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President's Letter Summer 2008
Dear Friends:
Summer is just about my favorite time of year at the YMCA. More than 15,000 children are enrolled in summer day camp, Triangle Y Camp and other summer programs. Our branches are filled with the sounds of their summer fun. And for the first time this summer, the Triangle Y Camp hosted about 200 children for Operation Purple® Camps. The National Military Family Association (NMFA)made it possible for children who have parents/caregivers serving in the military to enjoy our great Triangle Y facilities. Operation Purple teaches kids skills for dealing with their feelings, and provides a chance to share in some carefree fun with other military kids.
Congratulations to Jeffrey Minker for hitting the $1 million mark in his 21 years of raising money for his Corporate Camperships campaign, and many thanks to all our YMCA supporters. The results from our 2008 campaign are in, and thanks to Tucson’s generosity, our philanthropic support should top $1.2 million in 2008. As the economy softens, these dollars are even more important to fulfill our pledge that “based on available resources, no child will be turned away due to an inability to pay a fee.”
More congratulations--Don Deal was named YMCA’s 2008 Honorary Life Member, our organization’s highest honor. He has dedicated more than 40 years to the Y. Don joined our Tucson Corporate staff in 1981, and served 13 years as our president until he retired in 2002.
We are missing long-time YMCA Executive Director, Bill Markell and his wife Carol. Bill recently accepted a position as Vice President of Operations with the Dallas Texas YMCA. His accomplishments were many and laudable, and we wish him well. We are hoping to have a new executive director at the Northwest Y onboard by the end of August 2008.
Our YMCA International, Diversity and Outreach Committee will send three young ambassadors to Prague next month for the YMCA Europe Festival. They’ll join more than 10,000 youth ages 13 to 25, representing 40 national YMCA movements. Three hundred or so U.S. participants will represent the diversity of the programs we offer and the people we serve. Activities include sports competitions, scouting, displays and exhibitions, arts and humanities, performances and workshops. Our ambassadors are Ryon Briggs, child care site coordinator at Desert Willow School in Vail; Von Morton, member services staff at Lighthouse YMCA; and Andres Cano, a senior at City High School, and Y program participant, who also chairs Arizona’s Governor's Youth Commission.
Our International programs are made possible in part through an annual fundraiser at Tucson’s infamous Gaslight Theatre. Plan to join us Friday evening, September 19for FRANKENSTEIN LIVES! or “The Jolt’s on You!” For more information or to purchase tickets, call 623-5511ext. 239.
The Ott, Lighthouse, Lohse and Mulchay branches each have received a $2,500 grant from PepsiCo to buy equipment for after school and day camp programs. PepsiCo makes such grants to promote healthy lifestyles through the YUSA’s Activate America® programs. Our branches will use the funds for interactive sports and fitness games like Dance Dance Revolution, Trazer virtual reality machines, and Sportwall equipment. This technology encourages kids to compete with themselves and the game to develop cardiopulmonary capacity, skill, speed, agility and core strength.
Speaking of Activate America®, our Activate Tucson program earned us an invitation to participate with ten other communities in the Achieve Action Institute in Alexandria Virginia in June. I was pleased to present with Dawn Parker of HealthNet and share our experiences creating Activate Tucson. The Achieve Action Institute selected ten communities who sent teams to learn how to implement policies and develop partnerships to improve community health. Activate Tucson is a coalition of organizations in our community concerned about encouraging healthy lifestyles. It’s one more way your YMCA is showing leadership in making Tucson a healthier community.
STEPtember will be upon us soon. We’re gearing up for lots of great activities association-wide September20-27. Last year’s 1.3 million participants nationwide logged 8 billion steps. Our Tucson YMCAs were among 1,500 in the U.S. that reached out to their communities to promote active living and healthy eating during “America On the Move Week with the YMCA.” America On the Move Week, in partnership with the America On the Move® Foundation, aims to educate and motivate people to make two, small daily changes: add 2,000 steps and eat 100 fewer calories. Motivating just these two changes can add up to significant long-term health benefits.
On a final note, it is with sadness that I write to share of the passing of David T. Smith, on June 13. David and his wife Nomi, who passed away last August, were long time friends and supporters of Tucson's YMCAs. Through their vision and foresight, the David T. Smith and Nomi H. Smith Fund will be established. The proceeds of their generosity will fund YMCA programs that build strong kids, strong families, strong communities for generations to come. We appreciate their long and continuous service to Tucson’s families. Memorial contributions may be made to the YMCA Foundation.
Thank you, as always, for reading my President’s Letter. I’ll be back in touch soon.
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