| Our Facility Map
to help you find our YMCA in Chillicothe.
|
This
is the entry to our YMCA drive. The landscaping is dedicated to Ms. Janet Crookshanks. |
 Our YMCA has a large parking area in front and a large outdoor
playing field in the back. We offer handicap parking at our front entries. Our two front
entries allow visitors to enter directly into the new
gymnasium, or they can enter the main facility at our front desk area. Our friendly
receptionists begin duty at 5:30 a.m. Monday through Friday. You can ask for a locker key and begin your workout.
Our two gymnasiums provide plenty of room for basketball,
volleyball, the indoor  tennis court, pitching machine action, and much more.
Bleachers offer comfortable seating for parents, students, and visitors. We also have a
complete scoreboard in our newest gym. And, you can watch the action from above as you
walk our indoor track. Our gymnastics area is off the new gym in a separate area for ease
of use.
The weight machines and exercise equipment are upstairs.
You have several to choose from, including free weights in our new weight room. Our
certified instructors and adult fitness classes will help you
learn the proper way to use the wide variety of equipment. From stationery bikes to
elliptical machines, stair climbers, a large selection of weight machines, Cycle Reebok
spinning cycles, and Life Fitness treadmills with
heart rate monitoring systems, you can select the exercise program appropriate for your
needs.
Think Hot: YMCA
Adding Sauna
C-T Photo / Catherine Stortz
Ripley
February 24, 2011
CAPTION: Dale Gerhart, Michael Smith and Brad Coin, all from Gerhart Bricklayers, of Meadville, construct the family changing room adjacent to the Chillicothe YMCA swimming pool.
The outside temperature is still hovering toward the bottom half of the thermometer, but mercury inside the Grand River Area Family YMCA will soon be heating up
- at least in one small area of the facility. The YMCA has started construction of a sauna adjacent to the swimming pool. Also at this time, the YMCA is constructing a family changing room adjacent to the pool. Work on both projects are expected to be completed within the next couple of weeks and, perhaps, as early as the end of next week.
The sauna, a small room measuring 6 feet by 8 feet, will have an inside temperature between 160 and 180 degrees while in use, according to YMCA director Dave Rogers. There will be two benches, an upper and a lower bench, and a bucket of water with a ladle for ladling water over hot rocks to increase the feeling of heat. Saunas are known for cleansing and refreshing the body and is a way for individuals to relax.
"This is just one more thing we can offer and add value to the
membership," Rogers said. "We have been very fortunate to be able to expand and improve the
Y." Swimsuits will be required inside the sauna; and the minimum age for using the sauna, just like the hot tub, is 18 years of age.
The hours of the sauna will be the same as for the swimming pool and hot tub:
Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. (closed, however, between 2 and 3:30
p.m.), between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Saturday, and from 1 until 5 p.m. on Sunday.
The family changing room will be particularly beneficial for parents who have opposite sex children who may be considered too old to go into the opposite
sex's locker room but who are young enough to still need assistance. The changing room will also benefit individuals who have spouses that are handicapped and need special accommodations. The changing room will also have a shower.
The cost of these two projects is expected to be between $18,000 and $20,000.
YMCA Lays Down New
Running Track
Constitution-Tribune,
Posted Oct 20, 2010
C-T Photo/Amanda McKay
The Grand River Area Family YMCA
installed a new running track the week of October 18, 2010, to replace the current track that has been in place for 19 years. According to Dave Rogers, executive director,
the new track has been getting rave reviews. The new track is two
colors - a 5' width along the inside rail (walker's lane) is a
gunmetal gray, with the remaining 3' on the outside (runner's lane) a
dark blue. Earlier this summer, the track railing and upstairs
concrete floor were painted blue and gray respectively to go with the
new track colors. Also this summer, during the annual August
remodeling, a new rubber flooring was laid in the older exercise area
(see article and photo below). The new paint, flooring, and track have
significantly improved how the upstairs looks and feels. Most
importantly, the new rubberized track is 10mm thick as opposed to the
standard 8mm thickness, so it is easier on the joints whether running
or walking. The original track had lost some of its
"sponginess" and had become difficult to clean.
New Floor Upstairs at YMCA
August 05, 2010
C-T Photo/Laura Schuler
Matt Jones, program director at the Grand River Area Family YMCA stands on the
walking track upstairs near the new rubber floor installed this week in the facilities
original exercise room. The YMCA is closed this week for annual cleaning and
refurbishing work and will open back up at regular time Monday morning.
Hedrick Foundation donates $10,000 to Grand River Area Family YMCA
Wednesday, January 4, 2006 The Hedrick Foundation recently made a $10,000 donation to the Grand River Area Family YMCA in memory and appreciation of Walter T. Miller who served as a dedicated member of the foundation board for over 25 years.
