This is the Y.
At the Lafayette Family YMCA, we’re truly blessed with a unique opportunity to fully serve those in our community. However, long before the bulldozers cleared the way for our one-of-a-kind, state-of-the-art Creasy Lane location, our national nonprofit began its mission to strengthen communities by exhibiting and sharing our Christian values.
Did you know YMCA stands for Young Men’s Christian Association?
The “C” in our name is there to remind us of our mission to serve others by promoting a healthy spirit, mind, and body.
We have a strong Christian heritage at the YMCA.
The YMCA was born as a response to deteriorating working conditions in England. Textile worker George Williams, who had recently begun to grow in his relationship with God, noticed the poor spiritual condition of his fellow workers. He began organizing a series of Bible meetings for anyone who was interested, which grew into the first Young Men’s Christian Association chapter in London on June 6, 1844.
In the mid-1800s, marine missionary—and retired Boston sea captain—Thomas Valentine Sullivan noticed a need to create a safe “home away from home” for sailors and merchants. Inspired by the stories of the Y in England, he led the formation of the first U.S. YMCA in Boston on December 29, 1851.
We’re an organization open to all.
The Y continues to guide members by demonstrating four core principles: caring, honesty, respect, responsibility. Regardless of your religious affiliation, the Y is accessible to all people, and financial assistance is offered to individuals and families who cannot afford membership.
