BURBANK COMMUNITY YMCA

Youth Development:

• Is the nation's largest provider of child care.
• Brought the Boy Scouts and camping to America.
• Instituted indoor, group swimming lessons.

Healthy Living:

• Pioneered the understanding and importance of balance between a healthy spirit, mind and body.
• Invented basketball, volleyball and racquetball.

Social Responsibility:

• One of the earliest social groups to welcome women, African-Americans and other ethnic groups.
• Supported our service men and women throughout two World Wars in canteens throughout Europe.
• Helped launch such civic organizations as the Red Cross, USO and Toastmasters.
• Pioneered adult night school.

Locally, our Y has come so far since we opened in 1924 as a chapter of the Glendale YMCA, meeting in a single room. Today, we are blessed with a 57,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art, Healthy Living Center and an 18,000-square-foot Child Development Center. We closed 2013 with a successful two-and-a-half-year capital campaign chaired by Vic Georgino, who represents the classic nature of the Y—Community leaders seeking to make their neighborhood better by identifying needs and doing something about them. We raised more than $2.5 million with many substantial upgrades to the Y already implemented. We are a cause and we do make a difference! We regularly influence change by providing positive examples and supporting efforts to make our community a better place to live. If we hold to these characteristics, we are in for another 90 years as bright as our past!

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Today our hurdles appear to be many...most are associated with choices. We are facing a time where chronic disease has accelerated health care costs to an unbearable limit and the character of many key leaders is being questioned. The common denominator is that with proper attention and support, both are preventable.

It is my belief that providing programs in our neighborhood which support health, wellness and builds the character of our children and young adults may be our greatest gift to the community we love. The Y is at the very heart of this solution. Every day, we work to help people live longer, healthier and happier lives. We help kids learn to grow and thrive while instilling valuable character traits. We provide support services inside and outside our facility walls-through day care for working families; services for the homeless and special needs populations; programs to help young adults grow and achieve; supporting people to reach their fitness and healthy living goals; and by bringing the community together. Most importantly, our members volunteer their time in our own community, wherever and however they can assist. It is by this example of caring that we can inspire the entire community and reminds me of how firmly and fundamentally compassion is woven into the fabric of our culture at the Y.

I am proud to be part of this Y that has completed its successful capital campaign. We have already begun upgrading the facilities at the Y; most recently the pool remodeling. You should expect further projects to begin in the coming year. The needs of the Y did not stop with the capital campaign; we will continue to ask the community and Y members for donations as our communities' needs never cease.

I am committed to continuing the proud tradition of the Burbank Y as a cause-driven organization, calling on the great range of talent and diversity of our members, staff, volunteers and supporters. Your donations, time and support are invaluable and will make it possible to continue this legacy for the next 90 years. We thank you for joining us in this tradition of community spirit.

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Completed projects include:

• Paying for the overflow parking lot across the street from the Child Development Center which we built in 2009;
• A Domestic and Lap Pool Water Heating System featuring green technology that has doubled the reliability of our hot water delivery and cut our gas bill in half;
• A Refurbished Gymnasium that is appreciated by the adults who play pickup basketball at noon and the hundreds of youth who play in the Y basketball league after school and on weekends. The best indoor gym in town now sports a fresh coat of paint, brighter lighting and a newly sanded and coated hardwood floor with no more dead spots;
• Conversion of the Boys Locker room into a Family Changing Room that is making the Y experience much easier for families with toddlers and strollers. Parents are especially delighted with conveniences like large private changing rooms and family sized lockers;
• An ADA Elevator Lift at the Child Development Center that provides full access to the 2nd floor for those who can’t use the stairs, and advances our efforts to maintain full ADA compliance;
• A Refurbished Aquatics Center that features numerous improvements including tile over the entire pool deck, new flooring on the stairs, attractive wall tiles, an energy efficient filtration system in the lap pool, replaced fiberglass lining in the spa and training pool, new tile floor in the shower and toilet area of the men’s locker room, and new locker room doors.

