Creating Communities for All Through Volunteerism and Partnerships | Annual Report

At 13 locations, our YMCA’s continued to meet the needs of their communities through volunteerism and partnering with other organizations with practical, hands-on programs.

Just one of those was the Matt Griffin YMCA’s International Rescue Committees’ (IRC) New Roots, a mutual aid urban agriculture program. This program collaborates with refugees and immigrants so they can grow new roots and sustainable food for their communities. Community members gain access to eat and grow healthy, culturally relevant food, including fresh produce which leads to improved overall community health.

Through the partnership, the Matt Griffin Y community successfully launched a fresh produce distribution program with IRC that ran weekly from August through September. People could walk or drive up to the Matt Griffin Y parking lot to explore and shop at the organic produce stands provided by New Roots. No payment or identification was required, and no questions were asked. Shoppers were able to choose what they would like for their meals and walk away knowing they had fresh, healthy food for the week.

"What I love about the Y is that I can be an agent for change by helping my local YMCA raise funds to address community needs – from hunger work with our Back Pack Program to mental health access to Safety Around Water." ~ Cyndi Malesis, Advisory Board Chair, Coal Creek Family YMCA

2023 BY THE NUMBERS

• 6,771 volunteers invested 73,727 hours of service to give back to their community.
• 2,607 Y staff created and ran Y facilities and programming that served 206,632 people across the region.
• 8,131 donors contributed more than $9.3 million to be invested back into their community through Y programs.
• $6,874,576 was awarded in scholarships to make Y membership accessible to those who would not be able to afford it otherwise.