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Campaigning for strong kids
Youngstown YMCA’s annual fund-raising Spin-A-Thon is Feb. 6.
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YMCA SUPPORTERS: The Youngstown YMCA begins its 2010 fund-raising campaign with a party Saturday in Austintown. Two of the organization’s main facilities are the D.D. and Velma Davis Family Branch in Boardman and the Central YMCA on Champion Street in downtown Youngstown. Posing at the Central Y’s lap pool are, from left, Michael Shaffer, director of the Central Y, and Greg Kleeh, director of financial development.
YOUNGSTOWN — Last Saturday, more than 1,500 children crowded into the Youngstown YMCA’s Central Branch for the beginning of the youth basketball league, a swim meet and other activities.
“You couldn’t find a parking spot anywhere near the YM,” said Greg Kleeh, director of financial development.
“That’s what we’re all about ... providing programs for youth that produce healthy adults,” he said.
And that takes money.
The Youngstown YMCA, with its mission of building strong kids, strong families and strong communities in mind, will begin its 2010 fund-raising campaign with a party Saturday at 7 p.m. at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish Center, 4490 Norquest Blvd., Austintown.
The event features live entertainment, auctions, raffles and gourmet food, all to benefit the Strong Kids Campaign. Tickets — $50 in advance and $75 at the door — can be purchased at both YM branches, the Central, at 17 N. Champion St., Youngstown, and the D.D. and Velma Davis Family Branch, 45 McClurg Road, Boardman.
The YM’s Strong Kids Campaign provides financial assistance to underprivileged youth and families for membership and/or program fees, and to special-needs populations and agencies with usage of the YM’s pools and gyms, Kleeh said.
The 2010 campaign goal is $165,000. The 2009 campaign goal was $150,000, but about $165,000 was collected, and that is why the 2010 goal was set at that amount, Kleeh said.
In 2008, the YM provided $870,000 in scholarships to youth, families and adults for membership and program support. The amount for 2009 is estimated at $1 million, and Kleeh said he can’t imagine that the amount will be any less this year.
In 2008, the financial campaign supported an estimated 3,380 youths, 553 families, 1,200 adults and 800 special-needs children, and program numbers are expected to be similar in 2009, Kleeh said.
In addition to the party, helping to jump-start the campaign is the annual Spin-A-Thon on Feb. 6. Spinners raise money for the campaign by securing donations for each hour they ride. In 2008, spinners raised $70,000.
Riders who want to participate in this event must register by Saturday, also the date by which corporate sponsorships are due.
For more information, contact Kleeh at (330) 744-8411, ext. 130.
“The more money we raise, the more we can put back into the community,” Kleeh added.
As the economy gets worse, the need becomes greater, said Michael Shaffer, YMCA Central Branch director.
The Youngstown YMCA has three facilities: the Central Branch, D.D. and Velma Davis Family Branch, and Camp Fitch in West Springfield, Pa., on the shores of Lake Erie.
Several million dollars were recently spent upgrading and expanding facilities at Camp Fitch, and the Y is nearly midway through a $6 million expansion to the Davis Family Branch, which include an all-purpose gym, art studio, and teen recreation and fitness centers, Kleeh said.
The YM’s 2010 operating budget is about $9 million.
The organization has about 50 full-time employees, and some 300 to 400 part-time employees during the school year, a number that swells to between 500 and 600 during the summer months.
The YM also has about 3,000 volunteers, most of whom help with programs, and others who serve on policy-making boards and committees, Kleeh said.
The YM’s mission is to put Christian principles into practice through programs that build a healthy spirit, mind and body for all, Shaffer said.
The primary reason to give to the YMCA financial campaign is because the gifts truly make a difference in the lives of kids and families who need it and the community in which they live, he said.
“We produce healthy adults. Some of our staff went through these programs. They work. We see the effects every day,” Shaffer said.
alcorn@vindy.com