MAYC to reopen July 1 after tests for COVID-19

The Mahomet Area Youth Club made the decision to close their doors until July 1 after a staff member learned they had been in contact with someone who had attended an “Unofficial Prom” that has led to 15 COVID-19 infections as of Thursday.

MAYC Director Sara Balgoyen said that as of Thursday the staff that had tested had received negative results. 

“I wanted to be really safe and cautious,” Balgoyen said. 

The Mahomet Area Youth Club had been open since early June, serving 32 children, split into group of 8 in two locations. 

“We are having a good time,” she said. “Kids are getting out of their house, playing with other kids. We are doing a lot of outdoor play.

“We took some groups fishing this week at Lake of the Woods. Then we’ve had unique opportunities; HMD Academy downtown offered up their space for Tae Kwon Do 1 for one of the groups.”

Using the MAYC Clubhouse and the Mahomet United Methodist Church facilities, the kids have spent a lot of time playing outside, when possible. 

Balgoyen said that staff was getting ready to spend the next week to open their doors to more Mahomet-Seymour children, five days a week, under Phase 4 guidelines on July 6.

Pending all negative test results for staff and children, MAYC will continue with the July 6 plan.

MAYC made a conscious decision to provide summer childcare for families most in need during Phase 3 of the Restore Illinois plan. Balgoyen reported that everyone was “very understanding, flexible and adaptable” when the club had to shut down for a short period of time.

Children under the age of 18, including those at MAYC, can continue to pickup lunches Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to noon throughout the summer months. 

With help from the Champaign-Urbana Public Health Department, MAYC is serving between 50 to 60 lunches a day.