Happy Holidays from the YCamp Staff!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

The Yea-Bo Yeller

By BJ Murray

Everyone's a hero in their own way, in their own not that heroic way.
Joss Whedon, Zack Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, and Jed Whedon, Dr.
~Horrible's Sing Along Blog, 2008

The real hero is always a hero by mistake; he dreams of being an honest coward like everybody else.
~Umberto Eco

I have never been especially impressed by the heroics of people who are convinced they are about to change the world. I am more awed by those who struggle to make one small difference after another.

~Ellen Goodman

I keep a few books on my window sill of my office. There is a bible, a couple of devotionals, and a couple books on Leadership. There is a book that I have had there a while that I have not ever really picked up, but for some reason grabbed it today. It is called “Heroes for My Son” by Brad Meltzer. Now I am a relatively new father myself with a not-quite two year old girl (who we adopted a year ago), and now a two month old boy (who we are hoping to adopt in the next six months). With these two little ones in my home, I have found the idea of a hero far different. So I started thumbing through this book, and felt very small. The men and women in this book have done phenomenal things with their lives. People like Mother Theresa, Albert Einstien, Jackie Robinson, and on and on and on. I don’t know if I will ever make an impact on the world as big as these people have. But then I start to think of the heroes in my own life. My wife, my mother, my father, my grandfathers, Wood, Josh, Wes, Jeff, Brian, Dana, Coach Pirch, Coach Shore, those I work with, Kenny Qualls, just to name a few. Not one of them ended up in this book, but they made a far larger impact on me then any name in there. Now that I have children I desperately want to be a hero for my child, but worry that I won’t do something big enough. I am pretty sure I won’t cure cancer, develop a new food source, or figure out a way to turn fingernail clippings into a fuel source. But maybe I can do lots of little things. I can teach them to use their manners, I can help them pray for others, I can show them how you put your arm around someone that is hurting, I can show them what loving your spouse is supposed to look like, I can listen to them, I can live a life of character in front of them. And maybe by doing that and helping them to be a better person then me, they can end up as a hero to someone else. All this leads back to camp. Every year the summer Leaders are my heroes. I see them loving these kids, giving of their time and talents, working for little more then to make the life of a kid better. That is heroic, that is what I want my kids to see. So if I wrote my own book of heroes for my kids it would have those I mentioned before and a few others, but it would also be filled with Leaders who have worked for me. It would be filled with their stories and with what they have taught to me.

Happy Adventures,
The Yeller

Shoes That Fit

The YMCA of Greater Des Moines is proud to partner with Shoes That fit this holiday season. One goal of the YMCA is to build caring communities and through Shoes That Fit, we can accomplish that goal by being an avenue for giving back and providing support to our neighbours.

Shoes that Fit is a national non-profit organization that was established to provide needy elementary school children with clothing necessities such as shoes and coats. The campaign runs from the start of the school year through the first part of December. The goal is to have all needs filled and in the child’s hands before they leave for Christmas break.

For the past 9 years, Mediacom and KIOA, with the help of generous local businesses, like the YMCA of Greater Des Moines, and an overwhelming response from the community, have used this campaign to fill huge needs in the school systems in Des Moines and surrounding communities.

Due to the economy, the number of requests has risen the past couple years. With the continued generosity of participating businesses in the area, and of course the compassion and generosity of their customers, we are committed to fulfilling all the needs that are identified each year to help those in our community.

What to do
1. Choose a card for a child that you would like to help. Cards are located at all YMCA branches.
2. Complete the donor information if you wish.
3. Take your copy of the card with the item, size, and gender of the child that you are helping when you shop.
4. Purchase the requested item within one week.
5. Return the item with the card by the second week of December, in a bag to the YMCA location where you choose the card.