A New Beginning for the Easley YMCA:
Grand Opening Ceremony is Held for New Building
"Our Mission is to Change Lives for Christ," says President and CEO Sid Collins
By Karen Brewer
An excited crowd gathered for the grand opening ceremony for a new Easley YMCA the morning of Thursday, March 21, 2024. The new building is located next door to the first YMCA building, but the new YMCA has a new address: 200 Frank Parrott Road.
Suzanne Flaugher, Branch Executive at the Easley YMCA, welcomed the crowd gathered for the 10 a.m. ceremony, which was held inside the Youngblood Family Gymnasium. “In 1 Corinthians, it says you can plant the seed, and you can water the seed, but it is God that makes it grow,” she said. “And that is why we are here to celebrate today. And, from all of the staff, we are so excited that y’all are here. This has been a long time coming.”
She then introduced Lawson Clary, Executive Pastor at Five Point Church, and also a YMCA member, a member of the YMCA Board, and a Y Mentor.
“It is an exciting day, one that has been prayed for, for a long time, since the vision was birthed, and I just want to tell y’all thank y’all for being here,” said Clary, who then prayed. “Father, we love you so much. And, Lord, for what this YMCA has been built upon, Lord, we thank you for the opportunity, Lord Jesus, of what you are going to do within this building. Father, of not only building our physical temple, Father, to honor and glorify you, but also the spiritual and emotional health that takes place whenever everyone is here. It’s almost like it’s being the body of Christ, together, as we work out and push ourselves to the limits. Lord, it’s what you ask us to do in our daily walk, as well. So, Father, I thank you, Lord, for what is taking place, all the hard work, all the time, all the toil. Lord, I thank you for the safety of the construction crews here. I thank you for the wisdom that was given to build this house. Lord, I think of the gifts that you gave to two gentlemen to build the tabernacle back in the Old Testament. Lord, in the same way, you’ve trained up men and women for just a time as this, for this wonderful building. And, Lord, this will house thousands upon thousands of people coming in, and, Lord, I pray that your impact is great here through the YMCA. Father, we love you, we praise you, and we thank you. Amen.”
He then introduced Eric Goodwin, who, he said, “has been kind of the spearhead on this the last two years,” and told him, “We thank you for your leadership in that.”
After reading from scripture, Isaiah 58:7-12, Goodwin told the crowd, “Welcome, and thank you for attending this monumental event. This new Easley YMCA at the McKissick campus will house programs and events that we believe will be a catalyst for good in our community. I want to first recognize our current Board members that are here today. When I call your name, I ask that you please stand. We have Lori Raad, Mike Dosher, Tripp Martin, Harold Alexander, Ashley Corso, Ansley Cudd, Alex Dye, Dan Bracken, Melissa Hunter, Joanna Griese, Laura White, Lawson Clary, Pam Merritt, Steve Crowe, and myself. I appreciate their service.
“First, as a member, and second as a Board member, I want to thank the staff and the design and construction team for your hard work and sacrifice and determination over these challenging past two years. It’s hard to recall everything that had to be decided upon, at the staff and Board level, to get us to where we are today. We want to celebrate what is about to happen in our community, with the opening of this facility, which has been years in the making. We have studied, asked questions, drawn plans, raised money, and are opening doors nearly two years after we broke ground.”
He stressed that the new Easley YMCA at the McKissick Campus would not only be a premiere fitness provider, but would also serve all ages “once we complete the renovation of the Brotherton Center next door into a child development and senior center.
“So, what is the Y doing to answer God’s call that I just addressed in Isaiah 58, to make our community better?” he asked. All three YMCAs (in Easley, Pickens, and Powdersville) are partners, he said, “in helping our area become the best it can be by listening to and acting upon the needs of the community, by providing solutions to the challenges we face. While much work is being done with the programs that we currently are immersed in providing, such as the Mentor Program, swim lessons, camps, and after school, we will be open to the other opportunities to serve that are created with the momentum we are seeing within the Y. So, let us celebrate and build excitement around what God is providing and doing for the YMCA throughout each day.”
