Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA Receives July Recognition
The Wells County Chamber of Commerce staff and Ambassadors congratulated the Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA as the July Member of the Month. The YMCA is located at 550 West Dustman Road in Bluffton.
In 2007, a storefront YMCA was opened in Bluffton at the request of the Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family in the hopes of continuing the project Operation Wellness. The program sought to improve area residents’ quality of life, and the YMCA was a natural fit to continue offering this program. Interest for a full-service YMCA grew and in January of 2015, the Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA opened in Bluffton to the community and was chartered as a branch of the YMCA of Greater Fort Wayne including an Early Learning Center, Wellness Center, Gymnasium, Indoor Pool, Whirlpool, Sauna, Spinning & Aerobics studios.
Today, there are between 95 to 110 employees throughout the year offering classes and programs to YMCA members. YMCA membership also includes group exercise classes, a fitness facility, personal training, an on-site chapel, and a dance studio. In addition, health and wellness screenings, body composition and fitness assessments, youth fit, and nationwide membership programs are offered. This location also provides a two-hour child watch, corporate memberships, scholarship program, financial assistance, and free membership to 7th graders residing in Adams, Allen, Whitley, and Wells counties.
Thom Miller, Executive Director, explained the goals of the Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA are to ensure that everyone, regardless of age, income, or background, has the opportunity to learn, grow, and thrive. “Each year, the YMCA Board raises money through donations from both individuals and businesses to support a scholarship fund. It is this Annual Campaign that allows the YMCA to reach its goal of turning no one away. Recently, I was approached by a scholarship recipient who thanked me “for doing all this”. She commented on the friendliness of the staff, the organization of the sports league, and the “all-around feeling of belonging”.
The YMCA is committed to strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. “The YMCA is, and always will be, dedicated to building healthy, confidence, connected, and secure children, adults, families, and communities,” stated Miller. “Every day our impact is felt when an individual makes a healthy choice, when a youth coach inspires a child, and when a community comes together for a common good.”
The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA seeks to benefit the Wells County economic development by continuing to offer the current amenities and programming, as well as growing with the needs of the community. “Additionally, we plan on increasing the number of people positively impacted by the YMCA, filling the programming gaps within the community, and increasing collaborations with other organizations in the county,” said Miller. “If you haven’t been to the Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA branch yet… now is the time! We look forward to meeting you.”
The Early Learning Center, a preschool program preparing students for kindergarten, partners with parents to provide a safe and nurturing high-quality learning environment that promotes the child’s emotional, social, cognitive, and physical development. “Our goal is to help provide the foundation for a life-long love of learning,” Miller said.
The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA continues to focus on physical activity sports and other training ranging from youth sports (basketball, soccer, volleyball, floor hockey) & sports clinics, Home School Gym & Swim, Martial Arts (youth & adult), Swim Lessons (youth & adult), Safe Sitter Babysitting Training, Adaptive Programming (Dream Team, Sports, Swim Lessons, Camp, Parent Night Out), Healthy Living Programs, Wellness for Life Coaching Program, to Open Gym (pickleball, volleyball, basketball, soccer).
“My short time as the leader of the Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA has been blessed,” explained Miller. “By blessed, I mean successful. That success is seen through members returning after a global pandemic, new members joining, and parents enrolling their children in sports leagues, swim lessons, and other programs. This success though is not my own. I have had the best, most dedicated, friendly, enthusiastic, personable staff a leader would want. It has been these people who are the stars of the YMCA, the faces on the front line, and most likely the reason everyone keeps coming back. Thank you for your hard work, and dedication, and for welcoming me into the YMCA community. I appreciate all of the volunteer coaches who have spent countless hours of instruction each season… Thank You! You have made a bigger impact than you could ever imagine.”
The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA hours are Monday thru Friday from 5:00 am to 8:00 pm, Sunday from 1:00 PM to 4:00 pm, and Saturdays from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Pictured in the photo from left to right:
Erin Daugherty, State Farm Insurance, Chamber Ambassador
Jayde Ketring, First Bank of Berne, Chamber Ambassador
Trent Fiedler, The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA
Thom Miller, The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA
Beth McConn, The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA
Erica Lehman, Coldwell Banker-Holloway, Chamber Ambassador
Landon Harris, The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA
Keith Muhlenkamp, First Merchants Bank, Chamber Ambassador
Risa Reynolds, The Caylor-Nickel Foundation Family YMCA
Erin Prible, Executive Director, Wells County Chamber of Commerce