We’re excited to introduce one of our amazing nonprofit partners, YMCA of Metro Atlanta. The YMCA of Metro Atlanta is celebrating a whopping 166 years of serving our incredible community! Since 1858, they have been more than just a gym – they’re a community-driven powerhouse dedicated to addressing critical needs, fostering communities, and empowering individuals to reach their fullest potential.
Get involved with the Y:
To volunteer with the Y, click on this link.
To learn more about membership or program offerings, click on this link
Read more about The YMCA in our interview below!
Tell us about your organization – what’s your mission, and what does it mean to the our community?
At the Y, we are grounded in our mission, of being the organization that is open to and serving all with programs and services that build healthy mind, body, and spirit. We are guided by our values: Caring, Honesty, Respect, and Responsibility, and we are inspired by our vision, to be the organization that champions communities where everyone belongs. To the community, the YMCA of Metro Atlanta is a resource center and a champion for the individuals that we serve. Powered by our exceptional staff and volunteers, the Y delivers transformative programs that build resilience, facilitate achievement, foster belonging, and reach beyond our walls.
Can you share some impact stats or comments about the work being done by your organization?
In 2023, we surveyed members of our membership/wellness facilities to better understand their experience and overall perception of the Y. 91% of Y members achieve personal health and wellness goals at the Y. 93% of Y members believe that the Y is a community resource for improving health and well-being. 94% of Y members report a greater sense of belonging. At the start of the pandemic, the Y made a conscious decision to pivot and address community needs by providing frontline workers emergency childcare and hunger relief. Since March of 2020, the Y has served well over 1 million meals. In alignment with the Y’s Safety Around Water program and its founding of the Atlanta Water Safety Coalition in partnership with the City of Atlanta’s Parks & Recreation Department, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, the American Red Cross, the Greater Atlanta Water Safety Alliance, and WABE, we are focused on drowning prevention. By 2025 we aim to teach 10,000 children from under-resourced communities how to swim, and at the end of 2023, we reached 6,293 children. As an organization founded on volunteerism, and last year alone Y volunteers contributed more than 28,000 service hours across more than 4,050 volunteer experiences such as coaching youth sports, supporting hunger relief programming, assisting with special events, and so much more!
What’s the history of your organization? How and why did it get started?
The YMCA was founded in 1844 in London, England and has grown into one of the largest volunteer organizations in the world. The Y operates in 120 countries and reaches about 64 million people worldwide each year.
The YMCA of Metropolitan Atlanta was founded in 1858 with a vision to create an organization that would welcome individuals as they came to Atlanta and provide a safe place for growth, community, and faith. Methodist Minister Basil H Overby, Robert W. Woodruff’s great-grandfather was the Atlanta YMCAs first president. His focus was to give young men a home away from home and a source of spiritual guidance. The Y has grown to meet the city's needs, today serving hundreds of thousands of individuals through numerous membership branches and program sites across greater Atlanta. Serving the Atlanta Metropolitan region for more than 165 years, the Y has been an essential community organization, offering health and wellbeing opportunities for children, teens, adults, and seniors to learn, grow, serve, and thrive. By providing high-quality programs that engage 250,000 children, families, and communities through every stage of development.
What kind of programming do you offer to the community?
We offer early learning and Head Start programming for families who have little ones from infancy to 5 years of age. The Y is the largest early education provider in the state serving more than 2,500 children annually. With a focus on serving under resourced and historically marginalized communities, the Y employs diverse models tailored to unique community needs, all with a shared goal of preparing children for lifelong success through proven, research-based methods in numeracy, language, and literacy. Beneath the umbrella of youth development, we provide youth sports, day camp and residential camp, teen leadership, and after-school programming across Metro Atlanta. Our goal is that youth have access to reimagined extended learning experiences that improve academic achievement and build a generation of change makers. Our goal for teens is that through real world skill development, they are prepared to take ownership of their futures and are empowered to excel in life and positively impact their communities. With an emphasis on “body”, at the core to the work of the Y is our preventative holistic wellness programs and health equity programs that address health disparities. Programs consist of group exercise and fitness, personal coaching/training, adult sports, and weight loss for life- the Y’s signature weight loss program. At the Y, we recognize that health inequities exist based on a person’s zip code and this has informed our health equity or outreach programs since our inception in 1858. These programs consist of water safety and drowning prevention (Safety Around Water/SAW), Y on the Fly- outreach programming that mobilizes unique or standard Y programming, access via Medicaid partnerships with CareSource and Peach State as well as financial assistance to families with varying needs, and hunger relief programming (providing grocery packs of food to families in need).