Goodwin then introduced Stephanie Bittiker, the Public Information Officer for the South Carolina USDA Rural Development Agency, attending on behalf of acting State Director George Hicks, Jr., who could not attend. “Thank you for having me,” said Bittiker, who then recognized and thanked Patti Walker, Community Facilities Loan Specialist, who was instrumental in assisting with the project. “Patti, along with other state and national office staff, have worked tirelessly on this project, and today we’re thrilled to be here on behalf of Rural Development to celebrate this grand opening,” said Bittiker.
“Let me share with you the remarkable journey that has led us to this point,” she continued. “The Easley YMCA, with its rich history that spans six decades, has been a cornerstone in health, wellness, and community engagement. But, as time marched forward, so did the Y’s aspirations. They envisioned a space that would not only meet the needs of today but also inspire generations to come. And, so, with great anticipation, they embarked on this transformative endeavor. And, thanks to their visionary leadership and the help of our team at USDA, they were able to set the wheels in motion for this project by securing a $14.2 million community facilities direct loan and a $1.5 million community facilities guaranteed loan. This financial boost allowed them to dream big and create a facility that will serve the heart of this community. This funding project provided the Y funding for the new construction of this beautiful facility. It allowed them to refinance debt for the YMCA pool. It provided funding for land acquisition and allowed them to purchase much needed equipment. As we stand here today, we are reminded of the words of your local YMCA President and CEO Sid Collins: ‘God is doing amazing things in our Easley community. The mission of the Y is still alive, thriving, and stands as a beacon of hope for thousands of people in this community.’
“So, my friends, let’s celebrate with you this grand opening ceremony, a symbol of new beginnings, community, and shared purpose. Together, we celebrate progress, health, and community. May the Easley YMCA continue to shine brightly for years to come. We truly believe when rural America prospers, all America prospers.”
Lori Raad, of the YMCA Board of Directors, thanked Bittiker and Walker. “The USDA has been a welcomed partner in making this amazing place possible,” Raad said. “A big thank you, to you and your team, and thank you for being here with us to share in our joy today.”
Raad then told the crowd, “I started my role in January, just in time to take a victory lap. I take over for Eric Goodwin, who has been a rock throughout his time as Chair.
“It’s time,” she said. “The doors are opening, finally swinging open. Thanks for your patience. So much hard work and patience, love, and prayer, as Lawson said, have gone into this.” She explained that the YMCA represents the hands and feet of Jesus, “friends and neighbors binding together to serve and to be God’s light in our community. And we’ll continue to shine a light on what God has done here. But there is so much more in the works. Some of you may have heard that there is a child development center in the works. The sports programs are growing. The pools are going in. There are so many more things, so many more needs. But I am here to ask you today to praise God and celebrate the joy today. But we’re going to keep moving together.
“I want to take the time to thank some lead donors that have really swung the whole operation into motion, starting with our Capital Campaign Chairs, Charles and Libby Dalton. Charles and Libby did not hesitate to join and lead this effort, and we are truly grateful. Ellison S. and Noel P. McKissick Foundation, for which this facility has been named, a very humble thank you. John Roberson of Palmetto Martial Arts, David Crow of Benson Ford Nissan, Larry and Carmen Brotherton, Eric and Anna Goodwin, Patrick Rivers with Land Planning Associates Corporation, Duane and Susan Greene with Durham Greene Construction, the Janice Childress Foundation, the Youngblood Family, the Nalley Family, Susan and Bill Brooks with Capri’s Italian Restaurant, and the City of Easley. We thank each and every one of those lead donors with a deep thank you from our hearts.”
She then introduced Sid Collins, YMCA President and CEO. “Sid has worked over every detail in shepherding this project through his unmatched professionalism, and I see Jesus in him every day,” she said. “I simply cannot wait to see what else God has in store for us.”
Collins said that the moment felt surreal, that it was finally here after talking about it and dreaming about it. “We are serving people and we are impacting lives day in and day out,” he said. “Part of this is to say thank you. But, rather than just going through a list of thank you’s, I’m going to share a story about how we got here and then what the future looks like.
“When we think about the Easley Y, of course, we’re thinking present tense, but the vision for all of this really started 67 years ago when a group of Easley leaders got together and said we need a YMCA in our town. If you read the original minutes, it’s really inspiring. They wanted to impact youth. They wanted to have a place for folks to come get healthy, and they wanted to have a community center. They wanted to have a place where the community could gather and get to know one another.
