By Hamilton Richardson
During the YMCA of Greater Montgomery’s 154th Annual Meeting, which took place at the Grandview Family YMCA in Millbrook on Monday, the tremendous efforts of employees and volunteers was celebrated as well as the recognition of some big financial accomplishments.
Of all the recognition given during the evening, one of the most important was that of the YMCA volunteers, who, according to Meghan Cochrane, Vice President of Marketing and Communications, are crucial in moving the mission of the YMCA forward.
The Volunteers of the Year who were recognized included Katie R. Bell (Kershaw YMCA), Andy Donaldson (Camp Chandler), Gary Dotch (Wetumpka YMCA), Andrew Harp (Grandview YMCA), Commissioner Dan Harris (Cleveland Ave. YMCA), Mike King (Emory Folmar Soccer Complex), Marcus McKay (Midtown), Tamachio Owens (Wilson YMCA), Enid Probst (East YMCA), Cindy Somerville (Britton YMCA), Bradley Currier (Downtown YMCA), and Sharon Sexton (Bell Road YMCA).
Employee anniversaries and accomplishments were also highlighted during the meeting.
President and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Montgomery, Gary Cobbs, said, “Our staff, they’re my heroes. We have so many staff heroes that do so much work on behalf of our YMCA and our community. The outstanding work and dedication of our staff and volunteers help us deliver our mission to the community.”
According to YMCA 2021 stats, the organization served 34,285 people, raised $1,092,974 through the annual campaign, and gave $1,968,775 in financial assistance.
Also, said Cochran in a press release, 753 kids made friends, had fun, and did their homework at their childcare and afterschool care programs, 314,652 meals were served in the community, with 103,986 of those meals being from the Brown Bag Bus at eight different sites. In addition, 2,108 children built confidence and learned new skills at the YMCA summer day camp.
Over 5,000 students also learned to love a sport in the YMCA’s youth sports program and more than 3,500 children visited the resident camp, and 2,173 volunteers donated their time.
More impressive stats included the 9,581 children who took swim lessons and the 359,783 people who checked into the various YMCA locations.
Another major accomplishment involved the annual campaign goal, which was exceeded when the YMCA of Greater Montgomery raised $1,146,764, which is 104-percent of the goal.
At the end of the evening’s meeting, the YMCA John 17:21 Award that honors lifetime achievement in philanthropy was also given to Millbrook Mayor Al Kelley.
