A Sea of Support
Last week Simon and I attended the North American YMCA Development Organization (NAYDO) Conference in San Diego, California. Thousands of YMCA professionals and volunteers from all over the world descended on the four-day annual event. The conference is designed to support YMCA administrators and volunteers by providing educational sessions on multiple kinds of fundraising, board development, strategic planning, alumni development, and a multitude of other topics to benefit novices all the way to seasoned professionals and everyone in between.
The conference was profoundly inspiring. The keynote speakers were compelling with moving personal stories about the positive impact of YMCA programs. The majority of sessions I attended were excellent. Simon and I both left with our minds abuzz with new ideas for building more robust, resilient, and effective systems to further the mission of YMCA Camp Sequoia Lake.
The YMCA is unique in its mission of addressing the needs of individual communities. Certainly, the YMCA has its core services: camp programming, child care, gyms, pools, fitness, Youth in Government, and more. However, individual YMCA branches create new programming designed to best meet the needs of their own communities. Determined through empirical research and community input, YMCAs all over the world are working to meet the needs of the people in their own neighborhoods. Community needs vary widely: substance abuse, poverty, gang violence, illiteracy, poor health, and a litany of other issues rise in individual regions. The YMCA is passionate about addressing community concerns through progressive, inclusive programing that is empowering for every participant. At press time, I cannot come up with another organization that has this kind of mission-driven adaptability.
Lives are changed by the YMCA, and a little magic happened for me during an educational breakout session. About 45 attendees were seated at round banquet tables, all facing a projection screen. A young man in front of me was asking some great questions about vision planning for camps. I also asked a question, and he turned around and looked at me. We stared at each other for a moment and I said (incredulously), “Max?”
To which he replied, “Yoda?!”
Max Clark was one of my Leaders-in-Training (LITs) when I was the Teen Leadership Director at YMCA Camp Jackson in Colorado (my camp name was “Yoda”). We had not seen each other in over fifteen years. Max now has an MBA and is a senior camping services director in Wisconsin. He stopped the session, got everyone’s attention, and told them how we knew each other and that I had inspired his YMCA career and helped him get his first job. We were able to spend some time together and catch up. Multiple times in groups he would announce how we had found each other and how his experience at Camp Jackson has changed his life and directed him to his YMCA professional path. I can truthfully say that it was a career highlight to see how well he has done for himself.
Simon enjoyed a reunion as well with his former supervisor from Michigan, David Martin. Dave is an enthusiastic YMCA CEO with decades of experience. He sang Simon’s praises and was a fun addition to our time at the conference.
Several times during the event, we found ourselves repeating some iteration of, “this is good work.” No matter the challenges, the changes, or the occasional disappointments when things don’t go as planned, the fact remains that we are making the lives of youth and families better with our work at the YMCA. Being surrounded by people so joyful in their jobs was a unique experience. It was like stopping by the love gas station and getting a much needed fill up.
- Elissa A. Kobrin is the Assistant Director of Camping at the Golden State YMCA. She can be reached via email at [email protected]