Photo By Vaughan Dill | 171026-N-SH284-079 BREMERTON, Wash. (October 26, 2017) Capt. Alan Schrader, Naval Base...... read more read more
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BREMERTON Wash. - Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton’s Family Fitness Center re-opened following a ribbon cutting ceremony Oct. 26.
The upgrades included a ‘face lift’ in the form of new flooring, paint and wall repairs, as well as new interactive toys in both play areas, new furniture, workout mirrors, a kids homework and reading area, a quiet corner where adults can rock and comfort their children, and the ability for 7-9 year olds to go through family equipment center youth orientation and workout next to their parent in the family center.
“We were the recipient of a project repair earlier in the year," said Julia McLaughlin, NBK Sports, Fitness and Aquatics Director, "which did some wall repair that occurred during some storm damage a couple of years ago, and at that same time, they were able to fund the repair with not only repairing the walls and the leak, but we got new flooring. Previously we had some well-worn carpet in there and when we got the water damage, that didn’t help it.”
Navy family friendly fitness Centers were originally developed as family member workout spaces specifically equipped for adult family members with young children to achieve a workout that normally would not be achieved due to fitness center standards. The space provides parents or guardians the opportunity to perform effective workouts while maintaining line-of-site responsibility for their children.
“Years ago, Commander, Navy Installations Command developed a family fitness center," said McLaughlin. "We were instructed to take areas in the gym, separate from the main area, and parents could have line-of-sight to their children while they were working out. We were prevented from putting many toys in there because of sanitation and different things. It was as basic a fitness center as you could imagine. Over the years, we recognized that we were leaving out a significant portion of our families by expecting them to come and have their kids entertained in these outdated facilities, not really offering that much. In addition there was an age group completely left out of the equation, the 7-11 age group.”
Over the years, as the Navy’s fitness program’s progressed, an emphasis has been placed on ‘Fitness for Life’ for the entire Navy population. Research has shown parents are the number one source affecting the way children feel about living a healthy lifestyle. The objective is to keep the entire family healthy by providing an environment for families to meet their fitness needs, in a family-friendly atmosphere.
“When you run a fitness center, there are certain guidelines that you have to adhere to, and some of those guidelines are prohibitive of having a day care center or child watch in the center itself because you have to have in-depth training to watch a child without the parent there,” said McLaughlin. “One of the things that I’m really proud of that we are addressing with the upgrade to our family center is that we have developed a youth orientation where 7-11 year olds can now go through a process where they can work out with mom and dad, or while the parents are in there working out, they won’t have to sit there and not touch anything.”
The family fitness center now offers two age-appropriate play areas where children can be safe and monitored within eyesight. The newest addition to the family center is the homework and reading area. This area is for older kids, not quite old enough to attend the main fitness center but, too old for the play areas. This area provides quiet space for reading and homework.
“We painted the whole center, not only is it more inviting to work out, we also upgraded a lot of the furniture and the toys for the kids in their age-appropriate areas," said McLaughlin. "We put in some interactive toys that are mounted on the wall that help children develop coordination skills, and they are easy to sanitize and keep clean, yet they are so interactive that they capture the child’s interest. We did some fun things like put up some positive quotes on the walls and made a little quiet area moms and dads can comfort their child, feed their child, or put them to sleep. This quiet area will help the child adjust to the center, then they can go into the toy area."
“Naval Base Kitsap was named 2017 “Top Navy Base” and awarded the CNIC Installation Excellence Award," said Capt. Alan Schrader, NBK commanding officer. "Along with that award came money for base beautification projects of the command's choosing. Because this command believes wholeheartedly in the strength of the family and the importance of taking care of our families, we are committed to keeping the entire family healthy by providing an environment for families to meet their fitness needs,”
Naval Base Kitsap beat out 71 other installations worldwide. The top award came with $224,000 to spend on base beautification projects of the command's choosing. In addition to NBK winning the installation excellence award, additional funds were accompanied with the October 2016 Energy Conservation Challenge award.
“Funds were designated from the award money to give the Family Fitness Center a facelift," said Schrader. "MWR combined the those funds with a facility improvement bullet won by Pacific Edge outfitters for taking first place in the FY17 Energy Conservation Challenge. They tagged onto the end of a repair project that included new floors. The end result? New floors, new paint, new toys, new furniture and overall, a much more inviting space to get fit!”
Schrader hopes that this renovated facility will help Sailors maintain and pass-on a culture of fitness to their children.
“Naval Base Kitsap is committed to “Fitness for Life” for the entire Navy population,” said Schrader. “Research shows children will emulate the lifestyle demonstrated by their parent. ‘Just because your kids come first, doesn’t mean your fitness has to come last.’ It is our sincere hope that our service members and their families derive a great deal of pleasure while using this facility.”
| Date Taken: | 10.26.2017 |
| Date Posted: | 10.27.2017 16:28 |
| Story ID: | 253320 |
| Location: | BREMERTON, WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 222 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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