Encyclopedia
The
Young Men's Christian Association is an
ecumenical service organization based on
Christian values. Worldwide, the YMCA is organized as a
federation of local associations and national YMCA
movements. Within most countries, the local YMCAs are related primarily in terms of overall strategy and direction only. The federated model of governance has created a diversity of YMCA programs and services, with YMCAs in different countries and communities sometimes offering vastly different programming in response to local community needs. Despite the Christian heritage of the organization, most local YMCAs welcome participation and leadership from people of non-Christian faiths. Volunteers and local employees operate the individual YMCA associations.
In North America, the YMCA is usually perceived to be primarily a community
sports facility; however the YMCA utilizes a broad range of programs such as sports,
personal fitness, child care, overnight camping, employment readiness programs, conference centers and educational activities as methods of promoting positive values.
YMCAs operate in 122 countries worldwide.
History
The YMCA movement was founded in
London on June 6, 1844 by George Williams and a group of like-minded Evangelical Christians. Williams was a draper, typical of the many young men who were being drawn to big cities by the
Industrial Revolution. His colleagues were similarly employed, and they were concerned by the lack of healthy activities for young men in cities such as London. The alternatives were often taverns, brothels, and other temptations to sin. The "Y" expanded to
Australia in 1850. The first YMCA in
North America was opened in
Montreal, Quebec by the congregation of Saint James Methodist Church on November 25, 1851, and the first in the
United States opened on December 29, 1851 in
Boston,
Massachusetts.
In 1855 delegates from YMCAs convened in Paris, France, where they adopted a common mission for all present and future national YMCAs. The main point of the "Paris Basis" was that no minor disagreement should ever be able to split the movement from its Christian focus. To further enhance this point of view, John 17.21 was adopted as the motto of the organization: "...that they may all be one." The focus of the Paris conference was almost purely individual - to help young men to "build a healthy spirit, mind, and body for all".
Throughout the 20th century it became evident in the member countries that YMCA would be an organization of both genders. The name, however, has naturally prevailed, being a strong brand name. In some of the member countries the YMCA was the first national organization to adopt a strict policy of equal gender representation in committees and national boards. An example is
Norway in 1880.
The YMCA was an early influence upon
Scouting, including the
Boy Scouts of America and
German Scouting. Edgar Robinson, a
Chicago-area YMCA administrator, briefly left YMCA to become BSA's first director.
In 1973 the "Kampala principles" were adopted, reinforcing the policies of the YMCAs, but stating what had become obvious in most national YMCAs, that a global viewpoint was more necessary, and that in doing so, the YMCAs would have to take political stands, especially so in international challenges. At the world conference in Germany in 1998, the "Challenge 21" was adopted, giving even more focus to the global challenges, like gender equality, sustainable development, war and peace, fair distribution and the challenges of globalization, racism and HIV/AIDS. All these topics are viewed as challenges against the will of God.
The YMCAs took a firm stand in the global fight against Apartheid and also in the situation in the Middle East. At the world conference in Oaxtepec, Mexico in 2002, a strong call for a peaceful solution to the crisis was adopted.
The YMCAs, especially in Western Europe and North America has also used great resources to help build national YMCAs in Eastern Europe with great success. In 2003 a youth convention was arranged in Prague with attendance from almost all countries in Europe to celebrate the healing of the wounds from the "iron curtain".
Today, YMCAs are present in 122 countries. The current president is Martin Meissner from Germany, and Bartholomew Shaha of Bangladesh is Secretary General.
Activities
The activities of the YMCA work to build healthy mind, body and spirit for all. They have a slogan that they use to build strong kids, strong families, and strong communities. They have many activities that work to achieve these goals.
Healthy spirit
The first YMCA was very much concerned with
Bible study, although the organization has generally moved on to a more holistic approach to youthwork. Around six years after its birth, an international YMCA conference in Paris decided that the objective of the organization should become "
Christian discipleship developed through a programme of religious, educational, social and physical activities" . More recent objectives as found on the YMCA UK website include no reference to discipleship
Building strong kids and strong families
In the US, the YMCA parent child programs have provided structured opportunities for fellowship, camping, and community-building activities for several generations of parents and kids in kindergarten through third grade.
