NORWICH – Every year the Norwich YMCA supports hundreds of families caught under economic strain and sponsors several events involving an untold number of local organizations.
This week kicks off the fourth annual YMCA Annual Support Campaign, Reach Out to Your Community.
Until 2005, the YMCA solely contributed more than $35,000 each year to its Open Doors Scholarship Program, which offers reductions or free memberships to individuals caught in poor economic circumstance. However, when the Y moved into its new facility and there was a sudden boom in participation, that made absorbing the yearly costs a challenge.
YMCA Executive Director James Mullen explained that the cost of handing out the scholarships went from about $35,000 in 2002 to about $80,000 in 2003 – and then to $90,000 in 2004. Today, the YMCA supports over 650 scholarships and still annually contributes more than $30,000 into the program. Last year’s support campaign raised $60,000, more than ever before, but the cost of supporting the scholarships remained at about $90,000, meaning the YMCA contributed the difference.
Mullen said he doesn’t mind the costs associated with the program, in fact he explained it’s the most important reason the YMCA exists.
“If you look at all the programs we offer and accounted for all the people participating in this program or all the money earned by that program, I’d still say our priority is the Open Door Scholarships. When we first saw a rise in the level of need, we knew we’d be giving out more than we’d be receiving. We don’t want to turn people away; it’s not what we do here,” said Mullen.
Roughly half of all YMCA members are currently under the age of 22 and an even higher percentage are awarded the Open Door scholarships, allowing youths to participate in a countless number of socially safe and physically healthy activities.
Mullen explained that about one in every seven members are on some form of reduced fee program, and that while the scholarships benefit low-income families, they also help families going through an unexpected crisis.
“We often hear from people that the Y really made a difference in their lives growing up. They come in and thank us and say, ‘I don’t know where or what I would have been doing if I didn’t have this place to go to,’” said Mullen.
Jack Weinman has been named this year’s Honorary Chairperson for the support campaign.
“For many years, local businesses like mine, the Norwich Shoe Company, would sponsor children every year to attend the YMCA. Today the need is greater than it was in the 1950s and 60s and businesses cannot do it alone. With the support of our entire community, we will engage more youth, families and seniors in YMCA programs, and in turn, support their efforts to belong to a community organization that can provide many life-changing opportunities and experiences,” Weinman wrote in a letter to potential supporters this week.
Mullen said that before the YMCA held its annual support campaign, his predecessors would often call local business leaders and ask them to support a handful of troubled children in need. “They’d call up someone like Mr. Weinman at the Shoe Company and say ‘Hey Jack, I’ve got seven kids over here whose families don’t have the money, but would gain a lot if they had a membership. Would you sponsor them?’”
