Town Shop Youth Center

After a much more snow filled winter compared to last winter it seems like Spring is finally here. With the warmer weather comes lot more opportunities for outdoor activities.

As we get closer to summer we will begin to schedule fun events like Kayaking, Volleyball, Hiking, and much more… Plus our annual Earth Day cleaning project in the village.

Some of our big trips in the Summer are South Sandy Creek, Falcon Ridge Folk Festival (Celebrating it’s 25th year), Ithaca Gorges, Green Lakes, Chimney Bluffs, and Montezuma Nat’l Wildlife Refuge.

We are also hoping to have some picnics this summer , lots of swimming , and just enjoying the great outdoors.

Remember we are on facebook – search “Town Shop” and like us for updates as we shake off the chill from winter and get things going for everyone to enjoy

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…. looks like we will once again have a real Central New York winter, and with it opportunities to get out into the beauty of it on X country skis and snowshoes. PLENTY of seva opportunities in the New Year too with ongoing commitments to St. Paul’s Samaritan Center (soup kitchen) on Wednesdays and Sunshine Horse Rescue on Saturdays. Plus dodgeball, live music, poetry and more…. check the calendar link for dates and times.

It’s here… and with it’s arrival the Town Shop has reopened and is slowly easing back into a school year schedule. We reopened on October 2 following an extremely active Summer and September staff vacations. With the advent of this most colorful season there have already been several experiences offered (apple picking, Chimney Bluffs, the Zoo) that encourage people to get outdoors and immersed in Autumn…. more will be planned for the weeks ahead (weather permitting) to such varied destinations as Beaver Lake, Clark Reservation, Stone Quarry Hill Art Park and more. Also coming soon: dodgeball, showcase music and poetry events, and LOTS of seva opportunities with Sunshine Horse Rescue and Samaritan Center. We’ll try to keep the website calendar link updated but also tune in to Town Shop Facebook page for continuous announcements and reminders.

AUTUMN in Central New York… it’s spectacular so get out and enjoy it!

Warming temps already mean a reduction in hours the TS building is open (just Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday) with expanded emphasis on outdoor experiences. Town Shop building hours will also then be further reduced in July to just 2 days per week. Our Summer schedule will be filled with kayaking, volleyball, seva, hiking, camping, & field trips. Some highlights will include trips to: Jazzfest,Ithaca Gorges, Taughannock Falls, Chimney Bluffs, Green Lakes, South Sandy Creek/Lake Ontario Beach, Falcon Ridge Folk Festival w/ Berkshires Camping, Chenango Colorscape Arts Fest, and MANY MORE. Keep checking the website calendar link for times and dates, and the Town Shop Facebook page for more immediate announcements and postings. Phone # 635 6495 (Cheryl & David Vermilya) for questions and information. In Syracuse “summer doesn’t last as long so it means a little bit more”…. get out and enjoy it!

*The Town Shop will be CLOSED June 24 – June 29 while DV’s family visits from New Mexico ….also CLOSED after seva on June 13 as CV/DV celebrate 42nd wedding anniversary.

** And remember If temps are 90 degrees or warmer the Town Shop building will be CLOSED and we’ll look for water or cooler places to be.

Much of 2011 was summarized in the previous homepage narrative. The Town Shop reopened on October 3 after a 4 week staff vacation, and quality and quantity of participation has built steadily into a new school year cycle. A significant enhancement has resulted from the offer to host (and the group’s acceptance) the Into The Mind’s Eye creative writing club who were looking for a home in the wake of austerity budget and activity cancellations in the school district. Every Monday brings an influx of creative young people into the Town Shop to share poems, prose, and illustrations while working together towards publication of a 2X per year creative writing literary magazine. A December OPEN MIC for POETRY attracted 16 readers and 40 listeners. Similarly, 3 live music events (1 Acoustic and 2 Electric showcases) provided more than 30 unique musical performers an aggregate audience of well over 500.

Weekly SEVA (selfless service) continues into the new school year and calendar year with upheld commitments to the Samaritan Center soup kitchen and Sunshine Horse Rescue. Field trip destinations in the final 3 months of 2011 included Stone Quarry Hill Art Park, Chittenango Falls, Clark Reservation, and Chimney Bluffs, while 3 Eating Our Way Around The World (youth initiated) expeditions led to dining and cultural experience in countries as varied as Jamaica, Vietnam, and Mexico. Central New York is RICH in cultural diversity.

We enter a New Year with energy and optimism. And…. we are waiting for SNOW. Our unlikely winter (so far) has left X country skis and snowshoes tuned up but unused to date but ready for action as soon as the snow shows up. Perhaps we will need to get kayaks out of storage instead.

Probably the biggest stressor currently is the uncertainty caused by a continuing difficult public funding climate in New York State. It is ironic that at a time when many young people and their families are struggling with diminished personal resources many community-based resources are also forced into austerity mode simply to insure survival. The Town Shop has endured economic storms many times before in its 41 year existence and will surely weather this current one thanks in large measure to a supportive Camillus community. Town government, local churches and civic groups, and numerous individuals (families and past participants) continue to provide necessary operating supplies and ingredients…. this week ie. Camillus Methodist Church delivered their consistent donation of kitchen pantry supplies.

We will try to keep the website “calendar link” up to date plus continue to make program announcements on the Town Shop facebook page. “Fan up” to receive regular notifications. Soon we hope to also post many new photo galleries depicting 2011 and 2012 activities. HAPPY NEW YEAR!