Tucked inside Halfmoon Heights Mobile Home Park, Cheryl’s Lodge, CAPTAIN Community Human Services’ community outreach center, hums with the sounds of kids laughing, backpacks hitting the floor, volunteers settling in beside them, and a staff that treats every student like a story still being written.
CAPTAIN has been a lifeline for decades. As Community Services Director Amanda Capozzi explains it, the community outreach center, once called The Turf, was “a very small trailer with a hole in the floor.” It served a neighborhood of kids who had nowhere to go after school, and no adults waiting at home. The idea was simple: to give them a safe place to land.
From those modest beginnings, the community outreach center has grown into Cheryl’s Lodge, a year-round hub (with no holes in the floor) where nearly 60 students from grades 1–12 receive homework help, mentoring, enrichment activities, and—just as important—a sense of belonging. Volunteers are the heartbeat of the program. And despite what many potential volunteers assume, you don’t need to be fluent in Common Core math to make an impact.
“It’s really about connection,” Capozzi says. “The kids don’t care if you make mistakes—they love it, actually. What matters is showing up.”
Capozzi shares a story about a young man who started with the program in kindergarten, drifted during his senior year, and was gently nudged back by staff who could see his slipping grades. “We literally went to his house,” she says. He graduated, went to college, earned a degree, and is now working toward his bachelor’s.
It’s the village at work: a place where kids are seen, supported, and reminded—daily—that someone believes in their future.
For those looking to volunteer, Cheryl’s Lodge is always in need of helping hands. Community members interested in pitching in can visit captaincares.org,call 518.399.4624, or email bill@captaincares.org to learn more.
“It’s fulfilling,” Capozzi says of the work. “And it truly makes a difference.”
This feature, brought to you by Adirondack Trust Company, is part of an ongoing series in which we highlight ways for Capital Regionites to get involved with local charities and make a difference in their communities.
