YMCA of Greater Dayton Honors Community Volunteers
For Immediate Release
Contact: Rachael Mainord, Marketing and Communications Director
Phone Number: 937.223.5201
Fax Number: 937.223.3997
YMCA of Greater Dayton Honors Community Volunteers
April 14, 2005- The YMCA of Greater Dayton recently held its 134th Annual Meeting at the Schuster Center in Dayton. The event consisted of a silent auction, dinner and a program where volunteers and staff were both recognized for their contributions to the success of the YMCA of Greater Dayton. The event raised close to $21,000 for the YMCA's annual Strong Kids Campaign, the YMCA's financial assistance program that insures that no child is denied access to a YMCA program due to the inability to pay.
Jack Singerman, a retired YMCA director and long-time volunteer at YMCA Camp Kern, received the E.L. Kohnle Humanitarian Award, the highest level volunteer award from the YMCA of Greater Dayton. Jack has over 45 years of involvement with the YMCA as both a staff person and volunteer. He served as Executive Director of YMCA Camp Kern for almost 15 years in which time he transformed the camp from an all-boys summer camp facility to a year-round camp serving all members. He also founded the Outdoor Education Program, which continues today in many of the Dayton area school districts. Jack later went on in his career to help found the Countryside YMCA in Lebanon and also served on the Cleveland YMCA staff. Since retiring from the YMCA, Jack has continued to be involved with YMCA Camp Kern by giving staff training presentations, assisting with fundraising campaigns and volunteering on various committees.
This year's President's Award went to Steve Gill, Community Development Director for the YMCA of Greater Dayton. Steve has worked with the YMCA for three years, with the majority of his work focused on improving community outreach programs and in building partnerships with other organizations in the Dayton area. Recently, the YMCA opened two new YMCA Neighborhood Development Centers in West Dayton in an effort to expand programs and services to the kids and families in those communities based on partnerships. Steve was integral to the development and launch of those centers. He continues to be a visionary for the association and leads by example in building strong kids, strong families, and strong communities.
The following individuals were also recognized as the Volunteer of the Year by their respective branch:
Coffman YMCA: Dan Castleforte
Downtown YMCA: Becki Begley
Huber Heights YMCA: Doris Studebaker and Ed Hart
Kleptz YMCA: Dan Hall
Preble County YMCA: Kellie Ketron
South YMCA: Kim Myszka
West Carrollton YMCA: Ed Holdren
YMCA Neighborhood Development Centers: Jay Crosby
YMCA Camp Kern: Jennifer Kirtland
Youth Volunteers of the Year: Evan and Claire Houser