YMCA Merger to Take Effect Jan. 1

Philadelphia YMCA and Freedom Valley YMCA will merge Jan. 1

  Information from the Philadelphia & Vicinity YMCA: The YMCA of Philadelphia and the Freedom Valley YMCA completed the final phase in their merger process, with a member approval to proceed with uniting the two organizations to form the Philadelphia Freedom Valley YMCA, effective Jan. 1, 2013. The approval was ratified by members of both organizations on Thursday, Nov. 15. With this ratification the newly formed Philadelphia Freedom Valley YMCA will be one of the largest YMCA Association in the country, with 15 branch locations, located throughout Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties, serving nearly 140,000 members. "Both the YMCA of Philadelphia & Vicinity and the Freedom Valley YMCA have exceptional history and tradition of …

• Photos (1)

Freedom Valley/Philly YMCA Merger Passes

A Thursday evening vote approved the joining of the two YMCA regions.

According to a source present at Thursday evening's vote, the proposed merger between the Freedom Valley YMCA and the Philadelphia YMCA passed by a margin of 56 votes.  The merger was announced several weeks ago, and members have argued both for and against the merger ever since.  Several members expressed concerns about the speed of the merger and about overcrowding. Members were also unhappy with the voting process, which required everyone who wanted to vote be present at a meeting on Thursday night. Others praised the merger, saying that it could only benefit the organization. YMCA leadership also said it would save money by reducing insurance and supply costs. The leadership of the two YMCAs held a town hall on Monday evening, November…

•  60 Comments
• Photos (1)

1

9:28 am on Wednesday, November 21, 2012

I'm sure nobody will miss one less fatty blocking two lanes on the indoor track.   more ›

Freedom Valley Y Leaders Say Merger Opponents are Race-Baiting

An e-mail from the Freedom Valley YMCA's management criticizes a flyer sent to members yesterday.

Freedom Valley YMCA members received an e-mail from the organization late Wednesday afternoon, November 14, regarding a flyer that was reportedly left at the Phoenixville YMCA's information desk listing seven reasons to vote against the merger with the Philadelphia YMCA.  "Not one of the issues addressed in the flyer was factually accurate," the e-mail reads. YMCA leaders have repeatedly asserted that there is a "lot of misinformation" being disseminated regarding the merger. [Editor's note: A copy of the e-mail from the YMCA can be read in the PDF section of this article.] The e-mail goes on, however, to sharply criticize the language in the flyer.  The e-mail reads, "An example of the type of vitriol that is now being strewn follows – …

•  57 Comments
• Photos (1)
• Documents (1)

YMCA Leaders Hold Contentious Town Hall

Members and YMCA leaders squared off over the proposed Philadelphia/Freedom Valley YMCA merger.

Board members and YMCA leadership held a town hall at the Spring Valley YMCA on Monday night to discuss the proposed merger between Freedom Valley YMCAs and Philadephia YMCAs.  Freedom Valley's chief volunteer officer Sanford Lipstein started off the meeting by telling the approximately 200 members in attendance that the board hasn't done a very good job of getting information out to the members regarding the merger.  Lipstein gave a presentation on what the merger will and will not mean for the membership.  Lipstein said that there will be no reciprocity for use of the outdoor pools at Freedom Valley's branches, nor will Philadelphia members be allowed to sign up for fitness classes. Freedom Valley members will not be allowed to register …

•  19 Comments
• Photos (1)

Freedom Valley, Philadelphia YMCAs May Merge

A town hall meeting on the merger is scheduled for Monday evening.

A merger is in the works between the Philadelphia Area YMCA and the Freedom Valley YMCA; however, not everyone is pleased about the prospect or the process.  Both YMCA boards have voted to approve the merger and members recently received letters explaining the deal and how members can vote. The Y is holding a town hall meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 12, at the Spring Valley YMCA on Linfield-Trappe Road in Limerick. This town hall comes in advance of the vote, which is scheduled to happen at Chadwick's Restaurant in Audubon on Thursday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. Philadelphia Area YMCA CEO John Flynn told Patch in a phone interview that the merger came about as the two organizations began working more closely together. "We realized that we could …

•  18 Comments
• Photos (1)

Montco Mommy

Test Driving Pools

Pitting the 'easy set' against the Y

  With the temperatures climbing last week, our family has already started seeking relief. With traditional Irish skin tones, we sometimes have a limited list of sunny-day activities. We can’t bask in the glorious sun all day long, even if we’d like to, as we only have two main skin tones: albino and burnt. Despite the needs for frequent shade, we are test “swimming” a new idea this summer. Our kids have been begging for a pool since, well … since they could beg. Both have had swim lessons and can minimally swim enough not to lose their lives if they fall in. To be honest, we’d probably have to take a third mortgage out to afford one, but I wouldn’t put it past us if it made us all happy. However, before we made a final decision, we …

• Photos (2)