Dear YMCA Friends,
As we step into fall, I am reminded that every season brings new opportunities to grow, give, and strengthen our community. At the Anaheim Family YMCA, no family is ever turned away because of their inability to pay. Thanks to the incredible generosity of our partners and the dedication of our staff and volunteers, we are continuing to break down barriers and open doors for families across Anaheim.
Leading with Purpose Empowering Change Through Giving
The Walt Disney Company: The Walt Disney Company is providing the Anaheim Family YMCA with a $30,000 grant award, with funds being used to remove financial barriers for families. The Anaheim YMCA’s Financial Assistance Program reduces or eliminates program fees for families and individuals who demonstrate financial need. Assistance is available for a wide range of services, including Youth Development Programs, Swim Lessons & Safety Around Water, Youth Sports & Camps, and Health & Wellness Programs. Families relieved of financial stress can enroll their children in safe, enriching programs while gaining confidence, learning teamwork, and developing healthy habits. By reducing financial barriers, we help close opportunity gaps, build stronger family foundations, and contribute to healthier, safer neighborhoods.
Samueli Foundation $100,000 Breakaway Fund: The Anaheim Family YMCA has been named a 2025 inaugural Breakaway Fund recipient by the Samueli Foundation—a proud and well-deserved recognition of our hard work and impact. Selected from 1,004 applications, our YMCA Staff Leadership Strategy stood out for its thoughtful approach to creating lasting change. This $100,000 award is a strategic investment in our most vital asset: our team. It will directly enhance our ability to recruit, retain, and empower staff, building the strong leaders essential for our mission.
Funds will celebrate our team through recognition events and leadership training stipends. This is crucial. Investing in our team is investing in Anaheim. Losing talented staff means lost resources and fewer people served. By proactively supporting leadership growth, we cultivate a skilled, committed workforce capable of forging new partnerships, generating innovative ideas, and ensuring sustained excellence.
This investment equips our staff with essential expertise, expanding our capacity to secure more resources and solidifying the Anaheim Y as a destination where both our team and our community thrive.
Anaheim Community Foundation: The Anaheim Community Foundation has awarded the Anaheim Family YMCA a $20,000 workforce development grant to support our efforts in serving Anaheim youth. This funding will help provide our high school youth with direct access to job skills training, career exploration, and hands-on internships, helping our students focus on building essential soft skills like communication, teamwork, and problem-solving. Ultimately, it prepares our youth for success in any future career by building the foundational interpersonal abilities that employers value most.
YMCA Community Complex Phase 2 Groundbreaking
On August 7, 2025, we celebrated the groundbreaking of Phase 2 of our Community Complex with YMCA families, board members, donors, community partners, and Anaheim leaders. Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, Phase 2, opening in 2026, will bring an outdoor sports pavilion, pickleball courts, a street hockey rink supported by the Anaheim Ducks, and an expanded parking lot.
A New Partnership
We’re excited to announce a new partnership between the Anaheim Family YMCA and NFL FLAG to bring an official NFL Flag Football League to our community! This program offers boys and girls the chance to learn the game of football in a fun, safe, and non-contact environment while building teamwork, confidence, and lifelong skills. Registration is now open, and we can’t wait to see our young athletes hit the field this season.
Swinging for a Cause
On Monday, September 29, 2025, we hosted the Vince Taormina Charity Golf Tournament at the Aliso Viejo Country Club. It was a fantastic day of community, camaraderie, and purpose, bringing together friends and local businesses in support of YMCA youth programs. Together, we raised $102,088 for youth programming at the Anaheim Family YMCA! This year, we were proud to honor Bobbie Stovall for her outstanding commitment and dedication to our community. Thank you to everyone who joined us and made the event such a success!
Community. Connection. Celebration. Don’t Miss What’s Next!
I’m excited to share that our annual Trick or Treat Night at the Y will take place on Thursday, October 16th. This is one of our favorite traditions at the Anaheim Family YMCA, a safe, fun-filled evening where families can come together to celebrate Halloween. Children will enjoy trick-or-treating, festive activities, and plenty of seasonal fun right here at the Y.
We’d also love to invite our community partners to be part of the celebration. If you or your organization would like to host a booth or provide goodies for our trick-or-treaters, please reach out to Brian Flores at bflores@anaheimymca.org let’s make this a memorable night for our kids and families.
Welcoming the Leaders Who Will Shape Our Y’s Future.
The Anaheim Family YMCA is proud to welcome four outstanding community leaders to our Board of Directors.
- Allyson Walker, Director of Corporate Partnership Sales for the Anaheim Ducks & Honda Center, brings valuable experience in building partnerships that support youth and families.
- Trisha McDonald, Sales Director at Microsoft and a former YMCA camper, is passionate about giving back and will lend her expertise in fundraising, technology, and strategy.
- Patrick Russell, Fire Chief for Anaheim Fire & Rescue, adds decades of leadership and a commitment to making Anaheim a place where children and families can thrive.
- Clarissa Serpas, Public Affairs Manager at SoCalGas, whose strong community connections and dedication to empowering the next generation will help guide the Y’s mission forward.
Fresh Look, Same Heart- YMCA Administration Building
I’m excited to share several improvements at our longtime YMCA administrative building on Euclid Street, which serves as the hub for all our office staff. The building now features a fresh YMCA blue and green paint job that brightens the space, the front parking lot has been repaved and we’re in the process of upgrading the air conditioning units to ensure a more comfortable work environment. These updates help us better support the teams working behind the scenes to serve our community.
Thank you for believing in the Anaheim Family YMCA. Together, we are building a stronger, healthier, more connected Anaheim, one family, one child, and one program at a time.
With sincere gratitude,
Brent Finlay
President and CEO