Youth Archives

FIRST® LEGO® League 2022-23 Championship Recap

Melissa Carter2023-03-17T16:56:54-05:00

All season, youth involved in FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL) have worked together to create, code, and compete to advance to the final FLL Championship, which took place earlier this month at Augustana University’s campus in Sioux Falls, SD. Teams traveled across South Dakota, North Sioux City to Rapid City, and many cities and small towns in between, to compete and showcase their complex robots. Teams were judged based on their innovation project, presentation skills, robot design, and core values. Our 2022-23 Season Challenge was a SUPERPOWERED℠ theme and had teams creating an innovation project that included a real-world solution utilizing renewable energy. [...]

FIRST® LEGO® League 2022-23 Championship RecapMelissa Carter2023-03-17T16:56:54-05:00

100-Year Sunday Story: 100 Years of EmBe

Melissa Carter2022-09-25T11:04:58-05:00

For the final Sunday Story, we’re bringing you 100 fun facts about EmBe from our last 100 years! The 1920s YWCA founder, Mabel Crossman, owned the state’s largest chicken hatchery with her husband, even though she was terrified of chickens. The YWCA was one of the first organizations to offer Kittenball leagues for women. Kittenball is the original name for softball. The first Camp Tepeetonka was on Lake Madison. One of the original classes of the YWCA was a cheese-tasting class. The YWCA offered a special one-on-one English class for immigrants attempting to learn the language. President Calvin Coolidge visited [...]

100-Year Sunday Story: 100 Years of EmBeMelissa Carter2022-09-25T11:04:58-05:00

100-Year Sunday Story: The Name Change

Melissa Carter2022-09-16T10:52:55-05:00

On April 16, 2013, the Sioux Falls branch of the YWCA cut ties with the national organization and announced the new agency as EmBe. There were many reasons for the change, but ultimately, the organization wanted to be more connected and support and provide resources in the best possible way to the Sioux Falls community. When the name changed, it didn’t mean that the services had changed. After the switch, EmBe still provided all the services they did before, including childcare services, aquatics, Girls on the Run, Tribute to Women, and all other programs. By cutting ties with [...]

100-Year Sunday Story: The Name ChangeMelissa Carter2022-09-16T10:52:55-05:00

EmBe CEO Column: July 2022

Melissa Carter2022-07-15T12:54:03-05:00

Dare to Raise, Rise2Raise “They’re just like us.” That’s the recurring thought of this past month at EmBe. It was the first thought that came to my mind as I sat in a circle of past and present board members recently. The statement’s on repeat, in my mind and out loud, as we peruse the pages of our 100-year-old history. My heart races at any discovery that triggers it and my spirit dances with each jaw-dropping move made by our sisters and allies of the past. If you can’t tell, we’re uncovering our history from the pages of scrapbooks that [...]

EmBe CEO Column: July 2022Melissa Carter2022-07-15T12:54:03-05:00

EmBe Announces Plans for its 100 Year Celebration

Ngoc Thach2022-06-28T21:06:07-05:00

Stephanie Land, the author of the New York Times Bestseller turned Netflix series Maid, will provide a keynote on September 28 to honor the organization’s 100-year-old mission of empowering women, children, and families of the Sioux Empire. Sioux Falls, SD (June 23, 2022) –EmBe, the oldest and largest women’s organization in the region, will celebrate its centennial through a series of events beginning with the organization’s first-ever girls’ summit, Rise2Raise, on August 10 and culminating with a keynote by New York Times Bestselling author Stephanie Land at its celebration event on September 28 at the Washington Pavilion. The nonprofit organization [...]

EmBe Announces Plans for its 100 Year CelebrationNgoc Thach2022-06-28T21:06:07-05:00

The CEO Column: June 2022

Melissa Carter2022-06-20T11:10:38-05:00

Finding Hope Here We remember how much a human can bear in the wake of unthinkable tragedy. Every parent who celebrated the start of summer held the joy of their child’s achievement in tandem with the shared grief of parents in Texas. Every parent who dropped their child off for daycare bore the weight of uncertainty as each child who’s completed an active shooter drill may understand the uncertainty each day may hold. Couple the weight of our shared reality with the prolonged sense of uncertainty we’ve experienced over the last two years and the burden of these experiences may [...]

The CEO Column: June 2022Melissa Carter2022-06-20T11:10:38-05:00

EmBe Invites Girls and Coaches to ‘Run with Us’

Ngoc Thach2022-01-14T09:55:29-06:00

Sioux Falls, SD (January 14, 2022) – At the start of its second century, EmBe continues its mission to empower women and families to enrich lives. As its signature program, Girls on the Run, gears up for another season, participants and volunteers are calling on their greater communities to join them this Spring. Registration for the 2022 Spring season opened on January 10 at embe.org. To support a growing cohort of 1500 girls in Grades 3 to 5 who elect to run each season, the program needs 200 coaches throughout the state to bring social-emotional learning opportunities to help girls [...]

EmBe Invites Girls and Coaches to ‘Run with Us’Ngoc Thach2022-01-14T09:55:29-06:00

Volunteer Highlight: Sam Ryckman

Megan Van Holland2021-03-09T09:33:05-06:00

FIRST LEGO League Alum and Volunteer: Sam Ryckman My interest in engineering and science started the same way it likely did for many: playing with Lego. From age eleven to eighteen, I participated in FIRST Lego League (FLL) and later FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC). These programs sparked my interest in science and engineering through exciting challenges and fun competitions. I learned how to design, program, and build robots. But more importantly, I learned the importance of teamwork, communication, and hard work. I am now attending college at South Dakota Mines pursuing degrees in mechanical engineering and computer science. After graduating, [...]

Volunteer Highlight: Sam RyckmanMegan Van Holland2021-03-09T09:33:05-06:00

Donor Spotlight: Dr. Drew Alton

Megan Van Holland2021-09-01T09:44:38-05:00

The world is watching as NASA’s Perseverance Rover makes its way to Jerezro Crater on planet Mars to hunt for prehistoric fossils in the next six months. For local professor and FIRST LEGO League (FLL) volunteer Dr. Drew Alton, the mission fuels his passion to bring science, technology, engineering and math to kids across South Dakota as a volunteer and as a program collaborator. “I want them to say, ‘I could be part of that mission,’” Dr. Alton said. “It’s exactly what FLL is all about.” Dr. Alton, a professor of physics at Augustana University, has been volunteering for the [...]

Donor Spotlight: Dr. Drew AltonMegan Van Holland2021-09-01T09:44:38-05:00

From YWCA to EmBe, Carol Spader’s Story

Megan Van Holland2020-07-31T08:41:12-05:00

Carol Spaders's connection to EmBe began in childhood, when she was attending swimming lessons every Saturday at the YWCA (now EmBe). "Finances were tight,” Carol said, recalling her father’s diagnosis with a neurological disorder and ultimately, his death in her teenage years. “I think my mother looked for free or inexpensive experiences in the community. Hoping that she might instill a vision in her girls to go further than she could." Carol continued. Early in Carol’s career in community development, she was invited to serve on the YWCA Board. During her time on the board, Carol learned the importance of [...]

From YWCA to EmBe, Carol Spader’s StoryMegan Van Holland2020-07-31T08:41:12-05:00