The Toledo Lucas County Public Library offers a variety of coding classes for children and tweens. The King Road branch offers a Code IT Club, where students in grades 4-9 are invited to go beyond the basics of coding to create video games, program a robot or build a website. Students can learn practical skills in a fun environment while mingling with other kids and making new friends. The next Code IT Club event is scheduled for Thursday, December 6 from 4-5 pm.
UpLyfting the Community with Gently Used Sports Equipment
Few child athletes grow up to play professionally — or even play at the collegiate level — but the physical and social benefits reaped from playing team sports are undeniable. Bill Laranga founded UpLyft because he believes strongly in the value of athletics, and he doesn’t want the cost of sports equipment to deter a child from playing.
Laranga explains, “Sports were an escape for me — baseball specifically. I’d be out all day playing ball and get mad that it was getting dark outside and we couldn’t play anymore. We want to give all kids [the chance to] escape…that’s how [UpLyft] began. I called three of my friends and (said), ‘I have a full time job and can’t do this by myself. Here’s my idea and let’s see what we can do together.’”
Ensuring participation in sports
Laranga and his three friends created the nonprofit UpLyft to ensure all Northwest Ohio children have the opportunity to participate in athletic activities. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than half a million Ohio children, or 1 in 5 kids, are living in poverty. When providing food and shelter is a struggle, buying expensive sports equipment for an extracurricular activity is not a priority and, oftentimes, not possible.
“I played sports my entire life, so did my brother, and our garage was just inundated with sports equipment,” says Laranga. He knew his garage wasn’t the only one packed with items that were no longer of use, so he founded UpLyft to collect those gently used items to distribute “sports and fitness equipment to the schools, programs, and organizations [that could] best put the equipment to use to serve our area’s youth.”
The goal of UpLyft is to “uplift the community. We want to be able to say that our basketballs or cleats got a kid into college with a sports scholarship. We want to make these kids know that people care. When you’re living in poverty, it’s easy to feel like no one cares,” Laranga says.
Benefits of participating
Even if those cleats don’t propel a young child to college, there are other benefits to playing sports. Laranga discloses, “I think the biggest [advantage to playing sports] is knowing that you need to count on other people to win or to lose…[and] you need to find your role. Sports look very easy on the TV, but when you play against people, there’s a lot more to it–teamwork, discipline, and the biggest thing is failure,” Laranga continues. “If you never fail, it will be hard for you to learn.”
From New Jersey to Northwest Ohio
Despite growing up in New Jersey, just a stone’s throw from New York City, Laranga calls Toledo his home. Laranga’s family moved to Maumee in 2004 when Bill was just 12, and he reminisces, “The pace of life slowed down significantly, and life was a lot more relaxed.”
Laranga played collegiate baseball and graduated from Lourdes University with a Bachelor’s degree in education. In his final year of school, while he was student teaching, Laranga realized teaching wasn’t for him. He applied to law school and was accepted to several schools, but he thought, “I don’t know how the heck I’m going to afford that.”
Laranga was coaching a travel baseball team at the time, and the father of one of his players noticed his potential and offered him a job at Ally Financial in Detroit. Laranga laughs, “I took a technical job with no technical experience and just ran with it.”
At only 24, Bill Laranga is the IT Project Manager for Ally Financial and the founder and president of UpLyft, which continues to expand and gain recognition with plans to continue to “build out this model in Toledo.”
If you are interested in learning more, donating items, or requesting gently used equipment, visit the website, uplyft.today.
Q&A with Bill Laranga
What’s your favorite activity to do with your family/friends?
Hiking.
Best holiday memory from when you were a kid?
When I woke up to a train set. My dad had completely built it for me when I was 4.
What’s your go-to activity when you have a few minutes to yourself?
Reading or learning.
Describe your life in five words or less.
Exhilarating, fast-paced, enjoyable, optimistic, energetic.
What is your favorite Toledo hangout?
I absolutely love The Blarney.
Describe Toledo in a sentence?
