| Show YEARS OF BROTHERHOOD YMCA Charts Five-Part Program To Cover Rural Areas of Nation second of two One hundred years ago the Young Men's Christian known familiarly to four generations of Americans as the was founded in the U. S. to fight degradation and delinquency in the in planning its next the YMCA Is going to move into small towns and rural The YMCA began aiding servicemen during the Civil War when Y called by the followed both armies to serve decently cooked hot help tend the wounded and insist on the humane treatment of prisoners of In the Spanish American they introduced doughnuts and coffee to At one battle they arrived with their rations some three hours ahead of the During World War the according to General performed 90 per cent of the welfare work for soldiers overseas and during the recent as the YMCA comprised one-third of the soldier-service organization known as the The best of the Y's hundred years of experience will go into the new five-part program designed to cover non-urban The organization will work this The Small City to operate as independent units in cities under The Town and Country covering both farms and small towns in a single county or group of The County covering n rural area centered about a large The Outreach extending from a thriving city YMCA to cover small neighboring The District all directed by the state YMCA organization but sponsored socially and financially by the area V FINANCIAL Of will play a large part in the Y's scheduled rural YMCA officials emphasize that the Y cannot and will not begin at the outset to construct streamlined with hotel meeting rooms and swimming pools in order to lure A they must establish a firm spiritual foundation and a record for concrete service to the community before it can begin to think in terms of permanent the organization burden will fall largely on the rural a YMCA career man who has been given special training for his job more likely than been educated at one of the Y's twenty-five degree-granting He will like the founders of the first YMCA in Boston in December of by interesting social-minded members of the community in the Y He may work through churches of all denominations or through the public Depending upon how long he has been in the area he will spend three months to a year observing local and then report lengthily to his superiors on in his the YMCA can best improve its foothold In your community and extend its services to the people who live The stated purpose of the which is to develop Christian leadership among the nation's has already helped to mould the character of such YMCA alumni as President U.S. Supreme Court Justice Gene Senator Robert Taft of Ohio and thousands of other figures of national Its fondest hope for the future is that it can help to build similar qualities in the young men and women who must see the nation safely through its next hundred |