What problem is your organization trying to solve, and can you tell us more about the issue?
In contemplating our future, through our Y-2025 Strategic Plan we identified a guiding question: What does building healthy mind, body and spirit — with equity at the heart of our work — mean for the Y now and into the future? The heart of our plan builds on what we already do well and adds concentrated rigor to expanding the Y’s impact in six key areas. Under the pillar of Mind, we prioritized: Early Learning to increase access for children and families, explore new models, develop best practices, and influence policy to improve child outcomes. Youth Achievement to provide educational support, social-emotional learning, and real-world skills and workforce development for youth and teens to close the opportunity gap. Within the pillar of Body, we identified the priorities of: Holistic Wellness so that we can be the leading community resource for preventative wellness to reduce chronic and progressive disease. Health Equity to address health disparities across race and socio-economic conditions, lead with education, and provide connections to health services and resources. For the pillar of Spirit, our priorities are: Inclusion + Empowerment, under which we will “create spaces and experiences that foster equity and inclusion, promote understanding and acceptance of people of all faiths and backgrounds, and be an organization that welcomes all. People Are The WHY to connect individual passion to purpose for staff, volunteers, and members with opportunities and experiences for each individual to create positive change in our community.
How do volunteers support your mission? What impact do they have on your work? What difference do they make?
The Y began as an all-volunteer organization, and to this day, volunteers play an integral role in everything we do. From strategic planning to fundraising, from coaching to reading to a child, volunteers are the heart of our Y. When people become a volunteer at the Y, they share their talents, strengths and gifts with those who need it most. Each of our 19 Ys have community engagement boards. Board members are volunteers who serve as the voice of the community to the Y, they’re ambassadors and advocates of the Y, and they connect partners and secure resources to advance the Y’s mission. We also have a young professional's board of Y Ambassador Board members who gather for community service and social opportunities with plans to one day to become a Y Board member.
What’s your biggest highlight or success from the past year?
In November, the YMCA of Metro Atlanta and the Atlanta Hawks announced a multi-year partnership in which the Y and its signature ‘Y’ logo has become the Official Jersey Patch Partner of the Atlanta Hawks. Through this partnership, the Hawks and the Y plan to collaborate on major community initiatives aimed at improving the well-being and health of Atlantans with a focus on increasing access to youth sports, especially basketball. The sport of basketball was invented by Dr. James Naismith in 1891 while teaching physical education at the YMCA International Training School in Springfield, Mass. Our CEO & President Lauren Koontz has shared, “Everything the YMCA of Metro Atlanta does is grounded in meeting the unique needs of communities – and we can’t do it alone. We’re grateful to partner with the Atlanta Hawks. Together we can increase access and involvement and provide the opportunity for more people to discover their potential and thrive.” Through the partnership, Hawks players, coaching staff and talent will amplify the Y’s robust youth programming and create inspirational content for the next generation with authentic stories from executives, coaches and players who started their basketball journey at their local Y. Additionally, the Hawks will also support the Y in a variety of causes in which they share passion: urgent community needs, promoting social responsibility and uplifting inclusive communities with strong DEI values. Utilizing the in-arena experience and its global marketing assets, the Hawks will also launch a series of campaigns to attract new Y members and raise funds to support the Y’s mission.
How many volunteers do you need every month, and can you describe the experience of serving with your organization for the volunteer? What do they do? What’s a day in the life as a volunteer with your organization?
On average, we need about 300 volunteers or more each month. There are generally four types of volunteer roles at the Y:
What types of projects do you offer? What are your biggest projects available, and needs from volunteers? Tell us about a few different offerings.
