There's no shortage of fond memories from people who've attended a YMCA camp. But Clarence Jones' story is a little different.
After graduating high school in Chicago, Clarence moved to the Twin Cities, where a YMCA staffer invited him on a trip to Camp du Nord in Ely, Minnesota.
He had been fishing before, but this trip brought a first.
"That was where I saw the first fish I caught with an artificial lure," Clarence recalls. "That just blew my mind because I'm from Chicago, where we use worms."
Interestingly, though, that's when the Y started to reel in Clarence, who didn't grow up in Chicago with a strong connection to the Y.
"I was doing a lot of community work, and I got connected to Henry Crosby," Clarence says. "The Y was dealing with public health issues, and the Y was involved in a variety of different things. That fit my sphere of interest and influence. It wasn't just the impacts of the Y but the possibilities of the Y."
He served on the board at the Cora McCorvey YMCA and the Harold Mezile North Community YMCA before joining the YMCA of the North board this summer.
Check out highlights of Clarence's interview:
On the Y's broader impact: “Sometimes people look at the Y, they think about the gym, they think about the swim, but there’s a bigger picture that people are missing about the Y. And that’s the picture that I look at, which is the social determinants of health. How does the Y really help our communities to become healthier? The gym and swim are important, but then you got the nutrition, then you got the stress, then you got the health, and all those other kinds of things. For me, the Y is a great resource, a great ally, a great collaborator. It is something that is bi-directional because I wanna make sure that I’m providing support to the Y as much as the Y can support me.”
On what inspired him to join the board: “I'm a community member. I know there's a lot of people on the board that have a lot of money. That's not what I can do or how I choose to support the Y. I know the Y is looking to make an impact, and in my position, I believe that I can fit in where I can get in, and showcase the value of the Y in a way that sometimes people don't see. I believe that there are many things that I can bring to the table that will help the Y to help me so I can help my community to become better. I’m bringing my A game. I want the Y to look good.”
On Y's focus on well-being for all: “I think the Y has the potential to touch many areas, based on the the interest of the various Y locations. Some Ys are situated for for young adults. Some are more for seasoned people. Some are more for families. So you got to take a look at that and determine how to interface with the community to address its particular demographics.”