For teens who frequent Dorchester’s YMCA, summer is one of the most exciting times of the year.  The facility, located at 776 Washington St., offers numerous activities for teenagers at zero cost through its summer membership program.

To date this week, the Y has given out 524 free memberships to teens and it expects to reach 800 teen members by the end of the summer.  
“They can come in, they just have to show that they are in high school, and we give them a free teen membership,” said Executive Director Andrea Baez.

A 10-year YMCA employee, Baez, who is approaching her one-year anniversary at the Dorchester branch, is overwhelmed by the support and enthusiasm she has received from the community.

“Dorchester is the greatest place on earth to work,” she said. “The families that we work with, the kids that we work with, the community volunteers that we work with, I mean everyone in Dorchester is just so embracing to the Y; it has been a really great year for us.”

Baez said this past year has been especially significant for the Dorchester Y. “When I got here there hadn’t been an executive director for about eight months, so it was reintroducing the Y to the neighborhood, which was fantastic because people hadn’t seen us in over a year,” she said.

The youth involvement at the Dorchester Y is tremendous, says Baez. This summer alone the facility has employed 75 teens. And hundreds of others are taking advantage of the free membership program so they can work out, take dance classes, or play sports in the gymnasium during their off hours.

Randy Williams, 16, is both a teen employee and a YMCA member. He agrees that the facility has played a huge role in the safety of the neighborhood’s young people. “I know in this area there have been a lot of negative things happening in the community like crime and things like that,” he said, “but when the teens have a place to go that’s safe and productive, it’s really nice.”

Williams especially likes Brunch and Basketball, a monthly program where mentors come in and teach them important lessons about responsibility and adulthood. He says he would recommend the Y to any teenager in the area.

“I would because it’s opened up many doors for me,” said Williams. “I’ve met a lot of good mentors, especially in Brunch and Basketball, and it’s changed my life for the better.”

Uriah Jordan, 14, has been a teen employee for three weeks. The 14-year-old Roxbury resident plans on utilizing his free teen membership to play basketball after work.

“It’s keeping us in here, because if we weren’t here we’d probably be out somewhere doing something we weren’t supposed to be doing,” said Jordan. “So this program gives you the advantage to come here and hang out with friends and stuff.”

While there are many newcomers like Jordan, the Y also has several returning teens who are very familiar with the Dorchester facility. Skye Sanchez, 13, of Roxbury has been coming to the Y her entire life. Once a toddler in the Y’s daycare, she just recently aged out of the summer camp that she had attended every summer.  However, that hasn’t stopped her from visiting the Y daily. “I come here with my cousin to go swimming, or dance, or just to go to the gym,” she said.

When asked why such a strong focus is placed on attracting teenagers to the YMCA during the hot summer months, Baez’s answer was simple: to keep them off the streets and in the company of positive role models. “It’s our responsibility, because if not, what’s the alternative?” she asked. “They’re hanging out on street corners, they’re getting into mischief, they’re bothering store owners.”

Given the recent bouts of youth violence the neighborhood has witnessed, Baez is relieved to know that her teens have a safe place to spend their time.

“I know that when a child says to a parent, ‘We’re going to the Y,” the parent knows that there are responsible, engaging adults here with them,” said Baez. “We have to do it. That’s my motto. We have to do something for teens.”

Baez says the opportunity to make valuable connections with mentors is a unique advantage for the Dorchester Y. “They could be sitting at a table playing a board game with the admissions director at Stonehill College,” she said. “So really it’s exposing them to different things and different people, and keeping them safe.”

Along with providing fun summer activities to teenagers, the Dorchester Y partners with the Boston public schools by holding a summer school in its Academic Credit Recovery Center, where teenagers who need credits to graduate can take classes online.

“They sit and they put their headphones on, and they log in, and they take online classes so they’re graduating on time,” said Baez. “So they don’t have to go get a GED, or they’re not dropping out because they’re not going to get their diploma.”

Teen Director Reggie Jean, who oversees the academic program, says his work at the Y gives him a more positive outlook about the future population of Dorchester.

“Often, a lot of kids in our community are disconnected and don’t have mentors or an outlet or some place safe to go and feel like they’re welcome,” Jean said. “So having our doors open to the community makes me feel a lot better.”

Baez says she wants to expand the facility even further. Her plans for 2016 include more outreach into other areas of Dorchester, like Fields Corner.

Meanwhile, teens are encouraged to come sign up for a membership. The program runs until Sept. 8, and is available for teens aged 13 to 17.