YMCA of Greater San Antonio & the Hill Country

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For some people, the YMCA is a place for children and families to come together to learn and play, exercise and swim and have fun. For others, the YMCA itself is a surrogate family. A source of not only education and recreation but of belonging, character development, community service and community leadership. Traditions and values instilled at the Y carry on from one life stage to the next, from one generation to following generations.

And so it has been at the YMCA of Greater San Antonio for 129 years. Sometimes the Y's influence isn't passed down to younger generations, but up to older ones. Children who learn to care for themselves and others, teens who learn they are responsible for who they become all bring their positive experiences home to siblings and parents, even grandparents, who then become involved in Y programs themselves. And the Y's active fund raising efforts help provide program scholarships for people in need of financial assistance to participate.

YMCA of Greater San Antonio Today ...

Serves children, teens and families of all faiths, incomes, ages and abilities
South Central Texas’ twelve YMCAs serve 67,702 members and program participants to build strong kids, strong families and strong communities in and around San Antonio. YMCA membership brings young and old, men and women, and people of all faiths, backgrounds, abilities, ethnicities and income levels together. The YMCA of Greater San Antonio serves children and families in their neighborhoods through over 300 community-based sites in six counties. The YMCA of Greater San Antonio is chartered to serve ten counties in South Central Texas and enrolls 63,503 people annually under the age of 18.

Cares for 63,503 child and teen members and program participants in afterschool, child care, camping and youth leadership programs
YMCAs in San Antonio and surrounding counties serve 19,552 program members, with a total of 47, 446 youth program enrollments in after school care, resident camp, developmental youth sports, aquatics, and teen leadership programs at hundreds of partnering community sites each year.
Y School Age after school sites in partnership with schools and churches keep 10,060 child and teen program members with 14,995 program enrollments safe and learning after school which supports working parents with the care, education and recreation of their children during non-school hours. As a leading nonprofit provider of after school, summer resident camp and day camp programs for youth in our area, the YMCA provides thousands of children and teens with program scholarships to help kids from all backgrounds participate and belong. Five Y Child Care sites provide early childhood education to 802 member families with a total of 1,703 program enrollments annually.

Promotes health and wellness for the entire community
Together, YMCAs are the largest nonprofit provider of health and wellness programs in our nation, state and local community. YMCAs are accessible to everyone in the community, regardless of their physical abilities or income levels.
YMCAs enable tens of thousands of local kids and teens to get active and healthy through fitness activities and youth sports and aquatics. YMCAs also provide physical education instruction at schools, after school and to home-schooled children nationwide.
Although YMCAs may be best known for programs designed to strengthen the health and fitness levels of able-bodied individuals, the Y also provides exercise and aquatic programs for physically challenged adults and children. Four facility YMCAs in San Antonio offer arthritis aquatic classes, fitness classes for elderly adults and injury rehabilitation programs for children as well as active older adults. The Y serves 6,232 health and wellness members with 2,469 full facility members, 1,696 adults and active older adult program members and 2,067 adult sports program members.

Collaborates with numerous community organizations
Local YMCAs partner with over 100 elementary, middle and high schools as well as churches, parks and recreation departments and hospitals to provide quality child care; after school and day camp programs; developmental youth sports; aquatic and other physical health and wellness programs for children, teens, families and active older adults.
Additionally, our local YMCAs partner with local businesses, other nonprofit organizations and the local bar associations to help children and youth stay in school, be successful in school and learn those core values of caring, honesty, respect, responsibility and faith. These values help keep young people developing positive character and serving their communities to help meet the educational, employment and economic needs of the future—for all of us.

Encourages volunteerism and offers countless opportunities to get involved
The YMCA of Greater San Antonio relies on over 4,622 program volunteers and 278 policy volunteers (board members) to meet unique local community needs. YMCA volunteers connect with their communities by coaching developmental youth sports programs, serving as mentors and program aides and helping with administrative efforts. Y volunteers of all ages show senior citizens and youth alike how to use computers, how to swim and how to help others help themselves. Young teen leaders learn the value of community service and begin to build a resume as they accomplish community service projects that increase their sense of self worth and their knowledge that they have the power to help in Y Teen Leadership programs.
Legal professionals volunteer in YMCA Youth and Government programs to involve teens locally and nationwide in state-organized model governments that educate youth about our democratic process. Volunteers from our local communities serve a leadership role in the vision, fundraising and governance for all twelve YMCA of Greater San Antonio community YMCAs.

Lives their mission every day
A common mission guides the YMCA of Greater San Antonio and its twelve branches: To put Judeo-Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all. Our purpose is to provide children, families and communities with the programs needed to encourage healthy lifestyles and to support working families with the care, education and recreation of their children and teens from infancy through young adulthood. The YMCA of Greater San Antonio supports thousands of program participants with program scholarships every year. The Y does not deny program participation due to inability to pay program service fees.

1876-2005

Founded in 1876, San Antonio’s earliest YMCA used borrowed facilities to provide lodging, food, reading rooms and recreation to cowboys working cattle drives, railroad employees, men and boys looking for work in the city.By the late 1800s, we had a Ladies' Auxiliary, sports programs, a boys’ camp—and by 1907, our first permanent building at North Alamo and Third Streets. During both world wars, our YMCA brought field services, food, first aid and blankets to soldiers and families throughout South Texas. We offered San Antonio’s first swimming lessons, organized High School (Hi-Y) Clubs by 1918, and reached out to African American and Mexican American youth with neighborhood programs that developed into our first branches–now the Davis-Scott and Westside Ys. In 1927 we purchased Camp Flaming Arrow, a residential Hill Country camp that today hosts thousands of children and teens yearly.By the 1960s, we added the Northwest and the Northeast branches and expanded programs in swimming, team sports, day camps, drug-abuse prevention and teen leadership.In 1971, the Downtown YMCA opened its current building and began admitting women members. Through the 1970s and 1980s, Y programs helped keep at-risk youth out of trouble and learning new skills. The Southwestern Bell branch was opened and we introduced early child development, after school child care and bilingual pre-kindergarten. For older children and teens, the YMCA initiated campus-based student enrichment, youth sports, and Texas' first teen parent child care program. We also began reaching into Hill Country communities. In the 1990s, we expanded early child development and substance abuse prevention and initiated the Hy-life Stay in School program, promoted youth employment and Youth Volunteer Clubs. We also moved into the Braundera area, broke ground on the Mays Family YMCA in North Central San Antonio, and established services in Kerr, Comal, Gillespie, Kendall and Guadalupe counties.

The YMCA of Greater San Antonio has been dedicated to helping people for 128 years. Here's to the parents, schools, churches, municipalities, United Ways and business partners who will help us to build strong kids, strong families and strong communities for centuries to come.