Dear Members, Donors, Partners, and Friends:
At the LA Y, we teach young people that being the best person and doing the right thing will be worthwhile.
Today, we are reminded of that truth. We are humbled and so proud to have just received historic support from MacKenzie Scott – a Mom, a Writer, and an Advocate and now also, a benefactor of the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles.
This is well timed. In “normal” days, the LA Y brings vital services to more than 500,000 people a year from all walks of life while also successfully generating 80% of our total budget from earned revenue. In 2020, of course, our branches closed to protect public health, resulting in tens of millions of dollars in lost revenue for the Y.
Still, knowing that our neighbors were suffering emergency needs, we were called to do what the LA Y has done for nearly 140 years: we worked even harder. Continuing to do what is right during the pandemic, we – Y staff and thousands of volunteers from all across the County – have fed, clothed, cared for, cleaned, and provided medical care, community, and access to internet and tutoring to more than 1 million Angelenos.
All year, we have been blown away by how our local community stepped forward to support this work. Today, we know our impact earned national attention.
We did this work because it is the right thing to do. But we did not know how the LA Y would recover from what we expect to be two years of unprecedented financial losses. Now, we know we will recover. This means – thanks to MacKenzie Scott’s investment – we can use all new philanthropy to scale up our emergency support programs to help even more people.
There are still vast and persistent needs in Los Angeles. With your support, we will meet more of them than ever in 2021 and, together, we will help bring Los Angeles the recovery that all of her people deserve.
On behalf of our entire Y family of tireless staff, volunteers, and partner organizations, I send sincere gratitude and hopes for a healing holiday season.
Sincerely,
Alan Hostrup
President & CEO
YMCA OF METROPOLITAN LOS ANGELES
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