Toledo is the diamond in the rough that we call home.
Holiday Promotions at Toledo Museum of Art
The Toledo Museum of Art (TMA) will offer several special promotions this holiday season, including special discounts, free parking and a limited-edition goblet and ornament. For the entire month of December, nonmembers who spend a combined $35 at the Museum Store, cafe or exhibition tickets will receive free parking. (Parking is free for members). As you’re making holiday shopping lists this year, don’t forget to check out the Museum Store, which offers a diverse selection of specialty gifts inspired by TMA’s world-famous collection. You’ll find fine art books and supplies to apparel, children’s educational toys and books and jewelry.
Parenting the Video Game Fanatic
My 13-year-old son has tried everything from baseball to cooking class—yet nothing holds his interest as much as video games. Every now and then I wonder if it is worth investing money and time into classes or sports he doesn’t want to participate in. But if I hold off on signing him up for things, he does nothing except play video games until we try something new again. It’s a never-ending cycle.
Are video games healthy?
According to the Pew Research Center, 72% of teens—and 84% of teen boys—play video games. There is a lot of conflicting information about video game use, so it can be hard for parents to know what to allow. It’s screen time, of course, but video gaming is often also a social activity played together with friends either in the same room or online.
Playing video games can have positive benefits, says Dr. Larry D. Rosen, a professor at California State University and author of The Distracted Mind. Gaming “can offer some skill-building, including reaction time, executive functioning, and strategic thinking,” says Rosen. He cautions, though, that “playing video games can be very addictive and create problematic thinking, including desensitization to violence.”
Video game obsession?
Rosen recommends that video game play should be limited since research shows physiological arousal increases when playing—and kids need breaks from that. He suggests limiting gaming for teens to 60-90 minutes at a time, even if parents decide to allow more total time daily.
Maria Sanders, a licensed social worker, and certified parent coach, also recommends creating clear boundaries regarding when and how long your teen is allowed to play. She says an example of boundaries might be letting teens choose to play an hour of video games either before or after completing homework.
Sanders encourages parents to learn more about their teen’s interest in video games. Sit down and play the games with them. “The child will see that you have an interest in what they are doing,” she says, “and you will learn about why they are so attracted to the game.”
Encouraging other activities
Teens should live “balanced lives and not live solely in the video game,” says Sanders. But if your teen doesn’t express interest in anything else, it may be difficult to figure out which activity or sport to encourage. Sanders suggests asking your teen about the type of video games they like to play. Then you might be able to figure out an activity that uses similar skills or gameplay.
Stay positive about video games
Often parents make comments like “video games are a waste of time” or “video games are unhealthy” in an effort to decrease video game use. Rosen says this almost always backfires. Instead, parents could reward the child for responsible behavior.
“The best thing a parent can do is guide their child down a path of self-reflection,” Sanders said. “Asking questions like ‘I notice you seem pretty tired after playing video games. How are you feeling?’ will help your child figure out their own beliefs about video game use.”
Parent negativity can make a teen feel as if they are being judged and misunderstood. Focus on their strengths while playing a video game—perhaps, for instance, their ability to help a friend get to another level.
Too many video games
Video game addiction is not yet a disorder recognized by the American Psychiatric Association. The World Health Organization, however, recently recognized the existence of “gaming disorder” for the first time. If you are concerned about your teen, contact a mental health professional to discuss counseling options.
Get Air Trampoline Park Opens in Toledo
Need a place for the kids to burn some energy as the temperature drops? There’s another option available in town. Get Air Toledo, a new trampoline park, is now open on Jackman Road.
In addition to trampolines, Get Air offers fun foam pits, a fidget ladder, a Ninja course, and a Kiddie Court — a space dedicated for little ones, 46” and under, so they can jump and play without worrying about bigger kids and adults. Get Air also offers space for children and adults with special needs that includes gentle music. Get Air is open daily at 10am. getairtoledo.com
2018 Toledo Zoo ‘Lights Before Christmas’ Giveaway