“So, the leaders got together, and one of those was Ellison McKissick. Some of you know him as Bubby. He was a part of the original board, and he and the Board got the original land, the original lot next door. And they got together, and, in four years, they opened up, unlocked the doors to the YMCA next door. Ironically, tomorrow, we’re going to lock those doors. So, for 60 something years, that building has served well. When we did the studies, the original thought was to tear that building down, it’s had a good run for 60 years, it’s really no longer needed, there’s really not a whole lot of use for it. The engineers looked at it and said this thing is built like a tank, it’s not going anywhere, it’s got a lot of life left in it. There’s a lot of life left in that building, so, we’re going to refurbish it to continue our mission next door.”
Five years ago, he said, after leadership studied and decided upon the endeavor, they needed to figure out how to pay for their big vision. “We made a decision to launch a $3 million capital campaign, which has never been done in the city of Easley, outside of churches and hospitals. For a community non-profit, it’s the largest campaign. We kind of sweated and said can we really do this? I’m excited to say we did. We raised right at $3 million to help make this thing happen. We asked Charles and Libby Dalton to lead the campaign, as was already mentioned. We went to the son of Bubby McKissick and said, ‘Your Dad was a part of this. Do you want to be a part of this, as well?’ And it didn’t take him long to say yes. And he came up with a significant gift to help get us where we are today. And, then, we had more asked after that, and it was just amazing what God was doing.
“Through our capital campaign, with our friends at the USDA, we secured the funds we needed, and we had to bring in some partners. So, at that time, we brought in SGA architects, and, then, through selection, had Hogan Construction come in, and, so, I would like for y’all to stand up and be recognized for the work y’all have done. This team got us to the building we’re standing in now. It has been a roller coaster of a ride, especially the last couple of weeks.
“But here’s something else that happened. When we were doing our campaign, part of what we did was naming our rooms, different rooms that donors could select, based on a few criteria. But one room was never selected. For whatever reason, a room was not picked, which I thought was odd, because it’s the room that we serve all of our children in for after school and summer camps. If everyone looks to your right, through those double doors, is our multi-purpose room. That’s where we have our school age child care, after school and summer camps. Also, we do birthday parties, and family reunions, and really fun HOA meetings will happen in there, all kind of things. It really ends up being a community center, if you will.
“If y’all remember, last year, tragically, one of Easley’s finest lost his life, Matthew Hare, serving in the line of duty. It was really just right up the road, and it was tragic. What a lot of people don’t know is Matthew Hare was a YMCA kid. He was here for about 13 years. And he was a part of the Y family. So, we were heartbroken, and the community had an amazing outpouring of support for him. It was touching what everyone was doing. We wanted to really say, how can we honor him and his legacy and share his story, not just one time, not through an event, but for years to come, and maybe even tie it into the kids. Well, guess which room was never named — our multi-purpose room. So, we made the decision, we brought it up to the Board, and they immediately said, ‘Yes, let’s do this.’ So, we reached out to Matthew’s family, his mother Ashley, and she was quickly on board. I talked to Chief Liner, Brandon Liner. It is a true honor and a privilege, if you don’t know this, to let y’all know that that room is now the Officer Matthew Hare Multi-Purpose Room. And I refuse to let y’all leave without ya’ll walking through there and seeing the sign and reading the sign. It is a great tribute to him. And that is just one of many stories of what God’s been doing here.
“So, here we are. We’re in a new building, but this is the exact same mission as we had next door. It’s really the same mission we had back in the ‘60’s. We’re doing the same work, just in a new space. It’s a lot bigger. It’s a lot brighter. The building is not our mission. Our mission is not to build spaces. Our mission is to change lives for Christ. We just needed new space, and we are excited about the space. We celebrate today. If y’all know me at all, we’ve still got work to do. We’re not done. We’ll celebrate for a few minutes, but then we’re going to get back to work. As you’ll see, right through those windows, they’re out there building a pool… We do need an aquatics director, still. We’re going to finish building this pool. We need to start renovating next door. Our friends at Durham Greene are going to take on that project. We’re going to find new money, so we can get that thing started, because the need for the child development center and the senior center is unreal. We’ve got to get that need moving.
