RESTON, VA — The YMCA Fairfax County Reston marked 25 years of serving the community Tuesday with a special recognition from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
The board approved a resolution honoring the YMCA's anniversary and recognizing its youth programs, wellness initiatives and community partnerships. The recognition was requested by Board Chairman Jeff McKay and Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn.
"For 25 years, the YMCA Fairfax County Reston has strengthened our community through youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility," Alcorn said while reading the resolution.
The Reston YMCA grew out of a public-private partnership involving Fairfax County, the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington and community and business leaders during the 1990s.
Former Hunter Mill District Supervisor Bob Dix worked with Reston Land Corporation CEO Jim Cleveland and YMCA leaders on a plan to build the facility on county-owned property in Reston. The plan included a permanent teen center sought by Dix.
Following a private fundraising campaign, construction began in 1999, and the YMCA opened in 2000.
The Board of Supervisors' resolution said the YMCA has since provided more than $2 million in financial assistance to help make memberships and programs accessible regardless of a person's or family's ability to pay.
Programs at the Reston YMCA include summer camps, after-school enrichment, youth sports and wellness programs for residents of different ages.
Alcorn said Tuesday that his connection to the Reston YMCA goes back to before the facility opened, when he signed up for a family membership.
"I actually joined and got a family membership for this Y before it was open," Alcorn said.
Alcorn credited the facility with improving his own health but said its significance goes beyond providing a place to exercise.
"It's that community connection," he said. "It's the camps. It's the childcare. It's all the different things beyond just being a place where you can work out that make the Y so special."
McKay thanked Dix for his role in bringing the YMCA to Reston, saying projects such as the facility require someone willing to develop a vision and work to make it happen.
"Things like this don't happen by accident," McKay said. "They happen because somebody sees a vision, and more than sees a vision, charts a course to getting it done."
McKay also highlighted the YMCA's work with young people and described the organization as another layer of support for Reston residents.
Erik Van de Poll, vice president of operations for the YMCA, accepted the recognition on behalf of the YMCA of Metropolitan Washington.
Van de Poll described the anniversary as a celebration not only of the YMCA but also of the public-private partnership that made the Reston facility possible.
"Twenty-five years ago, Jim Cleveland, Bob Dix, John Palatiello, and the YMCA shared a vision," Van de Poll said. "They believed that local government, community leaders, and a mission-driven nonprofit can come together round a common purpose."
Since then, generations of children have attended camps, participated in youth sports and after-school programs, and developed leadership skills through teen programs, Van de Poll said. Families, seniors and other residents also have found support, connections and opportunities to improve their health and well-being through the YMCA.
Van de Poll said the organization's impact ultimately should not be measured by its number of programs, memberships or facilities.
"It is measured by people," he said. "It is measured in the child who gains confidence, the teenager who discovers their potential, the family who finds support during a challenging time, and the senior who finds friendship and belonging."
Van de Poll thanked Fairfax County, YMCA volunteers, donors, members, employees and community partners, as well as Reston residents who have supported the organization during its first quarter-century.
"We are honored by this recognition, grateful for this partnership, and excited for the next 25 years," he said.
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