birkenhead ymca summer newsletter
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News updatesTRANSCRIPT
Summer Newsletter
FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION PLEASE LOOK AT OUR WEBSITE:WWW.BIRKENHEADYMCA.CO.UK
STREET ’S
Birkenhead YMCA is proud to announce the
launch of a new community initiative—
We have decided to do something really positive in our community and cre-
ate “Street Y’s” Each week, for one day a team of Birkenhead YMCA volun-
teers will go out to different locations, streets and open spaces of Wirral
and take part in a programme of tidying up areas to improve the local com-
munity and make it more appealing to visitors.
Recently litter and rubbish have spoiled a number of key attractions on Wir-
ral and in response to rising concerns the BYMCA has decided to expand
the efforts it already makes in the local community and reach out to tackle
some of the more visible signs of our disposable society. Obviously some
jobs will be too large or complex to handle but smaller projects are just
what we want to tackle.
If you would like to get involved as a volunteer or suggest a project we can
help you with in the community please contact Nigel Hughes on 0151 650
1015
Page 2 Summer Newsletter
Birkenhead YMCA history project -
We have been learning about the indus-
trial revolution as part of our life-skills his-
tory at our back door and visited Iron-
bridge Gorge and the Blists Hill Victorian
Town to experience first-hand what life
was like 150 years ago.
A group of BYMCA
residents spent a
day studying the
way the Victorians
lived, visiting their
shops, cottages
and workplaces, looking at the animals
they worked with, even sampling a cone
of traditional Fish and Chips.
On arrival at Blists Hill we were met by the
Visitor Services Team and shown to the
new Visitor Centre where we saw a giant
film show telling the story of the begin-
nings of Industrial Revolution in Iron-
bridge. After this we climbed an impres-
sive spiral staircase – it was a bit like a
time machine because when we got to the
top and went through the exit we came out
on the platform of a Victorian railway station
complete with huge steam locomotive. It
was an amazing introduction to our day at
Blists Hill.
Walking out onto the dusty main road of the
Victorian town we soon saw Lloyds Bank and
a when we went inside it was amazing – it
showed how banks have changed over the
years, with the dark
wood panelling –
heavy steel grilles.
There was so much to
see – around every
corner there seemed
to be yet another different part of Victorian
life displayed—even a real life “Bobby”!
It was one of those days where things you
read and heard about years ago all suddenly
became real and you began to understand it
all a lot more.
Page 3 Summer Newsletter
Images from our recent life-skills his-
tory day at Blists Hill Victorian Mu-
Blists Hill Victorian Town, Ironbridge
Page 4
Music Workshops
Summer Newsletter
BYMCA has seen some famous musicians walk
through its doors—the Beatles probably being the
most famous, so when Customer Services Officer
Dave Morton, himself a keen musician wanted to set
up a music workshop, it seemed a great idea and its
popularity has grown and grown with over 20 peo-
ple regularly taking part in activities and learning to
play musical instruments.
Dave feels that music education is a great way to
teach skills and promote values that lead to personal
development, such as self-discipline, dedication,
teamwork, self-confidence and practice. All these
values and the behaviours that demonstrate them are
necessary to be a well-rounded person in all realms
of life.
Although these values are taught through other disci-
plines in various ways, we believe the importance of
learning them through music education is that they
translate into other disciplines naturally.
BYMCA has made a big push in healthy lifestyles and physical fitness in the last 12 months and many customers have embarked on new ways to improve their health. By just making the slightest changes in diet or lifestyle can have big impacts on overall health and fitness. Smoking cessation, guid-ance on alcohol consump-tion and eating healthy food all form part of our in-house training programme. Being fit has many short-term benefits, such as an im-proved sense of well-being, and long-term benefits, such as reducing the risk of suffer-ing many debilitating dis-eases.
