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| | | (clark savage/Clayton Cameracraft)Sen. Johnny Isakson, third from left, meets with current and former board members at the 10th-year celebration of the Ed Isakson/Alpharetta YMCA. From left are Former board member Roger Wise, current board member Jim Paine, Isakson and former board member the Rev. Malone Dodson. (click for larger version) | |
May 21, 2008
www.northfulton.com
It was a decade ago the Ed Isakson/Alpharetta YMCA opened its doors to serve the public as a 43,000-square-foot recreation and aquatics center. Its construction was the fruition of a relation the YMCA has had with the North Fulton community dating back to 1983.
It was then that the YMCA established an office in North Fulton and began running programs and athletic leagues. It is a relationship that has grown steadily until today in which the Y serves 12,000 individuals annually and another 2,000 youngsters in its North Fulton after –school programs.
In the summertime, the Y will have another 250 children involved in its day camp activities.
That's not a bad return on Alpharetta's $2 million investment as a partner in the Isakson/Alpharetta YMCA, said Group Vice President for Metro Atlanta Dan Pile.
With the $2 million from the city, land donated by Ross Perot and healthy fundraising campaign by the real estate community spearheaded by developer Jim Cowart, the YMCA got off to a flying start and has never looked back.
Then Northside Hospital donated the outdoor Family Fun Pool and the Children's Play Center was expanded to include the Jay Levergood Teen Leadership Center to bring the full complement of the YMCA to 67,000 square feet.
The Teen Center includes a broadcast studio with video production and sound and video editing. Each year the center and Comcast High Speed Cable and Internet sponsor a "film festival" for students who make short documentary films.
"More than anything, the kids learn the YMCA's commitment to service, volunteering, diversity and respect," Pile said.
Service projects have included trips to the Ninth Ward in New Orleans, Costa Rica and one group recently returned from India. Another team of five students is attending an international youth leadership summit in Prague.
Past board chairman and capital campaign leader Tom Daniel said his entire family is still involved in Y activities.
"My two sons climbed Mount Kilimanjaro [in Tanzania, Equatorial Africa], they got a photo at the top of the mountain with a YMCA flag," Daniel said.
In its second decade, the Y is taking on a "bold mission," said Pile.
"Our No. 1 goal will be to eradicate the sedentary lifestyle and obesity among young people," said Pile. "That's within our purview because we have 2,000 kids in 27 schools enrolled in our afterschool programs. They are labs for us to do science-based research on diet, nutrition, exercise and self-esteem."
Since the initial fundraising campaign, the YMCA has raised and reinvested another $10 million into the facility for the community.
"That is a strong commitment, but then the YMCA is an organization that reinvests in its community," Pile said.
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