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“We have an indoor pool, so we offer swimming lessons for children ages 18 months all the way to 15 years old,” shares Jimenez, “We also have adult aqua fitness classes, a swim team, and a water polo team. Our current swim team is [comprised] of kids who started taking lessons at 18 months!”

Valentine’s swimmers received a special treat in 2017 when Michael Phelps — the most decorated Olympian in history — paid a visit to promote water safety and even spent some time hanging out in the pool with the kids.

“Another cool thing about this Club is we have a teen center,” continues Jimenez. “This room was recently renovated, and we actually had the teens as part of the process, telling us what they would like to see in the room and what they would like to do in the room. This room is super important within the Club because the teens have their own space,” she says. “It doesn’t discourage them in the sense that they have to constantly share space with young ones, because then it’s not cool. This is a place that they can really call their own. The younger kids, when they’re invited to come in for a special activity or they have to talk to somebody, it’s a big deal. Otherwise they’re just looking in through the windows. They even say, ‘I can’t wait to become a teen!”

The Louis L. Valentine Club also has a dance studio — offering tap, ballet, jazz, and hip-hop lessons — and an art room. “We’re teaching the kids that art is everything and art is everywhere, it’s not just painting and drawing,” explains Jimenez.

The kids can also let loose in the gym, on the playground, or in the game room, where they can partake in a variety of games such as foosball, pool, and ping-pong. “The game room is a place for the kids to come in and learn how to socialize in real life,” notes Jimenez. “A lot of times, kids are just stuck on their technology — whatever it may be — and so the kids come in here and learn how to play together in real life, they learn sportsmanship.”