Short-term benefits of fit-ness include:- A healthier heart; Healthy muscles, bones, and joints; Increased burning of calo-ries; Better ability to cope with stress; Improved ability to fall asleep and sleep well; Reduced feelings of depres-sion and anxiety; Increased energy; Long-term benefits of fit-ness include reduced risk of:- Dying early; Coronary artery disease; Dying after a heart attack; Developing high blood pres-sure; Developing type 2 diabetes; Developing colon and breast cancer;
Becoming obese;
Stroke.
Page 5
Get Fit — Get Healthy!
Birkenhead YMCA cultural history day – 3rd
August 2012.
Its not every day the Queen comes to Liverpool but on Friday 3rd August the giant Cunard
cruise liner Queen Elizabeth made her first visit to Liverpool which coincided with a group of
BYMCA customers making a visit to the Museum of Liverpool, where they were retracing
much of our local history as part of our life-skills education programme.
The museum houses a unique collection of exhibits which graphically demonstrate the rise of
the city and its dominance in world trade. Amongst the more unusual displays is the Lion – a
steam locomotive built in 1837 and also one of the original Overhead railway carriages in-
stalled high up, as if on the original railway line.
With such a stunning visitor as the Queen Elizabeth moored up at the Pier Head there was
only one way to return back to Birkenhead – across the Mersey on one of the rivers famous
ferryboats the Royal Iris and the chance to get a close up view of the liner.
Today the city of Liverpool is enjoying outstanding growth and massive investment, thanks to
visionary new projects that have opened the gates to a new wave of riverside activity, em-
ployment and opportunity.
Page 7
Birkenhead YMCA cultural history day – 3rd
August 2012.
To use the words of our great friend
and renowned local journalist Peter El-
son “The Liverpool waterfront was the
focal point for countless souls who beat
a pathway to Liverpool once the
world’s greatest mercantile city” –
“Liverpool was a legendary place of
departure and arrival that grew and
grew in importance”.
Much of the cities wealth and develop-
ment centred in and around the busy
docks and some of the world’s greatest
ships sailed in and out of the river –
magnificent ships like Mauretania, Em-
press of Canada, Lusitania, Lancastria
and Reina del Pacifico were once regu-
lar sights in front of the world famous
three graces – The Liver Building, Cu-
nard Building and Port of Liverpool
Building. From the mid 1960’s Liver-
pool’s shipping had begun a sad de-
cline and the big passenger liners
along with many other ships started to
leave - the city went through tough
times. For Liverpool the arrival of the
Queen Elizabeth as a reason to party
and thousands joined the throng at the
Pier Head to celebrate the ships arrival
and enjoys the attractions of the world
class Albert Dock and Pier Head area.
Page 8
Working with our local Community
Summer Newsletter
BYMCA becomes a Duke of Edinburgh Award Centre In June we were delighted to be approved as a Duke of Edinburgh Award
Centre working under the umbrella of Wirral MBC.
This exciting new development will allow us the opportunity to encourage
young people we work with to try other new experiences, discover talents
they never thought they had, challenge themselves and meet other young
people.
Then there’s a raft of other added benefits for participants—
…achieving the Award will give them skills, confidence and a view on life
that everyone is looking for, from employers to colleges and universities.
...they will be getting recognised for doing things they want to do (and may
even be doing already).
...they’ll will make a difference in other people’s lives and our wider Wirral
community, be fitter and healthier, make new friends and hopefully have
happy memories of all they have done.
We aim to bolt the D of E Award into our lifeskills programmes and feel sure
it will make a positive contribution to our work.
Page 9
Jubilee CelebrationsJubilee CelebrationsJubilee CelebrationsJubilee Celebrations————The Big Lunch ProjectThe Big Lunch ProjectThe Big Lunch ProjectThe Big Lunch Project
Thanks to the Big Lunch Project
BYMCA was able to work in
partnership with local radio
station Vintage Radio and cre-
ate a special Jubilee event with
foods and music laid on
throughout the day.
Local neighbours from the sur-
rounding area joined in with
the celebrations to mark Her
Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s 60
year reign on the throne—even
the weather managed to stay
dry despite one or two threat-
ening clouds.
