Ymca Gambling
By: Alex Kleynhans, YMCA Youth Gambling Awareness Program
The YMCA Youth Gambling Awareness Program (YGAP) is a free service funded by Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care offering educational prevention programs to youth and adults involved in young people’s lives on gambling awareness including potential risks, making informed decisions and healthy and active living. The YMCA Youth Gambling Awareness Program is a free service offering educational prevention programs designed to raise youth awareness with regards to gambling, healthy/active living and making informed decisions. To book a presentation today, please call: 289-260-8635 Our educational prevention programs raise awareness about gambling. The Wyckoff YMCA. Every gift makes a difference, everyone has a role to play - Together, we can achieve so much more. Learn More » EMAIL PREFERENCES Areas of.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been feeling a bit stressed as of late. Between the constant news updates on COVID-19, and doing my part by staying home as much as possible, I find myself constantly looking for activities to fill my time, cope with the stress, and distract me a little from everything that’s going on right now.
I bet many of you feel the same way, which makes this the perfect time to talk about gambling.
Now, I know you’re thinking, “Why? Aren’t casinos temporarily shut down?” You are correct my well-informed reader, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t gambling. It’s happening in homes everywhere, on our laptops, tablets, and phones, and in media we don’t typically associate with gambling, such as video games. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Online gambling is a valid, fun form of entertainment. But, like pretty much any activity, it comes with risks.
Ymca Gamble-nippert
Fortunately, these risks can be mitigated by following a few practices for safe gambling.
1. Set limits
Gambling can be fun, which makes it easy to lose track of how much money you’ve spent or how long you’ve been playing. Set limits on both, and stay within them! Set an alarm, or use a screen-time monitoring app to help you keep track of the time. And use a card that isn’t linked to your bank account, such as a gift card.
2. Know the online difference
There are differences between playing in-person and online. Online games are faster, accessible at all hours of the day (and night), and your opponents are sometimes computer-operated bots instead of real players. To stay safe, research any game before you play it, so you understand the rules, expected payout, and how it may be different than its offline version.
3. Protect your personal information
One part of your pre-play research should include ensuring the website you’re planning to use isn’t fraudulent and that your personal information will be kept confidential. Even then, you should protect yourself further by using a gift card or prepaid credit card instead of a debit or credit card. That way, your financial information will be protected if either your account or the website gets hacked.
Ymca Gamble
4. Strike a balance with other activities you love
At a stressful time like this, we all indulge in the activities we love to help us cope. If you enjoy gambling, balance it out and keep doing the other things you love, too. That includes making time for your friends and family. We may be physical distancing, but you can still give your mom a call!
These are just some starting points to help make sure that, if you choose to gamble online, it stays safe and fun. If you want to learn more, join “Game-Bling”: a free webinar by our YMCA’s Youth Gambling Awareness Program where we’ll explain even more ways you can make informed choices. Email YGAP@ymcagta.org to get the details and sign up today!
Alex oversees digital initiatives run by the YMCA’s Youth Gambling Awareness Program (YGAP), which help generate peer-based discussion among youth about safe gambling habits, and assists in the creation of educational workshops and webinars. Currently, he is running a Digital Media Contest that challenges youth ages 18-24 from across Ontario to create a poster or video discussing the blurred lines that exist between gambling and video games.
Youth Gambling Awareness Program (YGAP)
The YMCA Youth Gambling Awareness Program is a free service offering educational prevention programs designed to raise awareness of youth gambling, healthy/active living and making informed decisions. Together with the Ministry of Health, the YMCA believes educational awareness programs are essential to enhancing personal development and creating healthier communities.
What does YGap do in the community?
- Offer youth accurate information to reduce harm and assist in making informed choices around gambling and other high risk activities.
- Deliver interactive, curriculum-based awareness workshops for youth ages 8 to 24.
- Offer educational workshops for parents, teachers, health professionals and other agencies and organizations working with youth.
- Plan and implement events designed to promote community awareness and involvement in issues related to youth gambling.
- Facilitate youth-driven initiatives to promote youth expression and community action related to gambling.
Workshops
- What’s At Stake? Gambling Awareness (ages 8 to 14)
- What’s At Stake? Gambling Awareness (ages 15 to 24)
- Betting $ense: Financial Literacy (ages 9 to 14)
- Betting $ense: Financial Literacy (ages 15 to 24)
- Game-Bling: When Gaming Meets Gambling (ages 11 to 14)
- Game-Bling: When Gaming Meets Gambling (ages 15 to 24)
- Media Impact: Media Literacy (ages 11 to 14)
- Media Impact: Media Literacy (ages 15 to 18)
- Play It Safe! Health & Physical Education (ages 8 to 14)
- Stigma and Gambling (ages 15 to 24)
- Prevention Begins with Awareness: Workshop designed for parents, teachers, and adults involved in young people’s lives
To book a workshop please contact:
London / Middlesex
Youth Outreach Worker
Phone: 519 907-5500 ext. 1055
Windsor / Essex
Patricia Dubé, Bilingual Youth Outreach Worker
Phone: 519.256.7330 ext. 238