Our most turnkey and needed volunteer opportunities directly support day-to-day operations for our facilities. These projects consist of youth sports coaches, packing or distributing food for our hunger relief/mobile market programs, and seasonal events, such as family fairs or resource events. These projects typically have the most significant need. We also have unique youth focused volunteer opportunities that are specific to our youth development programs such as reading to our littlest members in the playcenter, a teen camp volunteer who shadows a camp counselor, and various mentorship and professional development support. As a nonprofit organization, we recognize the value that we can add to for profit organizations by hosting their groups for their service or “Impact” days. We provide tailored volunteer experiences suitable for small to large groups. These experiences typically consist of beautifying our facility grounds or revitalizing our community gardens, preparing STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) educational kits, preparing hygiene kits for our homeless families, facilitating STEAM lesson plans and activities with campers, and so much more!
Who is your volunteer manager, and what’s their favorite thing about working for your organization?
Alexis Slocumb, Director of Social Impact is the volunteer manager for the Y. Alexis’ favorite thing about working for the Y is being able to ideate, plan, and execute dynamic volunteer experiences and programs that are gratifying to the volunteer but more importantly dignifying and soul replenishing to those being served. She believes that it is truly a wonderful feeling to see the mission to impact connection happen in real time in the most genuine and authentic way.
What do volunteers love about working with your organization?
We send out a feedback survey within 24 hours of volunteers completing a project. We have included some of their praises below. “The atmosphere was inviting and met the needs of the community. Attendees were satisfied and pleased.” – Dolapo B. “What I volunteered to do was only a small portion of what was needed to make this a successful project. It is truly a collaborative effort by SO many people!” – Lynn B. “Our group loved volunteering with the Y and would definitely come back to volunteer again. We will also recommend it to other groups at Home Depot looking to volunteer in the community since it was such an impactful experience.” – Madeline W. “I felt soccer helped bring all of the kids together to help community relations.” – Brian W. “The ability to Give back knowing the joy and love this will bring to children in need. Can’t wait for the next opportunity!” – Linda T.
What’s going to be happening with your organization in 2024 that you’re really excited about?
The Y is joining several Atlanta employers in providing summer jobs and internship opportunities for youth in the city. The jobs are part of Atlanta Mayor Andre Dicken's Summer Youth Employment Program, which aims to provide jobs and internship opportunities for Atlanta's youth. Thanks to a grant from the city, the Y will offer 30 summer jobs for youth ages 14-24. The jobs available include camp counselor, swim instructor and lifeguard. We have recently established the African American Circle of Giving, enabling transformative change across our community, touching lives from the earliest learners to young adults. The YMCA acknowledges the profound disparities facing African American children and communities of color, particularly in education and health. By providing targeted support, we can nurture the potential of every child, promote health equity, and foster educational success, ensuring that all children have the foundation they need to thrive. This philanthropic support will invest in early learning and school readiness, water safety education, and scholarships for the young men we support through the Y’s Boys and Young Men of Color strategy. Additionally, throughout 2024 we continue to see tremendous growth in the number of people who are joining the Y. The Y is a powerful association of individuals of all ages and from all walks of life joined together by a shared passion: to strengthen community. With a commitment to nurturing the potential of youth, promoting healthy living and fostering a sense of social responsibility, the Y ensures that every individual has access to the essentials needed to learn, grow, and thrive. Though the world may be unpredictable, one thing remains certain – the Y is and always will be dedicated to building healthy, confident, secure and connected children, families, and communities.
Let’s leave our readers with a list of ways they can jump in and get involved. Tell us how we can support you!
Listen the YMCA of Metro Atlanta’s podcast (Y) Connect! Check out (Y) Connect to hear authentic conversations about everything Y. The podcast is hosted by Allison Toller, Y Chief Social Impact Officer; Zarinah Winston, Center Director of Arthur M. Blank Early Learning Center at E.A. Ware; and Robert Wright, Young Family Y Associate Executive Director. The Y started this podcast as way to share the incredible stories about the people at the Y. In a variety of episodes, we interview community leaders, trailblazers, youth advocates, fitness gurus, pickleball pros, and inspiring fathers, mothers, and children who are all passionate about the Y.
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