Letters

The Y (YMCA)

"The Y" is a nickname for the Young Men's Christian Association, better known as "the YMCA."  The YMCA was founded in 1844 in London, England. Its first branch in Canada opened in Montreal, Quebec in 1851 followed a month later by the opening of a location in Boston, Massachusetts. The organization now has locations countries around the world.

The YMCA's three principals focus on developing a "healthy spirit, mind, and body" for its members. Membership is no longer limited to men and the Y has become non-denominational.

How It's Used

“Lou has also been teaching a spinning class at the local Y.M.C.A. for several months now. At $12 an hour, the money isn’t great, but as a part-time employee of the Y, he only pays $100 a year for a family membership.”

“In the nation's stadiums, arenas, health clubs, on running paths, hiking trails, tennis courts, soccer fields and even in pools (with the new waterproof iPod case), Americans exert themselves to music and often hear it when they're merely watching in the stands. Looking down the line of orbital cross-trainers at the Y, I see earphones on every head.”

"Greenpoint, the neighbourhood north of the uber-hip Williamsburg in Brooklyn, is New York's little Poland—80% of the residents are Poles—and the 100-year-old Greenpoint YMCA is its embassy. It originally catered to Polish sailors from the nearby (now defunct) dockyard. Today the Y offers 100 rooms—many with views across the river to Manhattan—a really nice gym, and a pool, all for $100 a night. 99 Meserole Avenue, Brooklyn (+718 389 3700, ymcanyc.org/index.php?id=1167).

"Basketball was invented at a Massachusetts YMCA in 1891 as a winter sport to occupy a group of what a Y brochure referred to as 'incorrigibles,' but Swann said the leagues around town are anything but all rough-and-tumble. Some are highly competitive, but organizations such as the Y, which runs a 14-team league at its downtown branch, usually allow for different levels of ability in scheduling matches between teams."

"This Sunday will mark the 100th Father's Day since Washington's Sonora Smart Dodd got struck by lightning—well, figuratively speaking—while listening to a sermon on Mother's Day. While 'Sonora' is a fascinating name to have while listening to sermons, 'Smart' isn't exactly what some of us would call Mrs. Dodd's little gift to the world. That she would wish to honour her own father is perfectly understandable. Bill Smart had fought in the Civil War and then won an even tougher battle when, after the death of his wife in childbirth, he raised six fine children, Sonora included.

"She got local churches and the Y to buy into marking the day on June 19, 1910, and by the 1970s, much to the delight of Hallmark—with its approximately 800 cards to mark the occasion—it had become a recognized day of observance in countries around the world."

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