October 10, 2012

  To:   All Green Bay YMCA Swimmers & Parents

  From:         Coach Dave - voice mail-436-9624

Email- [email protected]   team unify website - www.teamunify.com/wigbymca

 Re:    1) 1^st week of practices  2)  Parent group sub-committees  3) Assorted Notes

1)    Practices have begun.  Hopefully everyone has started attending.  I had nice practice groups at both the Silver and Gold levels on Monday.  All swimmers seemed to handle the work well.  I may talk to a couple older Gold III swimmers and invite them to Gold II practices to try them out.  I think I may have a room for a few more in Gold II. 

Tonight is the first Bronze practices.  Coach Carissa and the assistants will do their best to get the swimmers sorted out in to their sub-practice groups on Wednesday and Thursday evenings.  Not sure exactly how many Bronze we may have but we will begin to find out at practices this week.  All new swimmers to the GBY swim team have the first couple of weeks to try-out the team.

Remember that all new families will have a New Parent Informational meeting on Tuesday, October 23, 2012, 6:30-8:30pm at the DT Y.  Registration packets will be handed out and gone over. Lot’s of other information regarding the team will be covered at this meeting.  All new families are encouraged to already use the website. Most areas can be accessed by everyone.  Including the documents, team calendar & team news.  The weekly newsletter will be posted under the team news as well as other items that come up.  I would encourage all of new families to look at the Parent Handbook also.

For those returning families that missed the All-Parent meeting I did post the agenda on the website under the documents tab and Odds & Ends.  You should also read over the updated handbook.  Both parent and swimmer will need to read over the Concussion info also because there is a form in the registration packet that parent and swimmer must sign and turn in with your registration forms.  We must receive all forms together filled out completely with signatures where needed. If not they will be returned to you to get them done correctly.  Most swimmers do know what practice group you are swimming in so you do not need to wait until October 19 to turn them in.  A lot of forms will need to be processed so it would be helpful to start getting them in ASAP. 

2)    I have created a sign-up page for the Parent Group sub-committees.  A parent from every GBY family must sign-up to serve on a sub-committee.  Please take care of this ASAP.  I would also ask that those who did sign-up at the All-parent meeting also sign-up on the website.  I cannot sign-up other people for these positions because I do not have that access to do that.  The Parent Group Committee person will contact all their sub-committee members to get you involved.

3)    Assorted Notes

·        Practices for those who registered for year-round swimming will continue after the season begins on Tuesdays, October 9,16 & 23, from 3:45-5:30pm at the DT Y pool.  We cannot get into SWHS on Tuesdays until October 30 because the pool is scheduled for High School meets on these days. If you are not a year-round swimmer you may attend but the cost is $5.00 per session.

·        The first Saturday morning practice is this Saturday. 6-8am at the BV Y Pool.  I will invite all Gold I & II swimmers who want to regularly attend these practices to come.

·        I also put a note on the website regarding a team fundraising opportunity.  This fundraiser was presented at the all-parent meeting.  Simply swim team families may sell both Cookie Dough and French Bread pizzas and earn money for every item sold. This money will be put into your escrow account.  More information is on the website.  This fundraising is optional.  We are also aware that there may be a need for more fundraising activities to help families raise monies for swim team costs.  Please contact myself or a parent committee member if you have any feedback on Team Fundraising.  We will be discussing this at the next parent group meeting on Monday, November 5.

·        The National Team also has a fundraiser at the Pizza Ranch on E Main Street, on Wednesday, October 24.  Members of the National Team will be bussing tables that evening a portion of money made that evening will be donated to those National Team Swimmers.  All swimmers planning to attend Y Nationals or those swimmers who may potentially qualify for Nationals should help-out in these fundraisers.  A letter was sent to all National or Potential National Team families regarding the need for their assistance.  These are great little fundraisers for our National Team that involves a couple hours of work that evening and maybe help from the entire team to friends and families about having dinner that evening at the Pizza Ranch.  I will pass along more information regarding the Pizza Ranch later.  But please plan you dinner at the Pizza Ranch on Wednesday, October 24, and support our National Team.

·        You will from time to time see meets on the website that are not on the schedule (Ashwaubenon Fall Invite being one).  I have to open these to enter swimmers who have made arrangements with the host team to participate in their meets.  You cannot enter these unless of course you have done the above.  I had this meet opened only for yesterday and had a number of swimmers entered.  You have all been removed.  The entry I needed to send in is already sent in.  Sorry about this.

·        Parent Group committee meetings have been moved to the first Mondays of the Month. Exception being December where we will move that meeting back to November 26 to meet before our December 1 Sprint Meet. These Parent Group Committee meetings are on the website calendar.

·        Do not forget that the Parent Group will be displaying and taking orders for GBY Team Apparel tonight, Wednesday, October 10, from 6-8:30pm. They will be set up in the hallway above the pool.  Order forms are on the website.

·        We need volunteers to help with the water station for the Turkey Trot run on Thanksgiving morning.  The sign-up is open on the website.  Please give me names and t-shirt sizes. This can all be done under one swimmer.  Thanks for helping out.

·        The Downtown Y is looking for costume donations for our Halloween at the Y night here on October 20.  These costumes are handing out to kids in the community that cannot afford costumes.  If you have a costume or even would want to purchase one please drop them off in the donation bin near the DT Y front desk.  Thank you.

·        Entry deadlines are approaching for both the M&M Pentathlon & the FCY Fall Invite.  Please get entered before the deadlines.

·        We also are in desperate need of Y Officials for our home swim meets.  There are October 20th trainings posted on the website. Parents will be reimbursed the training cost if you work at all of our home swim meets.

·        Still have a number of families with escrow balances.  Please take care of these ASAP.  Remember no entering swim meets until the balance is taken care of.  And I would also ask that you have the monies in your account to cover the meet fees for upcoming meets since once a meet is charged you will be in the negative again.