YMCA of the USA THE NATION’S 2,686 YMCAs respond to critical social needs by drawing on our collective strength as of one of the llargest not-for-profit community service organizations in the United States.

Today’s YMCAs serve thousands of U.S. communities, uniting 21 million children and adults of all ages, races, faiths, backgrounds, abilities and income levels. Our reach and impact can be seen in the millions of lives we touch every year. Across the nation, YMCAs are committed to helping:

• Children and youth deepen positive values, their commitment to service and their motivation to learn
• Families build stronger bonds, spend time together and become more engaged with their communities
• Individuals strengthen their spiritual, mental and physical well-being

At every stage of life, YMCAs are there to help children, families and individuals reach their full potential.

The History of the YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association was founded in London, England, on June 6, 1844, in response to unhealthy social conditions arising in the big cities at the end of the Industrial Revolution (roughly 1750 to 1850). By 1851 there were 24 Ys in Great Britain, with a combined membership of 2,700. That same year the Y arrived in North America: It was established in Montreal on November 25, and in Boston on December 29.

Building Healthy Spirit, Mind & Body
Long before fitness became fashionable, YMCAs were providing health and fitness programs to millions of American youth and adults. “To appreciate that health of mind and body is a sacred gift” has been a part of the YMCA’s goal from its very beginnings.

Today, YMCAs remain pioneers in the fitness field. They are in the forefront of what has been termed America’s “second public health revolution”—a fundamental reorientation of the American health care system to emphasize preventive health care and the development of healthy lifestyles.

Obesity among adults continues to increase, while the number of adults who combine sound dietary practices with regular physical activity to attain an appropriate body weight continues to decline. Besides the human toll from illness, injury, and premature death, physical inactivity imposes a substantial financial burden on the economy. Based on these facts, the former Surgeon General concluded, “Clearly one of the most important public health challenges is moving our society from a sedentary one to a more physically active one.”

Our nation’s tax laws have long recognized that the promotion of health is properly tax-exempt because of the direct benefit to the individual and the intangible benefits to the community as a whole. Healthy people make for a healthy society.

No other organization even remotely approached the YMCAs as a provider of such community fitness programs or as a training ground for the nation’s physical fitness professionals. The American College of Sports Medicine squarely acknowledged the fact that YMCAs are unquestionably the leading provider of medically sound physical fitness programs in the United States.

By offering programs that educate, rehabilitate, and encourage positive health habits for all, not just for those who can afford to pay, the YMCAs help people reduce the risk of long-term disability and disease.

YMCAs run by the community for the community which should know that:

The YMCA provides health and fitness for children and adults as part of the YMCA’s charitable mission. YMCAs are about much more than helping people improve their health; the YMCA helps people develop as whole and complete human beings. YMCAs put Christian principles into practice through programs that build a healthy spirit, mind, and body for all. YMCAs use the values of caring, honesty, respect, and responsibility in everything they do—how they operate, how programs are developed, and how they are delivered. YMCA programs and activities are dedicated to building a strong spirit and mind—as well as body. YMCAs are tax-exempt because what they do benefits the entire community, as the IRS requires.