The Morris Community YMCA’s Capital Campaign, which is raising funds to develop a new 50,000-square-foot YMCA and healthcare center adjacent to Morris Grade School, is excited to announce a generous $25,000 gift from U.C. Davis-Callahan Funeral Home & Aqua Cremation Center, which will be recognized in the future full facility.
For more than a decade, the Morris Community YMCA has been serving residents in Grundy County by offering programs in the areas of youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. To further grow its impact in the community, the Y announced plans in 2018 for the development of a new full-facility in partnership with Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers. While the YMCA hopes to open this new facility within the next several years, the size, scope, and timing will ultimately be determined by the generosity of the community in support of this project.
“We are honored by the generous commitment UC-Davis Callahan has pledged with this gift to the Capital Campaign. It reflects their longstanding support of community organizations and we are excited by the impact it will have on our Y’s future,” Greater Joliet Area YMCA Chief Operating Officer Missy Durkin said.
U.C. Davis-Callahan Funeral Director John Callahan said he was excited to be able to contribute to a full YMCA facility in part because of the impact Y programming has had on his own family.
“Both of my sons enjoyed and benefited from use of the Ottawa YMCA. They both learned to swim at the Y and the experience has helped them through their adult lives. My oldest is now a swim instructor for the United States Marine Corps and my youngest became a scuba diver during his law enforcement career,” he said.
Callahan is looking forward to what the future facility will bring to the community, and was proud to maximize his charitable contribution by pledging his support for the Campaign over multiple years.
“For over 100 years, the funeral home has been extremely active in giving back to the city of Morris and we are proud to be part of this community. The coming years are going to be exciting times not only for the Y, but all residents of Morris,” Callahan said.
To learn more about the Morris Community YMCA’s Capital Campaign, please contact Chief Operating Officer Missy Durkin at (815) 513-8080 or visit www.jolietymca.org.
Pictured above: Greater Joliet Area YMCA Chief Operating Officer Missy Durkin, U.C. Davis-Callahan Funeral Home & Aqua Cremation Center Director John Callahan, Morris Capital Campaign Leadership Cabinet Member and Corporate Committee Co-Chair Steve Barr, and Greater Joliet Area YMCA President and CEO Katy Leclair.
