Children get off a school bus at the YMCA in Tyler, Texas on Friday, September 29, 2017. The YMCA welcomed the children during the final day of its after-school program. (Schuyler Wick/Tyler Morning Telegraph).

1. Tyler YMCA to permanently close
2. YMCA closing: Members may not get reimbursed, others to seek alternative childcare arrangements

As several schoolchildren walked off a bus and into the YMCA of Tyler, signs of the end of an era were all around.

A piece of paper on the door gave notice of the nonprofit’s closure. The fitness room was dark, though exercise equipment remained. No clients walked through the building, though it appeared some employees were coming in to pick up final checks.

The YMCA of Tyler officially closed for business Friday, which was its last day for preschool and after-school care. The gym had closed for business one week earlier.

The decision came after the organization realized it could not generate the money necessary to sustain its operation over time.

“This is a very difficult time for everyone associated with the YMCA of Tyler, Texas,” then President and CEO Jeremy Bumgardner said when announcing the closure. “Our YMCA has been hit hard by the lack of financial resources. Declines in membership and donations over the past few years have proven too difficult to overcome.”

The Y served more than 1,100 members and employed six full-time staff members and 60 part-time staff members.

The Y offered a gym with a fitness room, group exercise classes, basketball court, swimming pool and tennis courts. In addition, it provided after-school care at five campuses in two school districts, along with a preschool program and youth sports programs.

Bumgardner said several agencies in town contacted the nonprofit to let them know how they could provide for the families in terms of youth sports.

The Y also contacted a local preschool and after-school program to see if they had openings and provide the information to parents.

He said they also enabled the agencies that were interested in serving some its previous customers to post information on the Y’s Facebook page.

Tyler ISD announced on Thursday that it would offer affected families after-school enrichment opportunities.

The district developed the plans and tailored them to meet the current enrollment and participation needs of each affected campus, according to the statement.

This included providing a temporary after-school enrichment program for kindergarten through fifth-grade students each school day until 6 p.m. through Nov. 16.

In addition, the Boys and Girls Club will provide the after-school program for kindergarten through fifth-graders at Andy Woods Elementary through the end of the school year. TISD will provide after-school care for pre-K students. Both programs are tuition-based and will operate at the same fee as the Y’s program, according to the statement.

Bumgardner said YMCA of the USA, which serves as the national resource office for the nation’s YMCAs, extensively supported the organization during its shutdown process, helping them to evaluate how they were going to proceed and make sure their staff and community was in the know.

Nationwide, there are 2,700 YMCAs with about 20,000 full-time staff and 600,000 volunteers in 10,000 communities, according to the YMCA of the USA website.

Through its programs, the Y engages 9 million youth and 13 million adults annually across the country. It also operates internationally, serving more than 45 million people in 119 countries, according to the website.

As far as the Tyler Y, the next steps are still being worked out.

Matthew Milam, board chairman for the YMCA of Tyler, said the board would work with the Y’s lenders to determine how to proceed with the building and other assets.

He said the board also would work with the lender to see if they can raise additional funds to refund Y customers who did not receive the full value of services they had paid for because of the closure.

The YMCAs of Palestine and Corsicana have agreed to honor the memberships of current Tyler Y members through their paid dates.

He said anyone with questions could reach out by email to contacttylery@gmail.com or by regular mail through its existing address at 225 S. Vine Ave., Tyler, 75702. All regular mail will be forwarded from the Y’s address to a working address, Milam said.

 

TWITTER: @TMTEmily

A CLOSER LOOK 

Anyone with questions regarding the YMCA of Tyler should reach out by email to contacttylery@gmail.com or by regular mail through its existing address at 225 S. Vine Ave., Tyler, 75702. All regular mail will be forwarded from the Y’s address to a working address.