Ann Arbor YMCA Celebrates One-Year Anniversary at New Facility

Ann Arbor, MI – March 30, 2006 – This month, the Ann Arbor YMCA is celebrating numerous accomplishments since moving to its new, larger facility at 400 West Washington Blvd. one year ago.

“We moved into the new building to meet the changing needs of our members, offer a more, family-friendly environment and provide new programs and services,” states Cathi Duchon, Ann Arbor YMCA President and CEO. “At our one-year anniversary, we’re celebrating the increase of our membership, 30,000 additional square feet of building space and over 120 new classes. We want to thank all our members, donors and the residents of Washtenaw County who’ve helped turn the new Ann Arbor YMCA into a valuable community resource!”

Since the grand opening on April 1, 2005, the Ann Arbor YMCA has helped the local community by:

- Creating New Youth and Teen Programs

In conjunction with the new facility, the YMCA received a grant from Pfizer for a Teen Fitness Program. Since its inception in September of 2005, over 100 teens have participated in this program.

In addition, the YMCA now provides a staffed after-school program for up to thirty, fifth to eighth-graders each weekday and structured activities for teens on school vacation-days. This includes fieldtrips, basketball tournaments and fitness classes. Overall, teen memberships grew from 100 to 850 since 2005.

- Expanding space for:

The aquatics facility to offer more swim classes and meet the needs of both children and adult swimmers.

Childcare and Childwatch programs, where children have more room to enjoy various activities.

Gym facilities to accommodate 260 kids in the Youth Basketball League, a five-fold increase since spring of 2005.

Their personal wellness program, both in terms of staffing and equipment. Now, the YMCA offers more one-on-one wellness coaching to people who might otherwise not exercise. During this past year, the YMCA provided a total of 1,782 personal training sessions to 261 members. On average, this represents 35 personal training sessions per week in the new building, compared to 5 per week in the old facility.

- Offering expanded weekday and weekend hours to enable more use of the facility each day. Starting April 1, 2006, the YMCA will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on weekends.

- Coordinating Chain of Plenty and Youth Volunteer Programs that continue to serve the community.

- Increasing financial assistance. The YMCA awarded over 370 membership scholarships, 178 program scholarships and 20 scholarships for families in childcare during the past year.

YMCA Awards Received
- Voted “Best Fitness Center in Ann Arbor” by Ann Arbor News readers in 2005
- Nominated by the Washtenaw-Livingston Business Review for “Deal of the Year” for 2005
- Recognized by the YMCA of the USA through the Mission Driven Quality Promise Awards in nine program areas
- Nominated by the Washtenaw Contractors Association for 2006 Pyramid Awards’ “Best Project Team (over $3 million)”

About the Ann Arbor YMCA
The first Ann Arbor YMCA was organized by students at the University of Michigan in 1858. It was the second YMCA in the State of Michigan following Detroit. With our new, state-of-the-art facility opened on April 1, 2005, we provide a wide range of programs that build strong kids, strong families and strong communities. Please visit www.annarborymca.org or call 734-996-9622 for more information.

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Media Contact:
Marcia Luke-van Dijk, Ann Arbor YMCA Marketing Director, 734-996-9622, mlvd@annarborymca.org