JOLIET, ILLINOIS– The Greater Joliet Area YMCA has announced the hiring of Missy Durkin as the Operations Director for the Morris Community YMCA. Durkin will assume her duties in January.
A well-respected business professional, Durkin has spent the last 20 years living and working in Grundy County. In her new role with the YMCA, Durkin will lead programming, community involvement and operations efforts in the Morris community. She will work side-by-side with volunteers to assess how the Morris Community Y can best serve the residents of Morris and Grundy County, while introducing new fitness, child care, senior and youth programming. Under her leadership, the Y will look to partner with the residents of Grundy County to facilitate the grassroots efforts needed to open a full-facility YMCA in Morris.
“We are very excited to welcome Missy to our Y family,” said Katy Leclair, Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for the Greater Joliet Area YMCA. “We have been impressed with Missy’s high level of professionalism and her proven success with a number of organizations in Grundy County. I am confident that she is the right person to help us advance the Y’s mission in the Morris community. With Missy’s leadership and the support of our amazing volunteers, we are looking forward to expanding our presence in Grundy County and introducing new and impactful programs in the near future,” added Leclair.
Since 2008, Durkin has served as the Business Development Director for the Grundy Economic Development Council (GEDC). In her current role, she is responsible for business development and cultivating relationships with government and professional partners in hopes of bringing new businesses to Grundy County. During her tenure with the GEDC, Durkin has helped to oversee business attraction efforts that will represent $585 million of new investments and create more than 1,000 jobs in Grundy County.
Durkin Named Operations Director
Prior to joining the GEDC, Durkin worked for nearly six years as the Executive Director of the Morris Downtown Development Partnership (MDDP). While at the helm of the MDDP, Durkin worked with the organization’s board of directors and committee chairs to oversee the marketing, historic preservation and physical improvements of the Morris downtown district. In addition, she spearheaded logistics, sponsorship and marketing efforts for multiple special events in downtown Morris, including the inaugural Gus Macker 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament.
Durkin earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and marketing from Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. She resides in Morris with her husband, Robert, and their children, John and Katie.
the Y
The Y is one of the nation’s leading nonprofits, strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. Across the U.S., more than 2,600 Ys engage 21 million men, women and children to nurture the potential of children and teens, improve the nation’s health and well-being, and provide opportunities to give back and support neighbors. Anchored in more than 10,000 communities, the Y has the long-standing relationships and physical presence not just to promise, but to deliver, lasting personal and social change. To learn more, visit www.jolietymca.org.
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