Helping Our Community Take Giant Leap Forward
Brian Steffen, CEO
On September 12, 1962 President John F. Kennedy stepped to the pulpit in Rice Stadium in Houston and, using only 2,207 words, changed the course of America for generations to come. It was on this day that he declared America’s ‘Moon Shot’ ambition.
I have reflected regularly on President Kennedy’s inspiring vision. One particular paragraph has been a near-constant source of motivation to me since joining the Eugene Family YMCA. In establishing his vision, President Kennedy declared, “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept.”
Building a new YMCA in Eugene is a big and inspiring vision. There are going to be times that, to some, it may seem about as likely as landing a person on the moon. However, in the coming years we will have a new YMCA in our community and we will see the Y playing a much more expanded role throughout the community. This growth will happen not because it is easy, but because it is hard! It will happen because our community has always understood that conquering challenges is a measure of our collective heart, soul, and values.
Your Eugene Family YMCA began in 1887, when Eugene’s population was little more than 2,000 hardy souls. However, those individuals understood that when everyone thrived, the community thrived. This work took a massive step forward in the 1950s when a new generation of community leaders stood tall and said that the community needed more from the YMCA. These leaders built our current building in 1955. The Y has been the hub of our community ever since. On any given day you can walk into the Y and hear multiple languages, see people from all socioeconomic backgrounds, witness individuals taking control of their health, and hear laughter and kind words of friendship and mentoring from individuals of all ages.
Today our community faces new challenges associated with disconnected youth, education achievement gaps, exploding rates of diabetes, waves of Baby Boomers reaching retirement and skyrocketing obesity rates. We must have a Y that can expand its impact in the lives of our community through education, mentoring, organizational partnerships, larger facilities and robust new programming.
On July 20, 1969 President Kennedy’s vision was accomplished as Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Moon. In the preceding seven years an incredible amount of work had taken place. Building a new Y also involves a significant amount of behind-the-scenes work. Over the past couple months, we wrapped up a robust market assessment that documented how many thousands of new members our Y will serve. This research is allowing us to update our proforma and business modeling. It has also helped us refine our programming plans. Additionally, we have engaged a capital campaign consultant that is leading the charge on grant writing and communication tools for our donor relationships. We continue to refine the design of the new Y and update the costs based on today’s market.
In the 56 years since we first landed on the Moon there have been 12 individuals that have stepped foot on its surface. Based simply on today’s monthly visits to your Y, a rate that will significantly expand in the new facility, we will have nearly 15 million visits to the future Y in its first 56 years. I look forward to the day when each of you can have your own Neil Armstrong-moment and take your first small step in YOUR new Y; and by so doing, help our community take one giant leap forward.
Yes, the challenge is great, but that is exactly why it inspires us.
