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Trotwood YMCA staffer earns praise

1 January 2008

 Dayton Daily News

By Lynn Minneman
Dayton Daily News

An e-mail came across my desk recently stating that there was an employee at the Trotwood YMCA who had been employed for 54 years - yes, that is correct, 54 years!

Upon further investigation it was discovered that this employee's name is Pauline Moore and she was born in 1935.

"She started working at the Downtown YMCA at 117 W. Monument at age 19 on April 16, 1954, and worked in the coffee shop," said her current supervisor, Gayle Horton, from the Trotwood YMCA.

Horton said Miss Polly was originally a waitress and that she remembered seeing the students from Sinclair College - which used part of the YMCA programming.

"Miss Pauline Moore said she remembers the time when Frisch's Big Boy first had a double burger, so she went to her supervisor and stated they should have a double burger as well," Horton said. "She was quick to name it the YMCA burger."

Horton said moore then took a promotion and was placed in charge of the cash register, and at that time there had never been a black cashier.

Moore often tells a story of a deacon at a church who threw his tray and said, "I cannot believe you all have went crazy and put a black woman on the cash register."

Moore said he stayed away about one month and then she won him over with kindness and after a while became one of his best friends. He would come in specifically to see her when he knew Moore was on the register.

Horton said soon thereafter Moore became an assistant manager.

"All of the churches and business people would be standing in line for blocks to eat at the cafeteria, and they would serve over 500 people on Sundays," Horton said.

"In 1965, she had been talking to management from Sinclair and they had approached her about moving with them; the YMCA promoted Miss Polly because of her value and service to the YMCA."

Moore's career with the YMCA continued to climb and in the 1970s she became food service director.

"In 1980, her name in the YMCA became 'Miss Polly,'" Horton said. "She served 50 to 75 homeless people at the at the YMCA three times a day, and the YMCA also served senior citizen meals 50 to 100 a day."

Horton went on to say that the reason people see Miss Polly as their role model is because she has a great work ethic and a heart bigger than anyone else that she knows.

"I have only known Miss Polly for four years and I am thankful to have learned from her - she is a great example of people changing with the world and all of its technology," Horton said.

Horton said Moore is never afraid to try new things and is always ready to learn.

"Miss Poly is my teacher and mentor in the challenges of today's world - I would dare to say that thousands of people would say that she is their role model, too," Horton said.

"I am so blessed to have learned so many of life's lessons from Miss Pauline Moore, but most importantly, I am so glad that I was one of the thousands (of people) that she (so naturally) loved," Horton said. "Thank you, Miss Polly from the YMCA, and myself - you are irreplaceable.