On the Town: YMCA maties heave ho for campaign treasure
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2/5/2012A PIRATE-THEMED EVENT was featured Jan. 30 for the YMCA and JCC of Greater Toledo 2012 annual campaign kickoff, Making A Difference: A Treasure of Stories, at The Pinnacle. Treasure chests, murals of ships at sea, parrots, and more set the scene for the night.
Emcee Bob Chirdon, general manager of WTOL-TV, Channel 11, and a former YMCA/JCC board member, welcomed everyone.
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Navigating the campaign were chairman Cheryl Tyler-Folsom and co-chairman Jack Hemple. President and CEO of the YMCA/JCC is Todd Tibbits.
Before everyone received their "orders," there were a few testimonials from Casey Koenig and Michael Ashford to get everyone inspired.
The YMCA/JCC hopes to raise $2 million to help provide membership and program assistance to 64,000 people via the 11 centers in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan, child care sites, and other facilities.
Through child care, leadership development training, scholarships, water safety programs, and fitness efforts, the organization's goal is to ensure that everyone has an opportunity to achieve a healthy lifestyle regardless of their ability to pay.
So far $514,624 has been raised; 1,000 volunteers are raising money in advance of the March 7 finale.
Among about 400 first mates who gathered that night were Rob Koenig, board of trustees chairman, and board members Rick Anderson, Norman Bell, Joel Beren, Jerry Cousins, John DiSalle, Lynn Fruth, Andy Klumb, Arleen Levine, Mark Rose, Susan Allan Block who is a new member of the YMCA board of trustees, and Mary Jo Anderson, trustee for life.
Sponsors included the Hylant Group, Metzger's Printing, Sylvania Historical Village, and the Spirit Committee, a group of staffers headed by Gina Ritzman, director of development.
Seen were James and Helen Cooks of Club 300; Dan Rogers, president and CEO of Cherry Street Mission; Kate Sommerfield of United Way of Greater Toledo; Romules Durant of the Toledo Public Schools; Stephen Edelstein, president and CEO, Jewish Federation of Greater Toledo, and Allan Block, chairman of Block Communications Inc., The Blade's parent company.
FOR YOUR Y: A Community Benefit was a great way to chase away the gray days of winter on Jan. 27 at Belmont Country Club.
Guests mingled over beer and food from Granite City Brewery, wine from Aficionado of Perrysburg, and a dessert table provided by Tout Sweet.
The silent auction offered all kinds of packages, and the eight-item live auction with Jerry Anderson of WTOL-TV, Channel 11, offered even more: vacations in Northport, Mich., Marco Island, and the Grand Caymans; suites for Mud Hens, Walleye, and University of Toledo basketball games, and dry cleaning for a year. Others donated to the cause with nothing in return except the satisfaction that they helped. Jennifer Wagner, a scholarship recipient, is an example of who the funds support: She lost more than 100 pounds through exercise at the Y.
The estimated net of more than $40,000 benefits the 2012 Fort Meigs and Wolf Creek YMCAs' fund-raising campaigns.
Event chairman Amy Steele was assisted by Jeremy Zeisloft, campaign chairman; Tara Dumas, Wolf Creek executive director; and Steve Shives, Lori Powe, Shannon Reyes, and Vickie Komon along with Nicole LeBoutillier, next year's event chairman.
Sponsors included J&R Contracting, KeyBank, FrontPath Health Coalition, NBS Commercial Interiors, and Palmer Energy Company.
Gadding about were Tim and Areka Foster, Maria and Jeff Viles, Alan and Kim Henderson, Brad and Kathy Mefferd, Micki Hambro, Ken and Andrea Boerger, Laurie and Rick Avery, Meigen and Scott McIntyre, Rachael and Jarman Davis, Carlisle and Fatima Knight, and Laura and Kurt Miller.
Also seen were Greg Silloway, Mike and Joslin Bostdorff, Jon Cousino, Erik Ibsen, Kirk and Julie Mizerek, Dave O'Brien, Doug and Julie Pavelko, Sue Szymanski, Chris Vogel, and Mrs. Steele's husband, Scott, who successfully bid on a Northern Michigan getaway for a birthday present to himself.