GET TO KNOW BRIAN STEFFEN, THE Y’S NEW CEO
Hello Eugene Y Family,
What a welcome I have received upon arriving here in Eugene! My family recently made the drive out to Eugene with me, and we were able to enjoy Hendrick's Park, visit local playgrounds, and explore local trails. Eugene is quickly feeling like home and a wonderful place to build our future.
I was recently asked why I was willing to uproot my family and work for the Eugene Family YMCA. In my life, I am inspired and excited by many things – the sound of waves crashing on a shore, the view from a mountain peak, or the smell of a campfire. However, nothing makes me feel more fulfilled than when I come home from work, and my five children drop what they are doing and greet me. Our family is like most families; we love each other deeply. Each day, I want to be a positive influence in my children's lives. I have learned that the joy I feel from being there for my children and supporting them can be felt each day at the YMCA through the work we do to help others. I feel inspired when I see others work and succeed; whether the person is my child or a friend I make at the Y. I am motivated by a desire to have my life's work focused on helping others reach their greatest potential.
Unfortunately, so many people all around us are living with profound struggles as they seek their highest potential. Over 40,000 individuals in Lane County say they are lacking the social and emotional support needed to succeed. We can address this shortcoming through community, connectedness, program support, and more.
Roughly 50% of Eugene's children have tested 'not proficient or worse' on State reading proficiency exams. Intentional programming and guidance during non-school hours, over the summer, and during their most impressionable years in early education provide the foundation and continuity our kids need to build confidence and create solid futures.
When I think of the emotional toll these types of challenges inflict on the lives of our neighbors and friends, I feel determined to make a difference.
Here in Eugene, YOUR YMCA has been making a difference for more than 130 years. This legacy continues at this time as we embark on the wonderful task of helping the community build its new YMCA. This building will transform lives for years to come. However, the building is simply a tool we use to expand our mission and passion to build relationships, keep children safe, mentor, innovate, teach, collaborate, and strengthen.
The new building will change the landscape; what happens inside will change generations.
Eugene is a community that doesn't accept a current reality as the best reality. When Bill Bowerman didn't like the shoes his athletes used, he found a solution in a waffle iron. When Eugene Skinner's prospects of a new town were muddied by rain, he started a ferry service. We have the opportunity to build on these ideals of innovation and progress and bolster Eugene's status as a world-class educational center with robust wood products, agriculture, and growing tech-industries. These things speak to a desire to not remain stagnant and continue to evolve and transform. Grit, determination, and innovation are in Eugene's DNA. So are the values of support, caring, and trust. When these values are paired with the Y's values, amazing things happen.
My family is so excited to call Eugene home for many years to come, in part because it supports our ideals of acceptance and openness. In part because Eugene represents growth and progress. And in part because this "small town" has the potential to create its best reality.
Brian Steffan
