Capital Campaign

Do you recognize these friends and neighbors? We serve them every day at the YMCA of Saratoga.

Picture the nurse you rely on … a woman at your place of worship … or the boy at the bus stop you pass on your way to work … these are the individuals we serve every day at the YMCA of Saratoga. While they have different stories to tell, your friends and neighbors all have one thing in common. They rely on the YMCA of Saratoga to make an important difference in their life.

The need for YMCA programs and services is great

The numbers are staggering. Last year, 11,600 adults and children used our Saratoga YMCA 365,000 times. This means an average of 1000 people use the YMCA daily. More than 450 children take advantage of the YMCA’s child care on-site or at before and after school programs located at six elementary schools. In addition, over 2,000 children participate each year in swim lessons.

No one is ever turned away from the YMCA for financial reasons

In 2005, we gave financial assistance to 324 children and adults who wanted to participate in activities like swim lessons and basketball. This is one of the most important services the YMCA provides – helping those kids and adults who may need our programs the most, have a safe, fun, and beneficial place to go.

The YMCA makes Saratoga a better place to live

While you may think of the YMCA as a place to take swim lessons, send your kids to summer camp or as a place to take a Health and Wellness class – the YMCA of Saratoga is so much more than that. From child care, to after school programs for teens, to wonderful activities for seniors, to addressing child obesity, nutrition, and physical fitness, the YMCA mission of improving the spirit, mind, and body touches the lives of more than half the people in our community. Our YMCA makes Saratoga a better place to live and it’s about to get even better …

At last – a new YMCA for Saratoga

Since 2002, when the YMCA purchased 25 acres on West Avenue through a generous sale agreement with the Grande family, there has been great community excitement about the possibility of a new YMCA facility. After years of hard work and anticipation, we can say with great excitement - "the time is now!"

While the downtown facility has served us well, the gym, pool, child care class rooms and program areas are outdated and not large enough to serve our community. There are waiting lists to participate in aquatic, aerobic and other key programs, the downtown facility lacks adequate parking, and the old facility is very costly to operate.

A beautiful facility in a central community location

Located just a quarter mile from the Saratoga Springs Junior/Senior High School complex, our new community YMCA will be more than twice the size of the current facility on Broadway. It will include an eight-lane competition pool, an 8000 square-foot fitness center, an indoor track, a family locker room, steam, sauna and whirlpool. The new facility will also contain child care facilities, a teen center, social areas, and community activity space. There will be 300 parking spaces with drop-off/pick-up areas. User friendly, the site will also be connected to the center of Saratoga by an extension of the Community Bike/Pedestrian path – with a future opportunity to connect this path system into the Spa State Park.

We can’t build a new YMCA without your help

We can’t make this exciting new YMCA for our community happen without your help. While we
have already received some major financial contributions, we need your help to open the doors to our new Y by 2006.

So ask yourself - what makes Saratoga County a wonderful place to live? A place you want to grow old in and raise happy, healthy kids? The answer to this question is clear. It’s you and I – the people who join hands to make a difference - that make Saratoga such a unique and vital community.

Living here, we have all inherited an astonishing legacy from those who have cared enough to make the future better for the next generation who call this special place home. These individuals helped build Saratoga Hospital, started the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, supported Yaddo, built the Children’s Museum, funded the library, and have done so much more.

Our new YMCA of Saratoga is the next important gift to our community which needs your participation. A place where young and old build healthy minds, hearts and bodies – in an environment that nurtures character development, improves self-esteem, and teaches key community values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility.

Help us build a better community. Join us in supporting the campaign for our new Saratoga
YMCA. A brighter future for all generations is in your hands.