Specifically, the money is directed to the endowment fund of the YMCA which will help to insure the financial security and maintenance of the YMCA facility.
Miller died in June 2005 and as a Hedrick Foundation board member, encouraged the foundation to invest in the purchase of the YMCA land and its indoor swimming pool.
Our multi-purpose room is great for our aerobics programs, birthday
parties, and meetings. In the summer, this is the hub for our summer day camps.
 In October, 2002,
our youth activity center was remodeled extensively and renamed
the "Sally Welch Young Memorial Youth Center." The Center includes a big-screen
TV, air hockey machine, electric dome hockey game, pinball machine, two computers with
Internet, video games, sectional couch, bookcases with sports memorabilia, and tables and
chairs. A kitchen and TV and VCR are also in the babysitting area.
Swim in our Olympic-size pool
or relax in the hot tub, then shower and change. Play racquetball
in our racquetball court or watch the action from the viewing areas on the second floor.
Whatever your interest, we have it at the YMCA!
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New Addition January, 1999
The grand opening of our new addition was Saturday, January
16, 1999. The  celebration
began at 2:00 p.m. with a dedication of the entire building and a short program to thank
donors and supporters of the YMCA expansion project.
Dave Rogers, Executive Director, welcomed visitors and
dignitaries in our multi-purpose room before the tours began.
Snapshots of the Grand Opening
Seeds of Expansion
Ideas of expansion began with some generous foundations, including the Hedrick Foundation
and the Roger A. Browning Foundation, which started when Mr. Browning willed $100,000 to
the YMCA. Other avenues making the expansion possible was a grant from the Youth
Opportunities Program administered through the Missouri Department of Economic Development
which provided $250,000 in tax credits to some initial donors and generous local banks. In order to get the tax credits,
the YMCA needed up-front pledges. The four local banks - Bank Midwest, Chillicothe State
Bank, Citizens Bank and Trust, and Investors Federal
- pledged money.
The Y formally kicked off its capital campaign in May,
1997, with a lofty goal of reaching $1.3 million to build a new
gymnasium, gymnastics center, weight room, youth activity center, and to fund the
Y-PALS program and build the YMCA Endowment Fund. The fund-raising campaign ran through
the end of July of that year with 18 volunteers working to reach the goal. More than
$700,000 had been raised before the campaign kicked off in what were called
"Pace-setter" gifts.
Five months later, in what fund drive chairman, Robert
Cowherd, termed an "amazingly easy" effort, a whopping $1.595
million had been pledged to fund the 13,228-square foot expansion of the facility - the
first addition to the structure. Most of the pledged money was generated locally, from
individuals, businesses, foundations, etc. At reaching the local goal of about $1.2
million, the project met the conditions set out by the Mabee Foundation of Oklahoma City
to qualify for a $200,000 gift from that entity, taking the overall capital-raising effort
over the $1.5 million mark. Of the total raised, $200,000 was put into the Y's endowment
fund, the interest from which will help offset the higher operational
costs which will be incurred  by the larger facility. In addition, $30,000 will be deposited into
the Y-PALS program over a three-year period ($10,000 per year) to help finance the youth
mentoring program.
With the financing demands met, attention turned to getting
actual construction work started. On the first day of November, 1997, friends and
supporters gathered to celebrate the Y's 5th year in the facility that opened in 1992. The
crowd also celebrated with shovels in hand, as YMCA staff, board, and youth broke ground
for the new expansion. In February, 1998, bids for construction came in and work began.
In June, 1998, The Roger A. Browning Foundation pledged
$125,000 to the 
YMCA which would be paid over five years. The City of Chillicothe provides strong support for the YMCA. Former Mayor
Jerry Wilford, left in the photo at right, presented a key to the city to Mr.
David Ross, one of the trustees of The Hedrick Foundation, at our Grand Opening. A
big "thank you" goes to Mr. Ross for the investment that has been made through
The Hedrick Foundation; not only to the YMCA, but also to the community.
Original photos
provided by Patrice Wagy Robertson.
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 In the spring of 2001, we
added our Kid's Play Park. The ribbon cutting was held on Friday, April 6, with Frances
Buckner of the Sensenich Foundation (the largest contributor to the project) cutting the
ribbon. Board members and staff attended the event with Dave Rogers, Executive Director.
The park is 19 feet wide, 29 feet long, 18 feet tall, and
designed for children between the ages of 3 and 10. The park officially opened Monday,
April 9, 2001. The project was made possible through several generous donations.
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