Alexander Shun

Web Editor Associate | @alexpshun 

Last Friday night, the Minnesota Lynx took on the Indiana Fever at Target Center, in what was a battle of two teams jockeying for playoff positioning. The game wasn’t very close as the Lynx won easily; however, basketball was not the only focus on the night.

During the second quarter, the Lynx took a moment to recognize and honor all the incredible work that the YWCA of Minneapolis has done and continues to do throughout the state. In recognition of such great work, Lynx Director of Business Operations Carley Knox presented Karina Altoro, lead counselor of the Strong Fast Fit Program, and program participants Marianna Ramirez, Maria Sanchez and GaoSheng Xiong with a grant for $4,000.

“It’s a great partnership because we are both all about empowering women,” said Girls and Youth Program Director Caitlin Aldridge. “We have worked with the Lynx previously through doing clinics at YWCA so we have a great partnership as far as bringing the Lynx in and exposing the youth to the players of the Lynx team.”

The YWCA of Minneapolis is a nonprofit organization that strives to eliminate racism, empower women and girls, and promote peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. More than 25,000 people in the community are served every year by the YWCA of Minneapolis, through hundreds of programs, classes and support groups.

In reaction to cultural health disparities in Minneapolis, the YWCA established their Strong Fast Fit Program, an after school fitness and nutrition program for youth from cultural communities with elevated rates of obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

The Strong Fast Fit Program specifically works with cultural communities so they work with the Hmong community, the Native community and the Latino community.

“We know the three communities that we work with are at higher risk than other cultures in the community so we developed a program specifically for them to make access to our facilities easier for the families,” said Aldridge. Any families in the Strong Fast Fit Program receive a year-long membership to the facilities and are encouraged to use the facilities as often as possible to get the families moving, physically active and more immersed in the program.

The program doesn’t focus solely on physical activity though, the program also offers a curriculum that was designed by a dietitian to show the families in the program the best ways to eat healthy.

The program is working too, with one of the programs participants recently completing the YWCA Women’s Triathlon, the only all-women’s triathlon in Minnesota and the largest in the Midwest region. To prepare for the triathlon, the participant trained with the Strong Fast Fit counselors for almost a year and then completed the Super Sprint portions of the triathlon which are shorter than the normal portions but still a part of the triathlon. She also plans on running the triathlon once again next year.

With all the great work that the YWCA and the Strong Fast Fit Program have been doing, the grant from the Lynx will go a long way towards continuing support and growth of the program.

“Such recognition means the YWCA has connected with a team and organization that, again, we align strategically and with our missions and, to be really transparent, it means we’ll be able to do things with this grant that we wouldn’t be able to do otherwise.”