NEW GLOUCESTER – The Cumberland County YMCA at Pineland has announced three new Saturday morning youth programs for spring, complementing the facility’s range of fitness and recreational options for children and adults.

For the first time, the Y will offer T-ball specifically for 4- and 5-year-old children. According to YMCA Senior Program Director Philip DiRusso, the hour-long session will be a sort of pre-T-ball, a chance for kids and parents to see whether they might like to play T-ball and baseball in the Gray and New Gloucester Little Leagues.

Floor hockey will be offered for 6- and 7-year-olds this spring. For 8- to 10-year-olds, flag football will be offered. Both programs are open to boys and girls.

Registration should be made at the Pineland Y anytime between April 11 and 29. The sessions will be held each Saturday morning from April 30 through June 8.

“Like the soccer and basketball programs we ran this winter,” DiRusso said, “I anticipate the younger kids playing their T-ball in the 8:30 to 9:30 a.m. time slot, followed by floor hockey from 9:30 to 10:30 and the older kids from 10:30 to 11:30.

“We’re experimenting this spring by offering three different activities, one for each age group. This winter we did three sessions of basketball each Saturday morning for all three age groups. Then we segued to soccer each Saturday for all three age groups. We’ll be interested to see how popular these three programs are in terms of participation. That will help us plan for what to offer in 2006.”

All three programs are free for members of the Y at Pineland, but T-ball, floor hockey and flag football are open to all members of the community. For information on nonmember pricing and financial assistance, call DiRusso at 688-2255.

“People may not realize it, but we offer substantial financial assistance to non-member families that need help with registration fees,” DiRusso said.

DiRusso said a sizable chunk of that scholarship money goes toward registering kids for the summer camp series, which includes 10 week-long sessions.

For more information, people should call 688-2255 or visit www.cumberlandcountyymca.org.


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