Goodman Community Center

We're closed today for Juneteenth! Includes all buildings, services, and programs, as well as the fitness center. Please call 211 for open services.

Buildings and fitness center will be open as usual tomorrow.

We've got 7 bands to see this Sunday in the Founders Outdoor Classroom with Make Music Madison 🎶🪗🎸🎤

Here's who you can see for free right off the bike path near 149 Waubesa St:

11:30 am –12:15 pm: MT and The Don’t Bees
Original Americana/rock
12:30 – 1:15 pm: Madison Flute Club
Classical & standards
1:30 – 2:15 pm: Alex Converse
Acoustic originals and covers
2:45 – 4 pm: The Big Squeezey
Accordion band
4:15 – 5 pm: The Sharp Keys
Acoustic Americana
5:15 – 5:45 pm: Michi & Friends Singing Resistance
Voices and fiddle
6 – 6:30 pm: Nola Talks to Trees
Indie-pop trio

Will you be stopping by for your Make Music Madison tour?

This spring, Youth Voice Council (YVC) became the first creative consultants on our upcoming playground redesign 🛝

After finishing their successful snack distribution system for LOFT, YVC wanted a project that would allow high schoolers to engage with child care youth as leaders while pushing their evaluation skills to new heights. And what better opportunity than designing a new center playground!

Here's what the high schoolers did this spring to kick off this longterm project:

📝 Consulted with program leaders to learn about what the playground needs from a policy and development point of view.

🧠 Developed TWO different data collection methods to meet the various needs of child care youth.

👣 Collected and synthesized the playground equipment dreams of elementary and preschool youth (rock walls are still very popular, y'all).

🖥️ Shared their findings with GCC leadership to guide the next steps in the process.

YVC takes a much deserved break for the summer, but the group is excited to gather more information as we reach new stages of the project this fall 🍂

From high school seniors to 4K, our youth programs have been celebrating graduation season 🎓

🍕 TEENworks hosted a special party for their 11 graduating seniors and their families to celebrate all the young adults have achieved in and out of school.

🛝 4K graduation brought Orange and Blue House families together at the Children's museum to mark the kids' next chapters as elementary schoolers.

🎳 LOFT middle school invited 8th graders and their families to a night of bowling at Bowl-A-Vard lanes to ring-in their transition to high school.

We are SO PROUD 🥹 of all the youth entering big new phases of their and their families lives. There are so many big hearts, brains, personalities, and dreams in this place!!♥️🧠💭

Now go enjoy the summer ☀️ You've worked hard for it!

We were excited to see the 7th graders from Madison Country Day School 🚌 at their yearly volunteering trip to our pantry this spring 🛒

👣 The group spent some of their afternoon receiving a facility tour from pantry manager Allison, followed by some time packing produce, bagging bread, and sorting canned goods for the day's customers 🥕

We love having youth from across the Madison-area visit the pantry and learn the importance of free food access. Because doing the small stuff together to keep people nourished!

In May, our older adult program brought back their popular Meet & Mingle event and the vibes were fantastic 💃🏽 Guests took home prizes, connected with new people and showed off some serious moves on the dance floor!

Thanks so much to all the community orgs that tabled to share resources with attendees, to the volunteers for helping keep the event in motion, and to DJ Andre for matching the energy all evening 🪩

If you’re coming to our center today, beware of the tree down on Waubesa St! Corry St. is clear for those coming off Atwood Ave.

Stay safe today, Madison ❤️

We are shocked and saddened to hear about the death of Boys & Girls Clubs of Dane County CEO Michael Johnson. He was a force for good in Madison and a tireless advocate for youth. Our thoughts are with his loved ones and everyone at Boys & Girls Club - Michael will be truly missed.

East sider and longtime sketcher, painter, and printmaker Jim Good took on some of Madison's most iconic landmarks (with a silly twist) for his latest Ballweg Gallery show📍

"The Gallery of Lost Gargoyles" was created for a book of the same name that Good co-wrote with friend Bob Kahn. Kahn wrote the stories, Good illustrated them with these fantastically whimsical prints. The June gallery features all 21 original linocuts of gargoyles perched mid-activity on Madison architecture.

Good recently retired from his job of 35 years as an architect and disaster management specialist. Since then, Good has been enjoying his passion for linocuts (a slow and meticulous process) and water color (a fast madhouse flurry of creation). And he enjoys both.

Gallery is in the Ironworks building through the end of June. More information can be found at jimgoodgallery.com

How did Be the Good look through TEENworks’ eyes? 📸👀

Current sophomore Houja spent last month’s dinner and fundraiser as the official TEENworks’ event photographer. Houja moved confidently through the many event spaces — front and back of house — catching authentic moments that only she (and co-participants Jayden, Keneth, and Daelin who got a few moments with the camera themselves) could capture.