“We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed.” – 2 Corinthians 4:8-9
In last week’s message, I originally reported that March was the first month in which our association had produced a positive budgetary variance. I was extremely excited and shouting it from the mountaintops; it felt like a turning point for our association. Unfortunately, I was wrong. I had not waited until the completion of the financial reporting for the month and there were quite a few expenses yet to be included. When all was said and done, we finished the month with a negative variance of $137,000, with the total variance for the first quarter slightly below $1 million. When you add in depreciation, which includes debt payment and capital reinvestment, our first quarter negative variance ended at $2.5 million. Oh my gosh, I had made a serious error. Transmitting accurate information is critical – important decisions are made based on the information being accurate, and the morale of our team is significantly impacted knowing if we are doing well or not.
As soon as I discovered my error, I contacted the marketing department to post a retraction. Within minutes, the correction had been made. I was relieved, but also amazed; Jyot had adjusted the message seamlessly. Jyot Sandhu oversees our email communication, and a lot goes into that: formatting, correcting grammar, and ensuring accuracy in the reporting. Email communication carries a great deal of importance in our organization, and we rely on Jyot’s attention to detail to influence thousands of our members and staff. It is another example of the tremendous work going on “behind the scenes” driving our organization forward. Thank you, Jyot, for your dedication and commitment to excellence. You are making a significant contribution to the success of our Y.
Though the reality of another month with a negative budgetary variance is deflating, it is important to recognize there is an improving trend within the membership and childcare numbers. We are getting close, very close, to the point where our operation is generating more revenue than expenses. All your hard work has laid the foundation to take the important next step in the rebuilding process of our great Y. Last week, we learned Pierce County was at risk of stepping back to Phase 2 due to the rising number of reported cases of the virus and the reported increase in hospitalizations. As they have done throughout the pandemic, the operations team sprang into action to understand what the impact of regressing back into Phase 2 would be on our service delivery. The operations team has been fantastic, combing over the details of the guidelines to help design our plan of action. They work extremely well together, and their cohesiveness allows us to move as one with clarity, which is critical, particularly in this period. Brian Flattum has worked hard to ensure everyone throughout the association is informed and in-step; his work has put us in a position to succeed. He has been a difference maker. (It was very encouraging to hear Brian’s report during last Friday’s Staying Connected call that returning to Phase 2 would not be problematic for our Y. The numbers indicate we will be able to manage the 25% capacity expectation as well as the all-important capacity in the pools. At this point, we believe showers will continue to be permitted, which is an important feature wanted by our members).
We are not sure about the impact the reported increase in cases and hospitalizations will have on the behavior of our community. That being said, we will continue to adapt and do whatever we can to deliver vital services to people in Pierce and Kitsap counties as we have done throughout this pandemic. Our resilience and our ability to adapt to the challenges we have faced continue to be miraculous. I remain in awe of who you are and how you refuse to be denied.
Processing the facts that we had another negative variance in the March budget as well as face another surge in the virus is a reminder we still have much work to do to rebuild our Y. It is also a reminder that in rebuilding our Y, it is critical we rebuild it in a way we are able to meet the world that lies ahead. There is so much uncertainty in what tomorrow holds for all of us, and for our Y. Throughout the past year, we have taken the approach that we will continue to explore opportunities to evolve as an organization. Every area of our organization has had to adapt and operate in a different way. I am most proud of how we have met this challenge. The uncertainty of whether people will return to the Y or not challenges us to explore new methods in our service delivery. We believe offering outdoor activities will be very important, but we also know it will need to be more than just underneath a tent. We also believe delivering our services virtually will continue to be critical to our overall operation.
Throughout the pandemic, we have been reaching out to our community, offering nearly all our programs virtually. A great deal of work has gone into the development of delivering a virtual experience and we have come a long way from the early days of offering classes on Facebook Live and Zoom. (I will always be inspired by the commitment our team exhibited to keep our Y relevant. Witnessing the resourcefulness of our team was one of the most inspiring moments of my career. There was no quit, ever, in anyone of you.). Michael Marquez has been at point for the virtual experience throughout the past year, and he has worked hard to improve our delivery of virtual services. Of course, many of you have been part of this effort, making an important contribution, but Bruce Caudill, Lynn Wilmot-Stenehjem, and Annie Doyle are just three who have been at the forefront.
Within the past few weeks, our Y has begun to mobilize our resources to make a bigger investment into the virtual experience. It has been a month since we contracted with John Davis to help walk us through this process, clarify the various components defining the virtual experience, and align our resources to best maximize our delivery. John is very gifted; he understands technology as well as how to bring an organization together to be most effective. (Jessie secured a grant for us to fund this investment. It has been a revelation to have John on the team.) Now that the most intense part of the Salesforce integration is behind us, Bruce will be dedicating more of his time to improve the virtual experience. A few months ago, we invested in the purchase of better equipment to enhance our filming and recording quality. Unfortunately, we had a staff change right about that time and lost our videographer. However, this changed last week, when Michelle LaRue announced we hired a new videographer, Kenny Aye. Kenny joins us at a critical time, when we are making a big push to improve the virtual experience. He will play an important role in this effort. Kenny, we are excited to have you on the team.
It has been nearly three years since our Y invested in the development of the YMCA 360 app. Ronn McMahon, CEO of the Greater Wichita Y, is the founder of this product. Today, over 40 YMCAs are part of the Y360 network, which is definitely the most attractive aspect of the product. Being able to access our programs from your phone and project them onto a TV screen is great, but being able to provide the very best YMCA programs from across the country to our members is a game-changer. Ronn has created a great vision that will give us a competitive advantage, predicated on quality production and uniformity in program delivery. In order to ensure the highest standard of quality, our Y made a significant investment into developing Y360 and the national model. Lynn Wilmot-Stenehjem has joined the development team of Y360. This is a significant step for Lynn, our Y, and the Y Movement. Lynn understands quality, and she has been a leader in developing the virtual experience for our Y over the past year. Lynn will continue working for our Y one day per week, leading the virtual program team of Annie, Michelle Wells, Scott Gjertson, Kevin Milliren, Janele Nelson, Susan Buell, Don Brevik, Amber Evans-Wynn, and Jake Irish. Lynn is excited about the opportunity to lead this important initiative. We believe Y360 will benefit greatly from Lynn’s leadership, and so will our Y. (It is important to note that our association will be compensated for Lynn’s services.)
This has been, and continues to be, a tumultuous time for all of us. We are asked to make adjustments at a moment’s notice and work in a radically different manner. We are faced with tremendous uncertainty as to what lies ahead, and if what we know today will hold true moving forward. We are being required to bend and stretch, but we never break. We exhibit incredible resilience under enormous stress. You are true heroes, and I am honored to walk every step with you. God bless you all, and thank you.
#StayStrong #StayWithUs