BY SARAH STEPHENS
ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS OWNER
The Grandview Family YMCA of Millbrook welcomed over 100 visitors this morning to the official ribbon cutting of the finished product which connected older, renovated buildings with a new Wellness Center.
The new view as visitors make the drive on to the property is beautiful and impressive. The construction offers a new Wellness Center entrance, which is connected to classrooms for physical improvement, a bicycle room, a children’s area, a large workout room with equipment and the gymnasium.
There is also much more parking on the property, and more being planned for the growing needs of the YMCA.
Andrew Harp, a volunteer with the YMCA opened the ribbon cutting, welcomed the large crowd.
“This property has been serving children and families for almost 100 years. Originally founded as a girl’s camp, this program has grown a lot over the years to meet the evolving needs of a growing community,” Harp said. “Today our YMCA serves thousands of children and families annually through programs such as youth, sports, fitness, adult sports, after school programs, aquatics, summer camp programs, family programs and wellness programs.”
Harp said, “This is now the most beautiful facility, I think, in the River Region.”
Executive Director Bill Myers welcomed the crowd and gave an update on the YMCA.
“Buildings like this behind me are just vessels that we use to conduct those programs and carry out our mission of putting Christian principles into practice through programs that build a healthy spirit, mind and body for all,” Myers said. “But we can’t have a great YMCA without a great community. And we can’t have a great community without great leaders.”
He recognized a multitude of special guests from the area and community. Among the crowd were Elmore and Jim Inscoe, huge supporters of the YMCA from the very beginning. They donated over 100 acres of land adjacent to the original YMCA property many years ago. That land is part of what will become 17 Springs but remain YMCA property. The amazing generosity of Elmore and Jim Inscoe cannot be overstated. For more information on the couple, visit a link to a video from 2019 when the couple received the ASCA 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB0Sp8k753M
It was wonderful to see both in attendance today. Thank you both for the innumerable things you have done to increase the arts and culture of this entire area.
Myers continued, “I want to thank our members. Thank you for being patient with this construction process. It has taken a while. But I don’t think we had a single complaint during the construction process. Members had to walk through the back door for a long time…but we were never closed during that time.”
Myers continued, “I want to thank all the many YMCA volunteers past and present who helped make today a reality. Thank you to both the Metro and local level board members, donors, our capital campaign steering committee. Without you today would not have become a reality. To our Grandview Staff Team, both part time and full time, the countless hours of blood, sweat and tears to carry out programs in this great community are really, really appreciated. To our great Chamber, City, County and School leadership, thank you for making our community such a wonderful and attractive place to live.
“Thank you for what each of you to do make our area and our YMCA great. And to our CEO Mr. Gary Cobbs….thank you, thank you, thank you…for choosing to invest in this YMCA in Millbrook. Thank you for trusting me and my staff to operate this great Y. Thank you to my wife and kids for always supporting me and always putting up with my long work hours. Thank you so much for holding me up.”
Millbrook Chamber of Commerce Director Brenda Dennis then addressed the crowd.
“We can’t have a great community without a great Y. And this is one of the best Ys I have ever seen. I have been to a few Ys in my lifetime. To us and our family it is not just a place to work out. It is a place to meet other people and to form bonds and friendships that last a lifetime. I look forward to seeing that happen here.”
Millbrook Mayor Al Kelley said he wanted to offer his thanks to Grandview Family YMCA Executive Director Bill Myers.
“The most dynamic young man, great family. Through all kinds of adversity…it doesn’t matter what happens here. He is here, he is 24/7 and you can always call him. The guy that needs more thanks than anyone right here is Bill Myers,” Mayor Kelley said, to a huge round of applause.
Mayor Kelley said that history is a big part of the community. Part of that history is when the YWCO sponsored a huge arts and crafts festival many years ago, that drew people from across the state.
“I did go to the largest arts and crafts festival that was the biggest in this area,” Kelley said. “It was a little event called 17 Springs. Now you have seen a lot about 17 Springs over the last few months. I alluded to this when we did the groundbreaking a year or so ago that some great things were coming in the future with some properties the YMCA owned and some property that the City of Millbrook and Elmore County were trying to invest in. Now you see partnerships between the YMCA, City of Millbrook, Elmore County Commission, Elmore County Board of Education and Elmore County Economic Development Authority. I want to thank Gary Cobbs for helping put that together. This has been an amazing venture.”
He continued, “I want you to realize what is coming in the future. 17 Springs is here, it is getting there, a large part of that is because of the cooperation of the YMCA. We can look to those things in the very near future,” Kelley said. “I just cannot be happier for the City of Millbrook, for the Greater Montgomery YMCA and the Grandview Family YMCA.”
President and CEO of the Greater Montgomery YMCA spoke to the crowd, and agreed it took a lot of “blood, sweat and tears” to make today happen. He is excited about the future and understands how important the Grandview facility is to the community at large.
“Our YMCA team sat down years ago and really thought about this vision of this YMCA along with Bill and his team. And here we are. Our YMCA here…some may call it unique or special. It is one of a kind. I always think about this YMCA when I come on this campus. It is just something different. It is a different feeling that you feel in your gut. It gives you goose bumps. It tells you something is right about this YMCA. There is something different about the staff team here, the programs that we have here. There is something different in such a marvelous way.
“We made a lot of transformations here with this facility. We wanted to bring everything under one roof, if you will. We want to give our children back the full campus. So now we have membership and healthy living activities here. Just a marvelous vessel as Bill said. We can do our mission work in our community. Our Wellness facility here is almost 40,000 square feet.”
With that leaders of the community, YMCA officials and staff and guests were invited to stand for the official ribbon cutting photo, and to then tour the facility.
City Council President Michael Gay has served on the YMCA Board for many years past, and is very active in the Grandview YMCA.
“This Y is elevated to a family center now, a major facility. Even from their own standpoint on doing investments, this is elevated,” Gay said. “When the integration of 17 Springs comes, there will be facilities to program at least a dozen different sports from the beginning. To those who say there is nothing to do in Millbrook, I am sorry, there is quite a lot to do and much more coming.”
Gay said the YMCA is a community and economic partner for the city of Millbrook and Elmore County.
“Through the construction and renovation, they kept some of the camp feel to the building and the nature aspect remains intact. There is still a significant amount of acreage for walking trails, lakes and nature. There will be tournaments all the time, major athletic events. 17 Springs will be about economics, family and a part of the multi-regional area.”
SEE MORE PHOTOS BELOW
