The Next Chapter for a Community Lifeline
What the YMCA's Expansion Says About Historic Generosity and an Exciting Future
PHOTOS BY MADI ELIZABETH AND PROVIDED BY YMCA OF WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA | DESIGNED BY MADDY LAROCK
TJ Wright’s journey from an energetic grade-school boy enjoying all the YMCA had to offer to CEO of YMCA West Central Florida is a quintessential story of the Y’s enduring impact. His personal history is just one thread in a rich, intergenerational tapestry that continues to define the organization, a tapestry woven with the stories of leaders, families and community builders who grew up within its walls.
The newly renovated (and truthfully, still being renovated until later this year) Bob Adams Family Community YMCA, a 160,000 square-foot multi-purpose athletic and fitness facility, is a cornerstone project that shows what’s possible when community members and organizations come together to fund a roughly $25 million upgrade.
Inside the striking new space is a state-of-the art weight room filled with Matrix Fitness equipment to serve all ages and abilities, an expansive turf field for indoor soccer, lacrosse, etc., new basketball courts and a one-tenth of a mile hanging track that is on par with what some Division I colleges feature.
Bob Adams, the namesake on the outside of the building, said it’s a privilege to have his name intertwined with the Jenkins family and other longtime local philanthropists over the years as his family has played a vital role in building what he proudly calls “an unbelievable asset” to Lakeland.
“I remember back in the summer of 1980 when the acting director said, ‘You know, the original plans had an indoor racquetball facility, but they just ran out of money,’” Adams recalls. “So I went and looked at the plans, thought it would be good to install some courts, and instead of trying to raise more money and put it out for bid, I said, ‘What the heck, I’ll build it myself.’ So we built out the racquetball courts.”
Adams, who has served on the board and helped fund updates to the facility numerous times, was primed to assist when former CEO Dr. Elaine Thompson made the financial ask necessary for the extensive overhaul—as were many other people.
Twenty-two individuals or families donated at least $100,000, as well as helped secure additional funding for the revamped campus. Their names are emblazoned on a plaque that highlights the “Elephant Club,” because of course, you have to eat an elephant one bite at a time.
Wright said recently that CEOs and colleagues from other YMCAs across the country have shared how remarkable, and even unusual, that breadth of support is, and if you ask the local donors, they will probably point to stories of young adults like Wright to indicate a surefire return on their investment.
Growing up in West Lakeland, Wright was introduced to The First Tee program by his cousin at the age of 9. This led to a routine of golf in the mornings at the YMCA Par 3, followed by afternoons at the Y for basketball, swimming and more. This wasn’t just recreation, Wright shares, it was a character-building experience.
Chantelle Hrubes, Chief Strategy Officer of YMCA of West Central Florida
TJ Wright, CEO of YMCA of West Central Florida
“My passion is making sure that everybody knows, for example, that we are literacy leaders, that we provide adult swimming lessons, that we offer specific programs to help women have healthy pregnancies, and things like that.”
“The First Tee program, we always say, is second to none,” Wright explains. “They mix life skills with the game of golf. We’re teaching kids respect, responsibility, integrity—those core values... I don’t think I would be the same person I am today had I not learned the game of golf.”
He credits the generosity of people like Andy Bean and Sharon Meyers for making the expensive sport accessible to him, showcasing the community support that makes the Y a reality. He would spend up to nine hours a day on the campus during the summer, a safe place that became his second home.
Many locals can relate with Wright’s experience, including YMCA board member Alice Nuttall, Associate Vice President of Behavioral Services at Lakeland Regional Health. She is also a “Y kid,” recalling learning to swim in the pool before she could even walk, and taking tumbling and ballet with Ms. Janet Santasusso, who, decades later, is now her next-door neighbor and still swims at the facility. “I share so many [moments] here with all of you—of life, of growing up, of moments that shaped me,” Nuttall shared with guests at the grand opening of the new facility on October 30, 2025.
Wright’s journey from member to employee started in 2018, when he was hired as a program coordinator. As he attended Southeastern University and eventually earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in nonprofit leadership, he earned many promotions to a variety of roles that helped him better understand employees, members, funding sources, strategic planning and more.
On January 29, 2025, the day his son Amari was born, his journey from youth golfer the Y to executive leader came full circle.
While in the hospital with his wife, Bre, he received a call from the board informing him he was being considered for the interim CEO role. At just 28, the young man who once needed the Y’s programs was now being asked to lead the entire association.
He said “Yes,” downsized his paternity leave and got back to work. He officially stepped into the role of full-time CEO several months later.
