Latest Update: March 15, 2020, 6:15 p.m. Effective close of business Monday, March 16, our High Street and Frankfort Downtown and Prevention Park locations will close in response to the current public health crisis. These actions follow recommendations issued earlier today from the YMCA’s National Resource Office.



We will begin transitioning our High Street location for emergency school age child care services to support Baptist Health’s critical staff. That service will begin Wednesday, March 18. Baptist Health will determine which of their employees have priority for the emergency care spots and will share registration information with those employees.



We are thankful for the kind words and support we have received from our members, program participants, and community leaders as we make this transition. You can help us by continuing to support the Y. We hope this disruption is short and we can all return to normal soon.



In the meantime, let’s work together to support friends, colleagues, and neighbors. Only by coming together can we best handle this crisis, and come out a strong community, afterward.



Thank you,



Paula Anderson

YMCA of Central Kentucky

Chief Operating Officer

Latest Update: March 14, 2020, 2:30 p.m. Effective close of business today, several of our locations will close and transition to provide emergency school-age child care to support doctors, nurses, technicians, and medical staff with caring for their children during this crisis. They will not have to worry that their child is in a safe place, as they care for members of our community.



These Y locations will transition their focus exclusively on offering school aged childcare for UKHC and St. Joseph healthcare workers:

C.M. Gatton Beaumont YMCA

Whitaker Family YMCA in Hamburg

North Lexington Family YMCA

For those of you who wish to continue working out at the Y, for now, our downtown Lexington High Street YMCA and both Frankfort locations will continue to operate under regular business hours. Operations at these locations include our wellness centers, gymnasiums, and pools.



All group fitness, senior and aquatic classes, and participant programming such as youth sports remain suspended until further notice.



For a while, our focus will be on supporting our community’s critical response teams. You can help us by continuing to support the Y. We hope this disruption is short and we can all get back to normal soon. In the meantime, let’s work together to support friends, colleagues, and neighbors so that our community comes through this crisis stronger than ever.



Thank you. We look forward to seeing you soon.



Paula Anderson

YMCA of Central Kentucky

Chief Operating Officer

Latest Update: March 13, 2020, 3:27 p.m. We have promised to quickly communicate to members and program participants changes to the operations of the YMCA of Central Kentucky.



Today, we made the decision to suspend all group exercise classes and programming, such as martial arts, gymnastics, youth sports classes, swim classes, and Pilates Reformer.



We will also discontinue our child watch/kids corner service; and the beginning of spring sports league practices, due to start the week of March 23, is also suspended at this time.



These changes are effective end of business today, March 13. We will resume group classes and normal programming as soon as local health officials indicate it is safe to do so.



We will be providing information on refunds or credit by the end of next week, Friday, March 20.



Our gymnasiums, wellness centers and pools remain open at regularly scheduled hours at this time; however, we are closely monitoring the situation and will continue to make adjustments as needed.



We encourage all members and program participants to review the Center for Disease Control’s guidance for individuals who are at higher risk of becoming ill from COVID-19. High risk groups include: older adults, people who have serious chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and lung disease. Information about who is at higher risk, and steps they can take, is available here.



We will continue to update all of our members and program participants with information if and when warranted.

Latest Update: March 12, 2020, 8:20 p.m. As you know, there are growing concerns about the spread of coronavirus in Kentucky, and some hard decisions are being made to keep everyone in our community healthy and safe.



This afternoon, Gov. Andy Beshear announced that all Kentucky public and private schools should cease classes for at least two weeks to curb the coronavirus outbreak. Fayette County Public Schools stated tonight that beginning on Monday, March 16 all schools will be closed to students, and will not reopen until April 6.



During the length of closure, the YMCA of Central Kentucky, including our Frankfort location, will not offer school-age child care, which includes before or after school, and school’s day out. We made this difficult decision in coordination with the school systems and the Fayette County Health Department.



After-school programs will resume when schools are back in session.



If you have signed up for our spring break camp, we will continue to monitor the situation and will make a call on that no later than Friday, March 20.



Our facilities remain open. Please know we are monitoring this situation closely and following the advice and direction of local health agencies and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).



Health officials continue to advise that the best way to stop the spread of the virus is to practice good personal hygiene. You can help all of us by washing your hands frequently and thoroughly. Also, please stay at home if you or your family members are feeling unwell.



The CDC has issued special guidance for people who are at higher risk of getting very sick from COVID-19. High risk groups include: older adults, people who have serious chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and lung disease. If you fall into a high-risk category, we strongly urge you to review the CDC’s guidance for high-risk groups and adjust your participation accordingly. Information about who is at higher risk, and steps the can take, is available here.



We will continue to update all of our members and program participants with information if and when warranted.





Latest Update: March 12, 2020, 10:35 a.m.

As you know, there are growing concerns about the spread of coronavirus in Kentucky, and some hard decisions are being made to keep everyone in our community healthy and safe.



To ensure the safety and health of our members and program participants, the YMCA of Central Kentucky has made the difficult decision to suspend all senior programming at each of our six locations in Lexington and Frankfort, beginning Friday, March 13. This is in alignment with actions being taken by the city of Lexington and on the advice of state and local health officials.



The following programs will be suspended: Enhance fitness classes, Silver Sneakers classes, senior water fitness classes and senior activities. We are also suspending programs that support individuals with underlying health conditions such as: Livestrong, Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s Support, and Diabetes Prevention.



We will resume normal senior programming as soon as local health officials indicate it is safe to do so.



Our facilities remain open and general group exercise classes will continue; however, we are closely monitoring the situation and will make operational adjustments as needed.



We encourage all members to review the Center for Disease Control’s guidance for individuals who are at higher risk of becoming ill from COVID-19. High risk groups include: older adults, people who have serious chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and lung disease. Information about who is at higher risk, and steps they can take, is available here.



Health officials continue to advise that the best way to stop the spread of the virus is to practice good personal hygiene. You can help all of us by washing your hands frequently and thoroughly and cleaning the exercise equipment after use. Also, please stay at home if you or your family members are feeling unwell.



We will continue to update all of our members and program participants with information if and when warranted.





Latest Upate: March 9, 2020, 5:45 p.m.

As we continue to monitor the coronavirus situation, the YMCA of Central Kentucky is following the guidance from the Centers of Disease Control (CDC), and state and local health officials.



We are also taking the following actions to help ensure our facilities are disinfected and safe, according to those recommendations.

These include:

Reviewing our cleaning solutions and making adjustments as needed to meet CDC guidance.

Instituting additional cleaning of equipment – particularly in our wellness centers and classes – to sanitize items that used/handled frequently.

Advising our cleaning staff to more frequently wipe down door handles, handrails and other high-touch area.

Hand sanitizer is also available throughout our facilities.



Health officials continue to advise that the best way to stop the spread of the virus is to practice good personal hygiene. You can help all of us by washing your hands frequently and thoroughly. Also, please stay at home if you or your family members are feeling unwell.



The CDC has issued special guidance for people who are at higher risk of getting very sick from COVID-19. High risk groups include: older adults, people who have serious chronic medical conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and lung disease. If you fall into a high-risk category, we strongly urge you to review the CDC’s guidance for high-risk groups and adjust your participation accordingly. Information about who is at higher risk, and steps they can take, is available here.



We will continue to update all of our members and program participants with information if and when warranted.

Paula Anderson

Chief Operating Officer

YMCA of Central Kentucky