YMCA of London Ontario

YMCA of London Ontario Student`s Name: School`s Name: IntroductionAs an international and autonomous non-profit organisation the Young Men`s Christian Association (YMCA) has focused on issues dealing with human service needs of both genders as well as their health simultaneously. Apart from dealing with both genders, they have also included all age groups into their targeted areas of assistance. This organisation was founded in 1844 in London England. The main reason for its formation was the industrial revolution which resulted to unhealthy social conditions. George Williams, its founder, wanted to instil the Biblical core teachings into the street life and he had hoped that a substitution would be made to include prayer and Bible study into the streets. The organisation grew rapidly and by 1851, in Great Britain alone there existed 24 YMCA`s with a new branch being opened in Montreal Canada. By, 1854, the YMCA had nearly 400 branches in nearly ten nations worldwide and had a membership exceeding 30,000. By the year 2005, the YMCA had branches in more than 100 countries (YMCA, 2009). From their previous management style (centralisation) when the organisation was in its inception stage, the management of YMCA has slowly changed to embrace a more decentralised approach. Most of the branches are now fully independent; additionally these branches have got their own unique economic, social, political and cultural situations. However, this new found independence has not changed the founding spirit of the organisation which was to cater for the spiritual, mind and body as well as catering for the community, advocating for social change, better leadership and creating a passion for the youth. Effectiveness of the YMCA The Canadian YMCAThe Canadian YMCA`s intention was development stimulation and fostering of strong member associations. It also advocated for its members both internationally, nationally and regionally. The organisation was overseen by a federation which was governed by a national board of directors (on a voluntary basis) and they oversaw the implementation of national plans and priorities. The members association nominated the volunteers to serve as volunteers board members. The person`s responsible for the national operations were the YMCA Canada`s president and the CEO who were accountable to the board. Services OfferedThe YMCA Canada provides all people of all ages, additionally it also does not discriminate abilities or the background of a person. It works towards helping the attainment of a healthier lifestyle and encouraging the community members to make their community a better place to live in. Financial assistanceThe YMCA is a charitable organisation, and as such it relies on community support. Furthermore, it relies on other agencies, governmental or non-governmental as well as relying from assistance from the private sector of the economy to get financial assistance to enable the organisation meet their goals. The organisation too relies on fundraising campaigns. These pools of financial contributions and schemes have helped it provide better services, programs and provision of better facilities. Moreover, it has enabled YMCA Canada be able to reach as many people as possible through the financial assistance. Assessment of its profileYMCA has partnered with its members association and they have come up with several ways to measure their performances. However, due to the autonomy and the independent nature of the current YMCA`s implementation measures were to be adopted on a voluntary basis. YMCA Canada however has been on record encouraging the use of the performance measures to help the individual organisation rate their performance against each other. YMCA Canada is of the view that a strong YMCA should offer diverse programs which should be accessible to the whole community. It should also demonstrate considerable growth over a period of time and it should have the capacity and authority to impose its strategic priorities to influence the community. Furthermore, it should be regarded as an important contributor to the community by the community it is serving. Most importantly it should keep in line with the provision of spiritual, mind and body nourishment while bettering the society since this are the core values of any YMCA. Operational ProceduresThe YMCA through childcare has served nearly 30,000 children. In the year 2004, the organisation had worked with over 10,000 health, recreation and fitness facilities. It partnered with HFR memberships to ensure that nobody was turned away from their facilities due to payment inabilities. The fundraising and development activities responsibilities were moved to the YMCA of London Fou...