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After School Program: January 2024

Jen Ward

We cannot believe we are in month five of our After School Program, with over 395 registered members so far! We will be closed on January 1st in observance of New Year’s Day and January 15th in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We will be open for open gym, for registered after school members only, from 10:30 am – 3:00 pm on Friday January 12th. For a look at the entire January calendar, click here.

The Milford Youth Center is excited to continue distributing weekend food bags! The MYC has partnered with Lovin’ Spoonful’s and their food rescue mission. Please let us know if you would like to get free groceries by completing this link here (signs up are due by 5 pm on each Wednesday that we have a distribution scheduled). We are currently at capacity but if you sign up you will be put on a waitlist if anyone cancels. Please only click if you can pick up the bags on Fridays, before 6 pm when we close! We will coordinate pick up times with all families that sign up. For more about Lovin’ Spoonful’s, click here. Picks up this month are: 1/5/24, 1/19/24 and 1/26/24. 

The Milford Youth Center would also be continuing our collaboration with the Hockomock Area YMCA and their Food Access Program! Together, we will provide a Mobile Food Pantry monthly for members and their families. On Tuesday, January 16th from 4:30-6:00 pm, in the parking lot across the street from the Youth Center, food will be handed out from the YMCA food truck. A grocery bag of non-perishables will be distributed to any household and there is no sign-up necessary. For more information on the Y’s food access initiatives, click here.

This month the MYC is offering:

  • Open Gym, Game Room, and Free Dinner & Snack: Open gym and the game room are non-structured program spaces, where youth are allowed free play and choose activities. Members are also able to get a free dinner and/or snack in the cafe/lounge area. At 4:00 every day (if we can) we now use the back court for other sports such as soccer, volleyball and football and only allow basketball in the front court to ensure a variety of sports be played during the after-school program.
  • Quiet Zone: Quiet Zone will take place every Tuesday and Thursday from 3-3:30 pm. this month. It offers students a quiet space to access our computer lab and to do their homework or read.
  • Weight Room: This program is overseen by MYC staff. It will give kids, ages 12 to 18, an opportunity to use the weight equipment safely. This will take place on January 11th from 4:15-5:00 pm.
  • Arts & Crafts: Arts & Crafts, led by Program Coordinator, Joanna Abrantes, encourages youth to draw, paint, and craft projects to develop their artistic talents. Arts & Crafts gives kiddos a creative outlet that allows their imaginations to flourish and will be run on Tuesdays in January on 1/2, 1/9, 1/16 and 1/30 from 3:30-4:15 pm.
  • MYC Book Club: We are excited to continue our Book Club initially created by Girl Scout Carly Haley! With the help of Emily, our Assistant Director, the books have been carefully selected that are interesting, culturally impactful, and age appropriate with life lessons in each book for the Book Club members to read this year. Samantha Cesario of the Milford Public Library has volunteered to run this club for the second year now! New this year, we will incorporate a raffle. The MYC member will be responsible for tracking the pages and time read and for every 30 minutes that you read, you will get 1 raffle ticket, for every Book Club meeting you attend, you will receive 2 tickets to be entered to win prizes! The club will run this month on Mondays, the dates are the 8th and 29th beginning at 3:30 pm.
  • Gardening: Youth will be able to make a gardening themed craft on Tuesday, January 23rd at 3:30 pm thanks to our amazing volunteer, Phyllis Foley, from the Greenleaf Gardening Club! Phyllis has a message to the families of Milford Youth Center members: “The Junior Gardener Program meets monthly at the Center and is one of the center’s activities. Sponsored by the Greenleaf Garden Club of Milford, the goals are to introduce kids to the joys of gardening, to explore the environment and to create art using plants and materials from nature. It is open to all youth center members.” This month they will make a floral arrangement in a real sneaker, all materials provided by Green Leaf Gardening!
  • Green Leaf Poetry Contest: Green Leaf Gardening together with The National Garden Clubs are hosting their annual poetry contest. If your child would like to participate, the following are the requirements, guidelines and information needed to proceed. Your child must be ages 8-15. The theme of the poem must be “I spy with my little eye something green outside”, with no more than 24 lines in total. The poem can be of any genre. The title is important and worth 10 points. All poems must be submitted to Joanna at the MYC no later than January 8, 2024. Joanna will then send them to Phyllis of Green Leaf Gardening. The MYC is simply sharing this information and will collect any poems. The Green Leaf will then submit the poems to the National Garden Club. For more information visit, https://gardenclub.org/poetry-contest. Please feel free to also contact Joanna at jabrantes@milfordma.gov for any questions.
  • Life Skills: This is our second year running the Life Skills program in honor of our former board member Ron Taylor. The Life Skills program is going to teach our youth skills that can carry them into their adult years. This month, on January 17th at 3:30, Jill Wooldridge of DA Joseph D. Early Jr.’s office will conduct the program, “If They Had Known” This is a sensitive-information documentary and discussion teaching children of the risk for addiction with substance use and prescription medications. DA Early explains; “Early substance use can lead to a lifetime struggle with addiction for our youth, these evidence-based programs help kids understand the risks associated with all substance use, including prescription medications.” This is for registered after-school members only, ages 13-18. We have limited space, so please contact Joanna Abrantes, the Program Coordinator at jabrantes@milfordma.govor at 508-473-1756 no later than January 12th at 1:00 pm to reserve your child’s spot. This program will run on January 17th at 3:30 pm.
  • Give Kids the Arts is a non-profit run by Linda and Ian Kabat and their daughter, Isabella. The goal of this non-profit is to be able to provide art and music supplies to children who might not be able to afford them.  Linda and Isabella are coming to the MYC to conduct a winter painting program with the kids.  Sign-up is required no later than January 12th at 1:00 pm This program will take place on Wednesday, January 24that 3:30 pm.
  • MYC Youth Council: The MYC Youth Council is a leadership and community service-based group, created to encourage MYC members to help make a difference in the community through facilitating several youth community events as well as taking part in volunteer opportunities! Registered after-school members, ranging in ages from 8-18, can join this program and commit to making changes together! Together, our AmeriCorps members, Iliana and Landon, will run the MYC Youth Council! This month the Youth Council will be held on Tuesdays, 1/02, 1/09, 1/16, 1/23, and 1/30 at 4:15 pm.
  • Social Emotional Learning: This program is designed to help our youth learn about and manage their emotions and interactions with others and build the core social and emotional competencies including self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, social awareness, and relationship skills need to succeed in school and thrive in life. This program is made possible by a $6,400 Community Grant from the Greater Milford Community Health Network (CHNA-6). Sign-up is required. Together, our AmeriCorps members, Iliana and Landon, will run the Social Emotional Learning program, it will be held on Thursdays in January on the 4th and the 18th from 4:00-4:45.
  • MYC Family Feud is scheduled to be played on Wednesday, January 31st at 3:15. Here, registered after school members will be divided into teams and staff will read off questions and much like the game show, the team that guesses the most popular answers wins!
  • FitFun:  An exercise program run by fitness enthusiast, Carly Fauth. It is a fitness class that mixes strength and conditioning exercises with fun to create a gym class-type environment. This program will run on Fridays, 1/5, 1/19 and 1/26 at 3:30 pm! This Program would not be possible without the collaboration with the Milford Regional Medical Center.
  • Dance with Iliana: One of our outstanding AmeriCorps members, Iliana Gonzalez has been dancing for 15 plus years! She began dancing as a little girl at the Milford Dance Center and then moved to Connecticut and danced for a studio on their competition dance team. When she began college at Bridgewater State University, she danced on the hip hop team. She has experience in different genres of dance such as hip hop, tap, jazz, lyrical, ballet, contemporary and modern. Dancing has always been an outlet for her to express herself and to keep herself motivated, and in doing this program at the Milford Youth Center, she hopes to bring that same feeling to any child who joins. The Dance program will be on Mondays this month. We are gearing toward the end of our after-school program and the goal of this program is to have a dance routine that the kids can perform. You must commit, attend, and participate! The dates for this month are January 8th, 22nd and the 29th beginning at 4:15 pm.
  • Boxing: The Boxing portion of this program will be run by volunteer, Brian Bell. Brian was trained by Coach Pablo Ramos beginning in the Natick and Framingham area. Brian is a boxing coach with over 52 years of coaching and boxing experience. He is a Milford resident and has volunteered in running the boxing program at the youth center in the past. The goal of the program is to teach self-confidence, respect, and discipline with an incredible physical work out. His personal hope is for the students to see their progression from their hard work in the program! This program will run on Thursdays, on the 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th from 3:15-4:00 pm.
  • Cornerstone Intergenerational Program: Cornerstone of Milford has partnered with the Milford Youth Center to offer intergenerational programs during the after-school program! This program allows the seniors and the youth of Milford a chance monthly to spend time together and with MYC staff. This month, the residents have chosen to make large paper snowflakes on Wednesday January 3rdfrom 3:15-4:15 pm. Leah Martel, the Enriched Life Director and Jared Pearson , the Director of Community Relations are thrilled to establish a relationship with the Milford Youth Center to create an intergenerational partnership between our residents and the boys and girls within the town of Milford!“ They communicated that “we love to give back to our associates, our community, and most importantly, our residents!
  • Milford TV: Milford TV will be running their program, thanks to the new staff member, Dominque. They give the students an opportunity to learn videography skills along with creating their own multi-media projects! This program will run on January 11th and 25th from 3:30-4:30 pm. You must sign up in advance (limited space)! Please contact our Program Coordinator at jabrantes@milfordma.gov
  • MYC Baking Program: On January 8th at 4:00 pm, returning volunteer, Pamela Goldman, Christine Seaver, and Susan Dykoff. together with the kids, will make cookies and fudge! If your child has any food allergies, please advise them not to participate. Registered after-school members must sign up and commit to this program! Spots are limited so please contact Joanna at jabrantes@milfordma.gov to reserve your child’s spot by January 5th by 1:00 pm.
  • Nutrition: In collaboration with the Milford Regional Medical Center and Nadine from Connected and Inspired, the MYC will resume the Nutrition program on January 22nd at 3:30. More information in regards to what the children will make for this program will be provided once it becomes available. We are excited to bring the importance of nutrition and the knowledge of making no-bake snacks for the kids who choose to participate. We have had a huge interest in this class in the past and hope to maintain its popularity by keeping it fun yet educational, while enforcing healthy eating habits. Spots are limited so please contact Joanna at jabrantes@milfordma.gov to reserve your child’s spot by Jan 19th by 1:00 pm.
  • STEAM: Our S.T.E.A.M program will run on Friday, January 19th at 4:00 pm where After School Members will be given the opportunity to do a hands-on activity involving science, technology, engineering, art, and math with our new curriculum funded by a grant from the Milford Cultural Council! This month the children will use different colors of felt to explore the absorption and reflection of radiant energy from the sun!
  • Sewing: The Sewing program returns! In January, new volunteer, Vicki will lead a sewing program on Wednesday, January 10th beginning at 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm. They will make “Monster Gloves!” Spots are limited so please contact Joanna at jabrantes@milfordma.gov to reserve your child’s spot by Jan 8th by 1:00 pm.
  • Volleyball Tournament: We are excited to bring back our Milford Youth Center Volleyball Tournament which begins in just a couple of weeks from today! After many years, we are so glad to bring this beloved tradition back to our after-school programming. This is a wonderful event for the after-school youth members to get active, stay team orientated and get involved in some fun competition. This will be a 4-week long tournament. Youth participants of 1st and 2nd place teams will receive medals which will be awarded at the end of the tournament. Games will be played on Wednesdays at 4:00 pm during our after-school program. All members of the youth center who would like to participate may sign up at the Center. There will be a mandatory meeting on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at 4:00. If interested in volunteering or participating, please contact jabrantes@milfordma.gov or 508-473-1756 for more information! We are also looking for volunteers to referee and keep score during our tournament. Games will be played once a week on Wednesdays and the final championship game will be scheduled for Wednesday, January 31st at 4:00 pm. Landon, our SCI AmeriCorps member, will be taking the lead in organizing and following through with our long-awaited, back by demand, MYC Volleyball Tournament!

