education, sports and nutrition.
JCPenney’s December Round-Up campaign is the final afterschool fundraising event of the year.
Since 1999, JCPenney’s continuing support and commitment to the afterschool cause has made it possible for more children to participate in positive afterschool environments nationwide.
About the Y
The Y is one of the nation‟s leading nonprofits strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. Across the U.S., 2,687 Ys engage 21 million men, women and children – regardless of age, income or background – to nurture the potential of children and teens, improve the nation‟s health and well-being and provide opportunities to give back and support neighbors. Anchored in more than 10,000 communities, the Y has the long-standing relationships and physical presence not just to promise, but to deliver, lasting personal and social change. www.ymca.net . More information about the Grand Traverse Bay YMCA can be found at www.gtbayymca.org or its Facebook page.
About JCPenney’s Commitment to Afterschool
As the leading corporate advocate for the afterschool issue, JCPenney works to increase opportunities offered by afterschool programs in order to empower our nation‟s children with the tools they need to succeed in life. Through its legacy of supporting youth and charitable organizations such as the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, YMCA of the USA, National 4-H, United Way and FIRST, JCPenney formalized its commitment to the afterschool issue by making it the Company‟s signature cause in 1999. For over a decade, more than $100 million has been distributed to afterschool programs across every JCPenney community thereby making it possible for more kids to participate in life-enriching programs that inspire them to be smart, strong and socially responsible. For more information, visit www.jcpenneyafterschool.org.
* Data from Afterschool Alliance 2009 report America After 3PM, commissioned by JCPenney Afterschool, is the most in-depth study of how America’s children spend their afternoons.
