Another fantastic year of YMCA holiday programmes is in the books! Despite the ongoing challenges of COVID-19, our commitment to keeping tamariki safe, active, and smiling never wavered—and neither did their enthusiasm.
Across our four sites and six programmes, we welcomed around 150 children each day throughout the holidays. From pre-Christmas activities to mid-year adventures, our programmes delivered a great mix of fun, learning, and connection.
Holiday Highlights
While COVID did affect the availability of some activities, it didn’t dampen the spirit of our programmes. With creative alternatives in place, the kids still enjoyed their firm favourites like Flip Out, movie days, and pool sessions, while we also introduced Bay Skate more regularly into the rotation.
One standout initiative was a tree planting day at Te Mata Peak, part of our effort to bring the YMCA vision of growing strong communities to life. Our senior groups planted several hundred native trees, and we also made a donation to the Te Mata Trust for future planting. The tamariki loved returning in the next holidays to see how their trees were doing and to enjoy the new tracks.
Fun with Purpose
In response to the extra stress many families have been facing, we placed a special focus on creating chilled-out, feel-good days. Highlights included:
High Tea Day
Hot Dogs and Hangout Day
Cooking sessions where kids made sushi, pizzas, pancakes, and more
Crafts and sports were cleverly wrapped into themed days like "Engineer It" and "YMCA Top Teams", adding extra layers of fun and creativity.
And although our open-fire cooking day was rained out, the unexpected mudslide adventure that followed proved just as exciting for the kids—grins all around!