My Y Story: The Rogers Family

Two years ago Y members Sean and Lauretha Rogers moved to Nashua when they accepted physician positions at Southern NH Medical Center and St. Joseph Hospital. They come to the Y often, sometimes working out together when their schedules allow, but other times they come separately. The one constant for this family’s visits is that their 3-year-old son Christopher enjoys Kids Stop, and they are thrilled with the socialization he enjoys and the attentive care that he receives from the staff.

Sean shared, “When we first moved here, it wasn’t the easiest transition. We were living in hotels at first because of the terrible housing market, and there was no daycare availability, even though we’d been on waitlists for over a year and a half. With no family nearby my wife and I had to stagger our work schedule so one of us could stay at home with our young son. It was starting to take its toll. I fell into the worst shape of my life, I was putting on weight and just seemed to feel worse every day.

“But our son’s happiness came first, and one thing I knew that would make him very happy is swimming. He just loves to swim, or at least splash around and make a lot of noise. I didn’t want a gym membership, but when I looked around the YMCA was the only indoor swimming pool I could find in Nashua. So I bit the bullet and got a family membership so we could take him to the pool.

“But after the first few times I took him, I learned about Kids Stop. It seemed like a miracle. They’ll watch my kiddo for up to 2 hours while I work out? It seemed way too good to be true. But it was true, and it was (and is) awesome. Our son finally had a few friends to play with and a chance to learn social skills with other kids. Sometimes, after dropping him off, I secretly watched him through the window happily playing and running around and being silly. Kids Stop has really been a godsend.”

Lauretha, too, has enjoyed her time at the Y. “I’m so glad we have something like the Y here. At first, it was a hard transition when Christopher came with me to the Y.  He could only stay at the Kids Stop for ten minutes his first day because he cried so much.  But the staff at Kids Stop have been fantastic, and with their help he was able to stay for longer periods of time, learning to color and play pretend.  I get the warm and fuzzies now seeing him in there. He’s in good hands,” she said.

“With their help, I am able to do Spin classes, yoga, or Pilates when I’m at the Y. Whatever class is available when we are there, I enjoy.” Lauretha said.

Sean said, “The time to myself has allowed me to finally start to get back into shape after years of gradually getting pudgier and breathless even with light exercise. The facilities are really nice, almost opulent. The staff are friendly and it is a hub for community engagement. And best of all, when the two hours are up, I miss my son and he misses me and we have a very happy reunion!” He shares that he’s back in the groove of working out and uses the Wellness Center’s weights and spends time on the treadmill.

“In short, the YMCA, especially the one in Nashua where we go, is wonderful. I really love it and I just wanted to say thank you to everyone, especially to Heidi and Lori and all the Kids Stop employees who do a great job watching all the kiddos and making my son feel welcome,” Sean said.