And we’re not done yet. Funded projects still to be completed include:

• ADA Accessible Bathrooms on the second floor of the Child Development Center will give us the capacity to provide child care to 30 more families.
• New ADA Lifts in the Aquatic Center will improve pool access for people with physical limitations.
• Conversion of the Girls Locker Room into a Family/Special Needs Changing Room will provide convenient, direct access to the pool for families and those with physical challenges.
• Men’s Locker Room upgrades will include new lockers and enhanced sauna and steam area.
• New Welcome Center to replace the San Jose entrance will greatly improve access to the building from the parking lot and provide members with more services at their primary point of entry.

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Youth Development

All kids deserve the opportunity to discover who they are and what they can achieve, under the guidance of adults who care about them and believe in their potential. Our accredited Child Development Center and summer day camps give children the chance to learn, grow and thrive.

Healthy Living

Health and well-being are all about balance. That’s why we help people and families build and maintain healthy habits in their everyday lives. Chronic disease threatens the future well-being of our community. The Y is a leader in programs that improve health and contribute to a higher quality of life in Burbank for people of all ages – from toddlers to seniors.

Social Responsibility

Contributions to the Y enable us to keep our promise not to turn people away from membership due to an inability to pay. Nearly 40% of our members receive financial assistance from the Y. That means they do not pay the full cost of the services they receive.

Donations from the community allow the Y to provide financial assistance. It’s what makes the Y accessible and sets us apart from other places where people might seek health and wellness programs. Taking care of one another – it’s our social responsibility.

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The fondest memories of one long-time member, Joseph Lane, 90, are when he was both a member and an employee at the Y. His wife worked as a secretary at the YMCA and recommended him for a summer job running a day camp for kids. “Summer Fun Club” was a camp program that “took kids to the park and had games for them every day,” explains Lane. He also enjoyed – and continues to enjoy – the fitness classes and sense of community that you don’t find at today’s gyms. While he doesn’t make it to as many classes as he once did, he still loves the Y and enjoys the Kiwanis Club lunch every Wednesday.

Bernard Wanek, 89 (and looking forward to his 90th birthday,) has been a member of the Burbank YMCA for 35 years and says he feels like he “just belongs there.” He credits the exercise classes for staying healthy and active and still remembers his favorite class, which he took almost 25 years ago. The class was run like a boot camp and included swimming, running up and down stairs, laps around the block and floor exercises. Recalls Wanek, “It was really a workout.” He suggests finding a class (or a few) you enjoy and sticking with it, like his current favorites – “Sit and Tone,” led by Mandy, and “Aqua Blast” with Kris – as an easy way to stay healthy.

Betty Buxbaum, 91, has been a Burbank YMCA member for 15 years. She particularly enjoys joining her friends for the YMCA’s Arthritis Aquatics Program because, she says, “the pool is always nice and warm.” Betty agrees that the easiest way to live a healthy and happy life is to “Stay active and exercise at the Y.”

“Joining the Burbank YMCA has been one of the best things I’ve ever done for myself. The water exercise class has helped me so much in keeping fit. I’ve made such great friendships among the people attending," says Barbara H. Minnick, 94.

“In October of 1990, I decided to join the Burbank YMCA and take the water aerobics classes to help the pain in my back and hands. After a few months of classes and swimming I no longer needed to take my medication. After over 22 years in 2012 and 2013 I had to take a medical leave from the Y because of surgery. I am happy to be back and appreciate the help of your dedicated staff and my many friends. In your 90 years of existence I’m sure you have helped many, many individuals live healthier lives.” - Olive Sandvig, 94

"With the onset of arthritis twinges, I began looking for an exercise program to address them. One 8am class at the Y was specifically recommended. It took a while but then my body began to feel more limber and free of pain. I take the class twice a week and on the other three days I walk…the combination of exercise is helpful in keeping my body active." – Helen Von Seggern, 100

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2013-2014 Board of Directors