For 38 years, the Danville Area Community Center has been a mainstay in the thriving Danville/Montour County area. In recent years, the DACC has undergone and continues to undergo significant changes, upgrades, expansions, and improvements. We sat down with our friend, Mark Lawrence Giesen (Director of Community Engagement at the DACC), to find out more about all the great things happening there. Read on to learn more!
History of The DACC
Danville’s first community center was a YMCA on Ferry Street. Eventually the needs of the community outpaced the physical space of the YMCA. In the early 1980s, it was determined a new facility would be built, and the Danville Area School District donated two acres of land where the DACC currently sits. In 1986, the Danville Area Community Center was dedicated. In 1988 an expansion that included two racquetball courts was added to the building. In 2006 the DACC had a major pool renovation thanks to a $1M legacy gift. Additionally, the DACC installed an elevator to improve accessibility for all community members, renovated the gymnasium, and added two family/accessible bathrooms.
The DACC’s Current Programming & Amenities
The DACC offers a plethora of amenities, including a pool, gymnasium, racquetball court, community room, and more. They offer classes and courses for a wide range of ages, including swimming lessons, swim team, lifeguard certification, junior basketball league, pickleball, group fitness classes, weight training, and a ton of other options.
Every summer is a busy at the Danville Area Community Center! This summer is extra vibrant with locker room renovations underway, youth and teen swim lessons in progress, about 70 kids attending summer camp daily (with more than 130 enrolled this summer), and their CSO (Central Susquehanna Opportunities) collaboration ramping up.
For as long as the DACC has existed, they’ve offered a summer camp for kids, kindergarten through 5th grade. After many requests from parents over the years, they’ve introduced two teen programs this year; teen swim lessons are now available, as well as teen summer camps, which are scheduled for this summer and next, featuring art, sports, aerial yoga/Pilates, STEM, and nature themes in a series of three-day camps each week. Field trips, including kayaking and a minor league baseball game, are part of the fun.
They’ve also started an adolescent emotional health lecture series called “Inspire & Transform: Changing Lives Events Supported by the Degenstein Foundations.” They have had two successful lectures so far on the topic of youth suicide prevention, and you can see the presentations on the DACC YouTube or Facebook page.
Their new “Veterans Thrive” initiative aims to explore what the DACC can do for those who have served or are serving in the US armed forces. They’re seeking a block grant to provide free or low-cost memberships for low to moderate-income veterans and their families. Friday, November 1, they will host a Veterans Community Day, are working on other innovative ways to support our veterans’ community.
Additionally, The DACC now serves as the Montour County location for the CSO-Giant-Geisinger Mobile Food Pantry, which provides fresh, healthy foods to eligible families at no cost. These visits mark the beginning of a collaborative partnership with Central Susquehanna Opportunities (CSO). The food pantry will be at the DACC every fourth Wednesday of each month. They will soon have a CSO staff member on site regularly as part of our “DACC Helping Our Neighbors” program.
The DACC’s Upcoming Endeavors and Future Goals
Next year, the DACC will restart a much-needed service in the greater Danville area: childcare. They already offer Before and After School Care (for children in the Danville Area School District), but in 2025, we’ll start a preschool program for about two dozen 3, 4, and 5-year-olds. Our preschool will have a STEM emphasis and highly qualified staff in a safe and secure environment.
They are also undergoing significant renovations which will help to better serve our growing and changing community and refresh virtually every surface in the DACC. Currently, they are renovating the locker rooms; this is the first phase of a three-year plan that includes replacing the pool filters and HVAC system, resurfacing the entire building, adding outdoor multi-sport court for basketball, soccer and pickleball, repaving the parking lot, and installing new fitness equipment. They also hope to eventually add a new roof.
The total cost of these projects is nearly $4 million. They have a $1.5 million capital campaign underway, and have been approved for a $1 million RAC-P matching grant. Donations from members, businesses, local institutions, and support from local, county, state, and federal elected officials are all contributing to this massive undertaking. To date, donations and pledges have reached $1.3 million.
How To Get Involved
Check out what’s happening at the DACC, stop in for a visit, and please consider supporting this vibrant and growing community center.
Get Connected!
Check out the DACC on their website, Instagram & Facebook.
CONTACT:
TheDACC@danvilleacc.org
570-275-3001
1041 Liberty Street, Danville, PA 17821