Youngstown Area Community Cup is Saturday in Wick Recreation Area

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

The 24th annual Youngstown Area Community Cup will come to a close Saturday when winners are crowned in three divisions during ceremonies at Mill Creek Metroparks’ Wick Recreation Area.

The Community Cup program involves more than 80 businesses and organizations, bringing together thousands of local employees for several athletic events. Teams are divided into three divisions and determined according to company size.

Though 10 events already have been completed among the competing divisions, Saturday’s 10K relay race at 9 a.m., time-prediction walk at 10 a.m., obstacle course at 1 p.m. and tug of war at 2:30 p.m. will mark the winner of the competition that promotes awareness of physical fitness.

Jennifer Quinlan, Community Cup director for the YMCA, said the goal of the event is to bring employees of companies throughout the Valley together for team-oriented events and to create a sense of pride in the community.

“The idea for the companies that participate is that a healthy employee is a happy employee,” Quinlan said. “These people work towards a goal throughout the summer, and hopefully in those three months, they can make a lifestyle change.”

Each participant, as well as their spouse, receives a free summer membership to the YMCA Central Branch in downtown Youngstown. Participants can prepare for the team-oriented competitions, or the personal weight-loss competition called the Youngstown Meltdown. Weigh-loss competitors receive an initial weigh-in at the beginning of May and must weigh-in once a week for the entire summer.

The idea is for employees of area companies to have a chance to communicate with one another. Though some are familiar with a voice over the telephone, the event creates an atmosphere for friends to be made and teamwork to be developed.

“The Youngstown Area Community Cup has been making people healthier from businesses and companies in our area for over 20 years. It’s an opportunity for the CEO and a part-time employee to be teamed on the same tug-of-war rope and for all of the employees of a company to have fun, get in better shape and compete against other businesses from our Valley,” said Mike Shaffer, Central YMCA director.

“Events such as swimming, volleyball, running, cycling and obstacle courses are just some of the highlights of this popular program. Many businesses have used this event as a springboard into a wellness program, which can lower their health-care rates and improve work attendance.”

Created by former YMCA CEO Dick Bennett, the Community Cup has evolved since its inception in 1989. Saturday’s event includes 20 teams, but according to Quinlan, the early days of the event included two or three times the amount with a parade throughout the downtown area. As the local economy changed over the past decade, fewer companies have been involved.

This year’s participants are Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Children Services Board, Humility of Mary Health Partners, MS Consultants and the YMCA Central and Davis branches, which make up the Red Division; City of Youngstown, Farmers National Bank, Mahoning County Educational Service Center, Meridian Community Care, Turning Technologies and Valley Care Health Systems, all in the White Division; and Cohen & Co., Data Recovery Services, Homes For Kids, Mahoning County Board of Developmental Disabilities, Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, PNC Bank and Youngstown Metropolitan Housing Authority, Blue Division.

Though teams are aware of how they placed through the tournament’s initial stages, point tallies cannot be calculated until the event’s conclusion Saturday — which also includes points for gathering volunteers. Along with door prizes, individual awards such as Best Tent of the Day and Most Spirited Team will be distributed, while the awards ceremony will take place after the tug of war.

“It’s fun because we get to see the excitement,” Quinlan said. “To see the expressions on some of the faces because some teams are waiting on pins and needles to wait and see who comes away with the Community Cup.”

The top three weight-loss competitors also will be announced and given a trophy, along with an acknowledgement luncheon in their honor in October.