The roots of these still vibrant programs stem from similar activities dating back to 1926. Notable founders of YMCA Indian Guides include Harold Keltner, a
St. Louis YMCA director, and indirectly, Joe Friday, an
Ojibwa hunting guide. The two men met in the early 1920s, when Joe Friday was a speaker at a local YMCA banquet for Fathers and Sons that Harold Keltner had arranged. Today, Joe Friday and Harold Keltner are commemorated with patch awards honoring their legacy which are given out to distinguished YMCA volunteers in the program.
YMCA Indian Guides participants historically took pride in cultivating respect and honor for
Native American culture. Responding to a number of variables, including making the program more culturally sensitive and attracting a broader audience, in 2003 the program evolved into what is now known nationally as "", "Trailblazers" is the YMCA's parent/child program for older kids. Local YMCA's are currently still free to continue support of the Native American theme and several do so. In areas where the local YMCA has elected to convert to the "Adventure Guides", many Y-Guides groups have separated from the YMCA and operate independently.
In some programs, children earn patches for achieving various goals, such as completing a designated nature hike or participating in Y-sponsored events. A typical, suburban Indian Guide meeting was parodied in the
Bob Hope/
Lucille Ball comedy of 1960,
The Facts of Life. More recently, the continued popularity of the YMCA I-Guides is seen in the 1995
Chevy Chase/
Farrah Fawcett comedy,
Man of the House, wherein a campout takes place complete with the dads and kids addressing one another by their program names in patch-covered vests, wearing headdresses, singing songs, and roasting marshmallows around a campfire.
The program is now referred to as the Adventure Guides program and celebrates 80 years as a YMCA program this year.
Healthy body
Basketball,
volleyball,
swimming pools, and
racquetball were all developed by YMCA instructors. It is very common for YMCAs to have
weight rooms, along with facilities for playing various sports.
Up until the YMCA became co-ed in the mid 1970's, men and boys, including the swimming instructors, swam in a state of complete
nakedness. Even the lifeguards sat naked beside the pools. One of the original reasons cited for not allowing swimsuits in the pool was that the cotton or even older wool swimsuits would clog up the filtration system. Another reason was dirt and soap would be released into the pool from the fibers of swimwear. Filtration systems used in swimming pools were not as advanced as they are today and far less chlorine was used making it easier, in those days, to degrade the cleanliness of the water thereby promoting the growth of bacteria. At that time, male-segregated nudity was very common in the locker rooms while showering or while swimming in male-only high school swimming classes. It was understood that there was nothing wrong or sexual about males seeing other males while naked. Females were never allowed to be present in such a setting.
In 2006, the YMCA celebrates the 100th anniversary of the creation of group swimming lessons.
Concerned with the rising rates of obesity among adults and children in America, YMCAs around the country are joining with the non-profit to help Americans increase their physical fitness by walking more frequently.
Building healthy minds and strong community
Many
colleges and
universities owe their creation to the YMCA. Springfield College was founded in 1885 as an international training school for YMCA Professionals, while
Sir George Williams University—one of the two schools that eventually became
Concordia University—started from night courses offered at the Montreal YMCA.
Northeastern University, Boston began out of a YMCA in
Boston, and
Franklin University began as the YMCA School of Commerce.
The YMCA pioneered the concept of night school, providing educational opportunities for people with full-time employment. Many YMCAs offer ESL programs,
alternative high school, day care, and summer camp programs.
American high school students have a chance to participate in YMCA Youth and Government, wherein clubs of kids representing each YMCA community convene annually in their respective state legislatures to "take over the State Capitol for a day." YMCA Youth and Government helps teens learn about and participate in civics in a real-world setting.
The Archive of the British YMCA is housed at the
University of Birmingham Special Collections.
See also
References
External links
