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History

The Pocono Family YMCA was established on July 17, 1914 as the "Young Men's Christian Association of the Stroudsburg's" for the purpose of improving the spiritual, mental, social and physical condition of young men. In 1945, the name was changed to the "Young Men's Christian Association of Monroe County" and the purpose was expanded to read "to promote the spiritual, intellectual, social and physical welfare of women, men, girls and boys". In 1982, the name of the association was changed to "Pocono Family YMCA" to better reflect the community we serve.

Currently the YMCA serves nearly 6,000 members and program participants throughout the year. The Pocono Family YMCA is seen as the major human services organization in the county. The YMCA's strongest program areas are youth programs, older adults' programs, aquatics, and fitness. The YMCA has a large variety of programs including parent/ child programs, full time child care, school- age child care, pre-school, day camps, youth and adult sports, swim lessons, swim team, lifeguard classes, CPR, first aid, dog obedience classes, adult exercise programs, aerobics, special needs programs, arthritis exercise and much more.

The Pocono Family YMCA service area is Monroe County. With a full facility on Main Street in Stroudsburg, an extension in Paradise Township and program locations throughout the County. The YMCA has recently begun an initiative to provide more programming to the eastern portion of the county.

The YMCA's current Main Street building consists of 4 major building projects. The first YMCA was built in 1915. In 1955 the main portion of the building was added - the gym, pool and front 3 floors of the building, including the third floor residence. In 1985 the fitness center and aerobics room were added and the upper part of the 1915 building was converted into racquetball courts. In 1993 the adjacent Lim property was purchased and turned into the Learning & Caring Center which now houses some of our child care programs.

Mission Statement
To be an open organization that puts Christian principles into practice through programs that build a healthy spirit, mind, and body for all. We build strong kids, strong families, and strong communities throughout Monroe County.

The Pocono Family YMCA is a not for profit charitable organization organized under paragraph 501,c,3 of the internal revenue code. It is dedicated to developing spirit, mind and body. Based on Christian principles, the YMCA serves all people regardless of religion, race, income, age, ability or sex.

Vision Statement
As the Pocono Family YMCA, we will make significant and positive contributions to the quality of life in our service area. We will do so by focusing on the development of youth and families, by developing a strong primary facility on Main Street in Stroudsburg, and by pursuing program and facility development sites throughout Monroe County.

Quality and Service
We believe that we offer, by far, the best value for your money anywhere in the county. We also realize that you are giving us a significant portion of your disposable income. In exchange, you can expect to get what you pay for with regard to quality and service. If you are not satisfied, please let us know by filling out a comment sheet available at the Member Services Desk. We will stand by our quality promise.

Rights and Expectations of Members
As members of our Association,
• You have the right to the use of our facilities as described in our membership policies. • You have the right to be treated with respect and dignity by our staff and by your fellow members and their guests. • You have the right to expect that our facilities will be clean and safe. • You have the right to expect top of the line equipment, in safe working order. • You have the right to expect that we will honor our posted schedules with classes and programs starting as listed and on time. • You have the right to expect to receive refunds only as allowed in our published policies. • You are expected to follow our four core values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility. • You are expected to pay your bills on time or to call our business manager to make acceptable arrangements. We will ALWAYS work with someone who will show the YMCA the respect of communicating with us.

The Association’s Rights and Expectations
As fellow members of our Association,
• We have the right to expect our members to treat each other and our staff with respect and dignity. • We have the right to expect that our equipment and facilities are treated properly and within the parameters of their intended use. • We have the right to expect our members to follow posted rules and policies. • We have the right to receive payments on time as scheduled and to collect late and other fees as listed in our policies.

Program Card Responsibilities
Program cards are issued to non-members when registering for a class. These cards must be presented to our Member Services staff in order to gain entry to the program area. Cards are to be picked up on the way out.

Membership Card Responsibilities
Membership cards are issued upon joining the Pocono Family YMCA. Adults and youth are issued photo cards. These cards are necessary for entry into the facility and must be presented at the Member Services desk and picked up when you leave the facility. If you lose your card there is a $5 replacement charge.

Membership Policies
We are a membership-based organization. We seek to build long-term relations with our members, and our policy is to offer one year and perpetual memberships. Normally, with the exception of bona fide part year residents, we will not offer shorter membership periods. We open our doors to all that are willing to commit to our principles, values, and policies. The repetitive use of our facilities is reserved exclusively for our members. At our Stroudsburg facility non-members are limited to three facility visits per calendar year. After those visits, we ask that you join us. Members and guests that will not abide by our posted code of conduct will be asked to leave. Repetitive violations of our code of conduct will result in loss of membership privileges.

Benefits of Membership
Coffee and tea are available to our member’s weekdays from opening until 1:00p.m for a donation of $0.50. This service is for members and staff only.

Child Watch
Child Watch is a babysitting service provided as an added benefit while members are in the building doing their exercise programs. This service is not to be confused with ChildCare.