The Milford Youth Center hosts many different events and activities throughout the year for the youth of Milford and the Milford Schools. The Youth Center’s after school program is open for youth ages 8-18, free of charge, from 2:15-6pm, Monday through Friday. Only students registered by 1PM each day will be allowed to attend (10 am on vacation weeks and half days). Any forms received after 1PM (or 10 am on vacation weeks), will be allowed to attend the following program day, if completed correctly. This is to ensure we have adequate time to process registrations.

  • That Milford Youth Center is not licensed by the Department of Early Education and Care or any other state agency;
  • Registered youth may arrive at or depart from the program at any time during their time at the program.
  • As of Monday, February 28, 2022, we will be mask optional. It is important to note that we will support all members and staff who choose to wear a mask after the mandate is lifted. It is possible if conditions shift that masks may be required again sometime in the future as well. This does not change our policy in terms of attending being sick and/or having COVID symptoms. If you don’t go to school due to any type of illness you are not allowed to attend the Center;
  • Please make sure your child brings a water bottle with them daily, to refill;
  • There is no hanging out in front of the MYC property unless students are waiting to enter and/or to be picked up;
  • All students must be picked up by the time of closing, unless they walk home. Pick-up is outside of the youth center at 24 Pearl St (use intercom to communicate with the front desk);
  • The Youth Center is not responsible for the care or supervision of children beyond program closing time;
  • All lost and found items without names on them are donated and/or recycled (water bottles) at the end of each month as it accumulates quickly! Please remind your child/participant to check daily as they exit;
  • Please visit our polices here: behavioral, weather, health and traffic.
  • For video of rules, produced by Milford TV click here (video was made prior to mask optional, just FYI).