Page 10 Summer Newsletter
Birkenhead YMCA took advantage of a new
venture at the Hunter’s Yard in Ludham,
Norfolk which is doing sterling work ensur-
ing its 20 classic mahogany sailing yachts -
14 cabin cruisers and six half-decker’s - are
still turning heads well past this their 80th
birthdays.
The fleet of iconic sailing boats is now
looked after by The Norfolk Heritage Fleet
Trust, which was formed in 1996 to save the
fleet at a time Norfolk County Council was
threatening to sell off what was then its
county sailing base along with all the boats.
Trust Chairman Bryan Reed CBE made a
special visit to meet the YMCA crews and
welcome them to the yard – Mr Reed is no
stranger to the Birkenhead YMCA – as
President of the highly respected Broads
Society (who are the only voluntary organi-
sation who work tirelessly across the whole
Broads community – naturalists, navigators,
fishermen, farmers, residents and visitors
alike) he knows of the in-depth work we de-
liver in supporting people by using boating
for its outstanding diversionary activities
and opportunities to develop real life skills
and community spirit.
In 2010 the Birkenhead YMCA were honored
to receive the Broads Society’s coveted
Lady Mayhew’s Trophy.
Each boat was given a qualified instructor
who took everyone from no knowledge or
basic levels of knowledge right through to
competent sailors.this was no ordinary train-
ing course – this was living history, excite-
ment, team building and realtime learning
all rolled into one! 12 residents took part in
the training course and all passed their RYA
qualification.
Birkenhead YMCA sets sail on a new course!
Page 11
Birkenhead YMCA sets sail on a new course!
Page 12
Personal Development and Confidence Building Day
Summer Newsletter
Earlier this year members of the Wirral Branch of
the Merchant Navy Association were invited to join
BYMCA customers on our tall-ship charter day.
Collectively the eight ex Merchant Navy seafarers
had a combined age of 664 years!
Everyone got on so well that the BYMCA crew
members wanted to invite the retired seafarers
back and cook and serve them a lunch and so the
July meeting of the group was held at the YMCA in
Whetstone Lane, where the Birkenhead Room was
provided free of charge for their meeting followed
by a sumptuous three course lunch afterwards in
the Baden Powell Suite. The whole event was
crowned when the much loved and highly popular
local celebrity Hughie Jones sang a few sea shan-
ties to the assembled ex Blue Funnel Line, Harrison
Line, Clan Line and Cunard Line seafarers.
Page 13
Wirral Merchant Navy Association Luncheon
Newsletter Title
Volume 1, Issue 1 Page 14
Birkenhead YMCA Bell-Ringing Class!
BYMCA customers are never shy
to learn new skills so when an
invite was extended by the Bell
ringers of St Chad’s Church,
Winsford in Cheshire to come
along and have a go, an evening
of good fun and new experi-
ences was destined to take
place.
Thanks to the skills of the Tow-
ers expert tutor Ian Taylor of
Middlewich the lads were given
the chance to learn the rudi-
ments of bell-ringing—which
proved to be not as easy as it
looked!
Page 15 Newsletter Title
BYMCA/Wirral Youth Service host Hong Kong Students
Part of our partnership work during 2012 has to build stronger links with our local Wirral Youth Service teams
and engage young people on the waterways. When BYMCA were approached and asked if they would like to
host a day for the visitors onboard our narrow-boat we were only too pleased to get involved.
Having had one of the wettest summers on record the group were lucky to have one of the sunniest days in July
for their trip. Hong Kong has no canals—however it does boast one of the most impressive waterfronts in the
world and with a land mass of 1,104 km2 (426 sq mi) and a population of seven million people, Hong Kong is one
of the most densely populated areas in the world so the rural tranquility of the Shropshire Union Canal on a
sunny day in July, made for a relaxing experience for the students all of whom loved their day afloat!
Volume 1, Issue 1 Page 16
Page 17
BIRKENHEAD YMCA IS PROUD TO
SUPPORT THE
WIRRAL FOODBANK