“A new ‘healthy living campus’ for the Jackson YMCA is closer to reality with a donation from Jackson’s Kiwanis Club.
The Kiwanis Club and Kiwanis Foundation of Jackson are contributing $40,000 to the Y’s donation drive to fund a new downtown facility. It’s one of the largest donations in the two organizations’ history, coming after a $45,000 contribution to the Jackson County Splash Pad at the Cascades about five years ago.
Kiwanis, which focuses on community service for children, had been approached for a way to help with the climbing wall in the YMCA, Kiwanis Club President Jim Philo said, adding the group soon recognized it wanted to contribute to the capital campaign as well.
‘It’s a way for us to get involved with kids and support an organization that provides programs for kids,” Philo said. ‘That was really the reason for doing that, because Kiwanis is looking for places where we can provide support for kids.’
Kiwanis Club has about 80 active members, Philo said. About half of the funds were provided by its charitable foundation arm and the other half come from the club. He said the donation in part replaced some of the activities the Kiwanis Club normally does within the community, as potential community involvement was limited because of the coronavirus pandemic.
‘It was a way that we could provide and help the community, as well as help the kids,’ Philo said. ‘That’s a real gem in the city of Jackson, having a Y.’”
View the whole story here: https://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/2021/01/40k-donation-from-kiwanis-club-boosts-jackson-ymca-capital-campaign.html?outputType=amp