A Sneak Peek at Summer
The familiar faces behind those masks belong to the hard working folks on The Neighborhood House’s Board of Directors at their August, 2020 meeting.
A Note about Covid
“We’ll offer as much as we can, as best as we can, and as safely as we can.”
Heading into the summer of 2021 it feels like we’ve all become experts on masking, physical distancing, and doling out the perfect amount of hand sanitizer. With the grip of Covid-19 appearing to loosen and an end to the pandemic in sight, it is critical that we maintain and follow all of the health and safety guidelines still in place. We ask that you remain patient, flexible, and cooperative as we near this monumental “finish line.” This means that masks and physical distancing are still required at all times regardless of your vaccination status, and we will adhere to all State of Maine CDC guidelines. It also means we’ll continue to limit our program size and will alter the way we do things to ensure the health and well-being of our entire community. Thank you for your cooperation and we look forward to seeing you soon!
Daily Activities for Children
Last summer in lieu of a regular day camp format we shifted on the fly to offer daily 60 minute activity blocks ranging from cooking to dance, along with a weekly outing club and more. These program offerings turned out to be a runaway hit with participants and families, so for 2021 we’re looking forward to continuing with this format. We’ll publish and entire schedule along with registration materials for our weekly classes, Adventure Club, and more as we head into the Spring. Expect offerings to begin during the week of June 28.
Note: The space our traditional day camp program relies on is not yet available for third-party use due to the pandemic. We can’t wait to be back to “normal” and welcome our Scampers, Explorers, and Quest Club to day camp in 2022. Meanwhile, we’re thrilled to be able to build upon the success of last year’s standalone programs for one more summer.
Daily stand-alone activities were a hit last summer and we plan to build on that success for one more year as we wait to fully return to normal operation.
Public Swim Time
The Neighborhood House will be staffing and maintaining the municipal pool located next to the elementary school during the summer of 2021. We plan to offer public swim time several afternoons each week starting in the end of June. So that we can make sure physical distancing is possible we plan to set up a reservation system. This way you’ll know you have plenty of room to be safe and have fun while taking a dip! More details including information on hours and how to make a reservation will be available in the spring.
Yoga classes will continue to be offered in the spring and throughout the summer season.
Yoga
We’re so excited to welcome a new face to The Neighborhood House! Richard Parker will be joining us to instruct “Yoga for Skillful Living” every Wednesday and Sunday morning at 8:00am. The best part is you don’t have to wait until summer to take part as Richard will begin his class offering on May 2! Each session is $10 and all proceeds will directly benefit The Neighborhood House. Just like last summer’s yoga sessions, online sign-up will be available for these physically distanced classes. Richard describes Yoga for Skillful Living as follows:
This moderate class (you can choose to raise or lower the intensity) is designed with the foundational poses that make up a well-rounded asana practice. Focus is placed on safe and effective alignment (without hands on adjustments) rather than striving for idealized versions of poses. Each class addresses balance, core strength, the six motions of the spine, and those parts of the body that remain short and compressed by habitual patterns and gravity. I follow the same pattern in every class but with a different sequence each time. The final 8 minutes are devoted to meditation/savasana, with a wide variety of optional meditation techniques. Many of my students have been practicing for years, and there are often those new to asana and Yoga. All are welcome!
Mat Pilates
Instructor Hillary Kennedy began offering Mat Pilates sessions last summer which turned out to be a tremendously well received addition to the schedule! We’re excited to report that Hillary will be returning for another summer starting June 15! Her classes will meet every Tuesday and Saturday at 9:15am in the Great Hall space. Just like last year each session will be limited in size to allow for ample physical distancing. The fee is just $10, and all proceeds will benefit The Neighborhood House!
The Bike Parade & Ice Cream Social went virtual and “drive thru” for 2020.
Bike Parade & Ice Cream Social
One thing the pandemic has been proven unable to stop is our annual Bike Parade & Ice Cream Social. Thanks to a little creative thinking, some fantastic volunteers, and plenty of bike parade (and sundae) enthusiasts, we were able to pull of a hybrid style event last summer. Looking forward to this summer we know that at the very least we can repeat that successful formula and if protocols allow we’ll expand on the fun. We’re still playing it by ear with deciding when and how we’ll celebrate the 21st Annual edition of this summer time staple, but you’ll be hearing a lot about it in the very near future!
A Bash at the Boatyard Alternative
The annual “Bash at the Boatyard” has been a vital fundraiser for The Neighborhood House helping to support an always growing slate of programs and events. It also serves as a fun evening for both year ‘round and seasonal members of our community to gather, connect, and celebrate. Even though guidelines might allow for large scale events by the time July rolls around, we want to make sure everyone can socialize comfortably and believe it will still be a bit too early for that. The Bash at the Boatyard will stay in “dry dock” until next year, but don’t fret—our Fundraising Committee is hard at work on something special and unique for this July. Stay tuned!
The Bash at the Boatyard will spend a year in “Dry Dock” before returning in 2022. A new and unique fundraising event will take it’s place for the coming summer.
Festival of Chamber Music
Our friends from the Mt. Desert Festival of Chamber Music will be announcing details about their 2021 concert series in the near future. You can find out more about the festival on their website.
Community Gym
The largest impact on The Neighborhood House from the pandemic has been on our gym. The space, while known for being well equipped, friendly, and clean, is also rather compact. This space limitation has been our Achilles’ heel and does not allow us to meet the min. required distancing between machines (and people) under our state’s covid guidelines. For the time being our gym will remain closed for public access. Please note that even if you are fully vaccinated, we unfortunately still cannot allow use of the space at this time.
The good news is that individual sessions with one of our certified trainers can still be booked. This is the only practical manner we can ensure that all covid protocols are followed such as distancing, masking, and that the space is properly sanitized in between uses. Contact our Health & Fitness Director, Debra Neale, for information on how to book a session with one of these independent trainers.