All participants of the Youth Center must annually fill out our registration form to be a member. Once this form is completed, members will receive a key tag and ID number if they are new to the program. This is our way of tracking attendance, so please make sure all members bring their key tag in order to enter. If key tags are lost, the Youth Center will charge $1.00 for a replacement.

The Youth Center also offers a free snack and dinner program, due to the collaboration of CACFP, Hockomock Area YMCA, and the Milford School Food & Nutrition Services department. Members will also be able to use our washer and dryer, free of charge, during our hours of operation.

For online registration forms click below:

COVID Update: If your child has been exposed to a COVID 19 positive person, or has symptoms of COVID 19, please do not send your child to Youth Center as they may expose others. Keep them home and get them tested. Your child must stay home until you are notified of the test results and if positive, please get guidance from the Milford Board of Health. If your child is not going to school due to any type of sickness, then they should not be attending the after school program.

Effective August 15, 2022, children and staff in child care, K-12, out-of-school time (OST) and recreational camp settings should follow the below guidance:

  • A rapid antigen test, such as a self-test, is preferred to a PCR test in most situations.
  • To count days for isolation, Day 0 is the first day of symptoms OR the day the day positive test was taken, whichever is earlier.
    Contact tracing is no longer recommended or required in these settings, but schools or programs must continue to work with their Local Board of Health in the case of outbreaks.
  • The Commonwealth is not recommending universal mask requirements, surveillance testing of asymptomatic individuals, contact tracing, or test-to-stay testing in schools. While masks are not required or recommended in these settings except for in school health offices, any individual who wishes to continue to mask, including those who face higher risk from COVID-19, should be supported in that choice. For those who need or choose to mask, masking is never required in these settings while the individual is eating, drinking, sleeping or outside.
  • All individuals are encouraged to stay up-to-date with vaccination as vaccines remain the best way to help protect yourself and others.

Isolation and exposure guidance and protocols: Guidance for Children and Staff in Child Care, K-12, OST, and Recreational Camp Settings:

  • Quarantine is no longer required nor recommended for children or staff in these settings, regardless of vaccination status or where the exposure occurred. All exposed individuals may continue to attend programming as long as they remain asymptomatic. Those who can mask should do so until Day 10, and it is recommended that they test on Day 6 of exposure. If symptoms develop, follow the guidance for symptomatic individuals, below.
  • Children and staff who test positive must isolate for at least 5 days. If they are asymptomatic or symptoms are resolving and they have been fever free without the use of fever-reducing medicine for 24 hours, they may return to programming after Day 5 and should wear a high-quality mask through Day 10:
    • If the individual is able to mask, they must do so through Day 10.
      • If the child has a negative test on Day 5 or later, they do not need to mask.
      • If the individual is unable to mask, they may return to programming with a negative test on Day 5 or later.
    • Symptomatic individuals can remain in their school or program if they have mild symptoms, are tested immediately onsite, and that test is negative. Best practice would also include wearing a mask, if possible, until symptoms are fully resolved. For symptomatic individuals, DPH recommends a second test within 48 hours if the initial test is negative.
      • If the symptomatic individual cannot be tested immediately, they should be sent home and allowed to return to their program or school if symptoms remain mild and they test negative, or they have been fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication and their symptoms are resolving, or if a medical professional makes an alternative diagnosis. A negative test is strongly recommended for return.

COVID-19 Symptoms for Child Care, K-12, OST, and Recreational Camps:

  • Fever (100.0° Fahrenheit or higher), chills, or shaking chill
  • Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
  • Muscle aches or body aches
  • New loss of taste or smell
  • Cough (not due to other known cause, such as chronic cough)
  • Sore throat, when in combination with other symptoms
  • Headache, when in combination with other symptoms
  • Nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea, when in combination with other symptoms
  • Fatigue, when in combination with other symptoms
  • Nasal congestion or runny nose (not due to other known causes, such as allergies) when in combination with other symptoms\