“We have a good bit of funds to build a child development center in honor of Jimmy Wilson at Powdersville. We’ve got those plans really ready to go. We’re just looking for funding to make that happen. And then, yes, there are needs in Pickens. We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us. We are not done by any stretch.
“It’s clear that God is still using this YMCA, and it’s our job, as leaders, to be faithful stewards to make sure that we continue that until it’s time for us to hand off that football to whoever else is going to lead after us. But our mission shall remain eternal just as Christ is, and that is a commitment that I will always have as the CEO of this YMCA.
“I want to recognize two groups. First is our amazing staff. A lot of them are standing in the back. If you are in leadership here or get a paycheck here, would you please raise your hands, so everyone can see you. A few years ago, I was blessed to serve as Chair of the South Carolina Y Alliance, which allowed me to kind of see a lot of the Ys up close. I can tell you, without a doubt, I would put our staff up against any other YMCA in the state, Southeast, or even the country. We have an amazing staff. Just watching them over the past couple of weeks, they would not let up. It is inspiring to watch our folks work, day in and day out. Specifically, folks that really worked hard to make this happen, Ryan, Adrianne, Alida, Christy, Suzanne and your team, Brandon, Jennifer and Jennifer, Dennis, Katie, Hannah, Chase, Ryan Smith, y’all are awesome. Thank you for your work in helping us get here today.
“And the last group I want to show great appreciation to is our Board of Directors. It is an honor for me to work alongside some really smart people that make some great decisions, that help guide us, that I can call and get insight. The work that we do, not just this building, but the work that the Y does is a true community effort. It is done by hundreds and hundreds of people, all led by our governing board. And it is an amazing group to work for. It’s an honor to work with them day in and day out. The work and the insight and the wisdom is just amazing. I am a blessed man to work alongside them.
“So, with that, I want to share a little story about a couple of them. We started this conversation back in 2018, about the Easley Y, and Mike Dosher was our Chair at the time. We were just coming off the heels of opening up Powdersville. That was explosive growth down there. So, we were expanding the Powdersville Y, and Mike was rotating off, and Jim Liddle came along, and we were Gung ho about this building was going to be built in the next two years and we were going to be done by 2021. Well, the Covid disease came along and just derailed everything. And, so, instead of working on this project, we worked on surviving. And our Y did an amazing job getting through that.”
They re-launched the campaign, he said, “got back in design mode, and started getting things going, and Jim rotates off and then Eric comes on.” Then, they faced challenges with costs. “It was reality across the country,” he said. “We were just fighting to really get things going. Prices were going up, and our money was coming down. We were trying to figure out how to do this. We were cost cutting where we could. That’s how it was everywhere. That wasn’t unique to us. So, that’s the challenge that we were in, but we had great leaders throughout this, Jim and Eric. I’m thankful for y’alls leadership in helping us get through all that and getting us here. And, Lori, I’m excited that you get the victory lap. You get to come in and be the closer. But I’m going to ask those three to be the main ribbon cutters today.
“So, as I close, I want to thank you for coming today. This is an exciting moment. I am thankful for each one of you. I am thankful that God has blessed this YMCA. I am excited to see what He’s got on the horizon for this organization. And our constant prayer needs to be, what does it look like for us to be faithful and good stewards, day in and day out. That’s all we can do, and just go where He leads us, whatever that looks like. So, with that, thank you for coming.”
Suzanne Flaugher then instructed the crowd that, after the ribbon cutting (which included YMCA Board members, members of the USDA, Easley Chamber of Commerce President Cindy Hopkins, capital campaign cabinet members who were present, representatives from Hogan Construction, and lead donors who were present), then everyone in the gymnasium would be dismissed out of the gym doors. “We’re going to get a really cool group photo,” she said, noting that a drone would take a photograph of the crowd out front. Then, the doors would be officially unlocked, for everyone to enter and take a self-guided tour of the facility.
According to the YMCA, the new Easley YMCA facility will include: more than 15,000 square feet that includes a fitness center, a strength center, training room, group exercise studio, and spin room, also community space called The Hangout near the lobby, an indoor track above the gymnasium, and an outdoor one-mile walking trail around the YMCA campus.
Photos below show the inside of the new Easley YMCA and construction of the new pool. (Photos by Karen Brewer)
