$6 million expansion reflects proudly on Youngstown YMCA

Vindicator Editorial: August 5, 2009 at 12:00a.m.

The recent announcement of a $6 million expansion to the already expansive D.D. & Velma Davis Family Branch of the Youngstown YMCA in Boardman should come as little surprise to the 48,428 participants in 2008 of one of the Mahoning Valley’s greatest community gems.

For 125 years, the Youngstown YMCA has enriched the lives of its members and has strengthened the fabric of our community. Like other undervalued community assets in the Valley, it remains an active, vibrant and positive contributor to this region’s quality of life.

The massive addition to the Boardman branch serves as a cogent reminder of its impact and of its mission to build strong bodies, minds and attitudes among its members.

The 30,000-square-foot expansion will accommodate greatly expanded youth fitness programs, a multi-purpose gym, an aerobics studio, additional family locker rooms and much more.

The addition also comes as welcome relief for members by lessening crowding at the popular state-of-the-art six-year-old suburban facility.

Commitment to downtown

But contrary to the scuttlebutt sometimes raised by a small cadre of prophets of doom, the suburban expansion is not a thinly veiled effort to mothball the Central Y in downtown Youngstown. Indeed YMCA leadership has remained steadfastly committed to it. Unlike many other downtown YMCAs in Ohio and the nation that have become victims of old age and changing demographics, closing is not in the cards in Youngstown.

Over the past five years, Y leaders have quietly demonstrated their commitment to downtown Youngstown’s renaissance by investing more than $2 million in improvements to the Champion Street complex, which boasts about 6,500 full members.

According to Kenneth L. Rudge, chief executive officer of the Youngstown Y, the two facilities complement each other exceptionally well by offering many site-specific programs. Most of its 23,000 full members enjoy access to both Ys, and more and more primary Boardman members are visiting and using the downtown operations.

The third cog in the Youngstown Y’s operations is its Camp Fitch, a one-mile stretch of land along the shores of Lake Erie in North Springfield, Pa. The nearly 100-year-old campsite has witnessed more than $5 million in improvements and expansion in recent years.

Not your grandpa’s Y

With so much hubbub, the Youngstown Y clearly is no longer your grandfather’s YMCA. No longer is it exclusively young, male and Christian. Its membership is now nearly 50 percent women, its age parameters range from toddlers to octogenarians, and its beneficiaries cross a diversity of faiths. Such diversity strengthens the institution and all of its members.

The YMCA does, however, continue its bedrock tradition of promoting Christian values. It does so largely through indirect means by encouraging and instilling compassion, responsibility, family bonds and camaraderie.

The Youngstown YMCA also continues its long tradition of leadership in community service. Internally, it provided about $875,000 last year in assistance to low-income residents to provide free and discounted memberships. The Y, you see, turns no one away.

In return, some 3,300 volunteers donated 85,000 hours of services coaching, mentoring and assisting in Y programs last year.

It has also taken active leadership roles in United Way campaigns, in hosting health fairs, spinning marathons, Community Cup competitions, special services for senior citizens, to name a few.

As a vital and large business, the Y contributes substantively to the Mahoning Valley economy as well. It is a multi-million dollar operation that employs about 750 staff, including several hundred young people yearly. It operates with sound business sense, as evidenced by its ability to finance the Boardman expansion without requiring any borrowing or bonds.

With so much going for it, we foresee nothing but continued growth for the proud institution. To be a part of that growth, explore membership opportunities at its Web site — youngstownymca.org or telephone (330) 744-8411.