“I think TJ is a phenomenal leader,” says Chief Strategy Officer Chantelle Hrubes. “He has the respect of the community, he has the respect of his coworkers, and he just looks at things from a unique perspective.”
A FOUNDATION OF PEOPLE AND PERSEVERANCE
Wright’s perspective, as well as those of board members and other dedicated staff have been the catalyst for a powerful organizational turnaround. During the pandemic, the Y was in a moment of crisis, operating with only three months of reserves left. Wright says thankfully Thompson, who served as President and CEO of Lakeland Regional Health for more than a decade before becoming the President and CEO of YMCA of West Central Florida in 2021, helped instill a new culture of operational excellence.
“Elaine really challenged the status quo. She really challenged us to stick outside the box,” Wright says. “She raised our level of operations...and really got us thinking and evaluating everything that we did.”
The organization was lifted out of survival mode by a collective of staff, the board and donors. Upon her retirement, Thompson gave many individuals a “pickup stick” as a symbol of how they had collectively lifted the organization.
The community’s commitment to the Y is nothing new. Alice Nuttall’s father, Dick Johnson, shared a story from 1975, when he attended a dinner to support the Y at the old Lakeland Civic Center. On the walls were more than 1,000 index cards—each with the name of someone in the community—a testament to the people-powered fundraising efforts that have long fueled the YMCA.
This history informs the current CEO’s driving philosophy. “Everything that we do, I try to measure back against impact,” Wright explains, ensuring all new grants and programs are scrutinized against whether they are truly “moving the needle” for the community.
Lakeland’s first YMCA opened in 1977. The campus located on Cleveland Heights Blvd. has undergone many transformations over the years, thanks in part to the determination and financial support of Bob Adams (bottom photo).
STRATEGIC GROWTH AND A VISION FOR ALL AGES
Hrubes, a long-time Lakeland resident who spent 17 years in the education sector at Polk State College, brings a new strategic focus. Since joining the Y three-and-a-half years ago, her passion has been developing deeper community partnerships and expanding the Y’s reach. “I had no clue all that the Y had to offer before joining the organization,” Hrubes admits. “My passion is making sure that everybody knows our mission to positively impact the community: we are literacy leaders, we provide adult swimming lessons, we offer specific programing to aid in healthy pregnancies, and so many other opportunities besides just our most well-known youth sports, summer camps, VPK and after-school programs.”
The new strategy includes serving more individuals and families throughout Polk County, exemplified by the return to Lake Wales. The YMCA currently offers VPK and after-school programing at their new location on the campus of McLaughlin Academy of Excellence. Starting in August, the Y will offer full childcare services for children from six weeks to 12 years old at this location in partnership with the Polk County Schools to provide high quality early learning.
As you will see on much of the YMCA’s promotional materials, the organization insists it is “more than a gym.” Hrubes stresses its identity as a place of investment, belonging, connection and growth. In an effort to make programming as accessible to all populations as possible, the Y provides scholarships and accepts state-funded School Readiness assistance for their VPK, after-school and summer programs.
“No one will ever be turned away for financial reasons,” Hrubes asserts.
Part of the YMCA’s strength is thanks to longtime partners including Lakeland Regional Health, Publix Super Market Charities, United Way of Central Florida and GiveWell Community Foundation.
This commitment to the “whole child” is where the Y’s principles shine. The 175-year legacy of the organization founded on Christian principles is what you would expect of a global organization with core values that include: caring, honesty, respect and responsibility.
This focus on character is something Alice Nuttall sees firsthand in her own children. She said in October she had logged more than 1,000 hours on the basketball court with her 9 and 11-year-old boys. She once watched one of her sons play the “fiercest of defense” in one game, only to then “ease up” on a new, struggling team in the next, showing it was just as important to encourage as it is to win. “That’s empathy and strength in action,” Nuttall says.
While people enjoy the shiny new upgrades at the Bob Adams Family Community YMCA, infrastructure upgrades are ongoing in the childcare and additional gym space. Mainline plumbing is being updated, new basketball courts are being installed and a space dedicated to personal training is being built. By June, the campus will have doubled its basketball and soccer space, with plenty of room for future growth.
“I’m a Y kid who grew up in the YMCA, our director here (Zack Ford) grew up in the Y, so we have gone through the programming here as kids and we just kind of embody and live it,” Wright says. “I have seen the impact firsthand, I have felt the impact and that’s what drives me. Everything we do I try to measure back against impact.”
“I’m a Y kid who grew up in the YMCA, our director here (Zack Ford) grew up in the Y, so we have gone through the programming here as kids and we just kind of embody and live it. I have seen the impact firsthand, I have felt the impact and that’s what drives me. Everything we do I try to measure back against impact.”
- TJ Wright