Rockaway YMCA Hosts a 10-Year Anniversary Celebration

By Katie McFadden

The Rockaway YMCA is officially “10-ish” years old! On Thursday, May 29, the Rockaway YMCA welcomed everyone to celebrate more than a decade of the community space’s service to the community, and to honor some of the supporters who helped make it possible and continue to make the Rockaway YMCA great into the future.

At a ticketed and catered event with food from A & S at the Harbor Catering, supporters dressed in their best for the semi-formal event at the Rockaway YMCA itself. Membership Coordinator Rasheeda Brown hosted the event. “It’s our 10th anniversary!” she said to applause. Brown explained that while the Rockaway YMCA opened its doors in 2014, the covid pandemic shut it down for a while, so they were celebrating the big milestone a little later. “Since we’ve opened our doors, the community has shown us unwavering support, something we’ve seen through a strong membership campaign and community events. This past year has been all about building something meaningful, especially under our new leadership,” Brown said before introducing executive directory Areial Mathis, who started at the Rockaway YMCA in 2024.

“If there’s one thing Areial taught me, it’s this…take care of your people and they’ll take care of you,” Brown said. She then went on to speak of all the ways Mathis has helped improve the Rockaway YMCA since stepping into the role, including bringing indoor play programs, restarting a swim program for local second graders and helping to start the annual Thanksgiving turkey giveaway in partnership with two of the evening’s honorees, Tampa Bay Buccaneer Christian Izien and his mother, Michelle Matthews, and working with community partners outside of the YMCA. “Let’s enjoy this evening together as we celebrate 10-ish years of community, connection and commitment,” Brown said before Tim and Luis of LuTi played some fun music for the audience.

Mathis spoke about how after-school programs helped her and her siblings when they were kids and highlighted the impact that the Rockaway YMCA has made since coming to Rockaway. “This past year, we proudly served over 13,000 individuals and since opening our doors in 2014, we’ve impacted the lives of more than 51,000 people in this community,” Mathis said. She added that their after-school program has served 2,000 young people, their summer camp program has served more than 2,300 kids, and their swim program has served more than 8,000 youth, teens and adults with over 102,000 hours of swim safety instruction. Mathis then showed a video highlighting their swim lesson program for second graders, with many of the kids themselves speaking about the program and thanking Councilwoman Selvena Brooks-Powers for providing the grant funding to make it possible.

Brooks-Powers shared a few words, congratulating the YMCA on 10 years of “service, strength and community.” She said that even last week, she and Assemblyman Khaleel Anderson took their first swim lessons at the Y as they lead by example for local youth. “This place represents what’s possible when we invest in people and programs and in partnership. Tonight is not only a celebration of what the Rockaway YMCA has done. It’s a commitment to what we will continue to do together,” Brooks-Powers said. Lastly, she thanked Gerry Romski, Arverne by the Sea (ABTS) General Counsel and Senior Project Executive, who helped make the Rockaway YMCA and ABTS possible.

The evening highlighted some important members of the Rockaway YMCA family. Mathis began with acknowledging Izien and Matthews. “I can’t say enough about this incredible mother and son duo. They’re like the batman and robin of Arverne. Christian is a superhero in every sense of the word. He’s become an exceptional human being, humble, kind and committed to giving back, and when you meet his mother, Michelle, everything make sense,” Mathis said. She spoke of their efforts to start a Thanksgiving turkey and holiday giftbag giveaway last year, earning them the Honor Service Award.

Izien was unable to make the event but said a few words over the phone. Matthews accepted the awards. “I’m truly honored by this distinguished acknowledgement,” Matthews said. “I’ve been in Arverne for 28 years and one of the most impactful investments was the YMCA,” she said, saying that her family became original members. “The YMCA has never been just a gym. It’s been a cornerstone in our lives. That’s why we’re proud to partner with the YMCA to launch our Thanksgiving giveaway and holiday giftbags. It’s a tradition that is rooted in service, gratitude and community spirit.”

Next up, Brianna Askaran, a Rockaway YMCA fitness center coach, presented Roberto Rodriguez, an 83-year-old member of the Y who went through open heart surgery, with the Impact Award. “Four years ago, I was in a hospital bed. The doctor fixed my heart, but the YMCA gave me new life,” Rodriguez said.

Nancy Umba, a membership experience representative, recognized a rising member of the staff for her “hard work, resiliency and unwavering determination.” Evianny Campusano was given the Rising Star Award. “I’ve always stayed in the background trying to make things better. This is very much an honor,” Campusano said.

Sharon Levy, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs for the YMCA of Greater New York, then spoke about Queens Borough President Donovan Richards’ dedication to the facility from his days as a staff member for a councilman, then as councilman and now as borough president. Richards was acknowledged as a Community Champion Honoree. Richards began by thanking Romski for helping to make the Rockaway YMCA possible. He then spoke of the ways the YMCA has contributed to making Rockaway safer by providing a community space for people to go to, and how Rockaway is on the “come up” due to places like this and other investments he’s made. “Thank you for this award. This is home. This is much deeper than just an award from the Y. It’s about a community that has invested in me for 30 years. Thank you,” Richards said.

Lisa George, senior deputy chief of staff for Senator James Sanders, and a Zumba instructor at the Y shared some awards from the senator, for Izien, Matthews and the YMCA itself, and shared a story of how she got her start there. “When the day these doors were just about open, I kept calling but couldn’t get through, so I said I’m just gonna go there. I brought my radio and started dancing on the steps. The director came out and said, ‘why are you dancing on the steps?’ I said, ‘Because I want to teach here.’” George was hired on the spot and hasn’t looked back.

Thomas Dennard, Chair of the Rockaway YMCA Board, thanked the staff and said, “Since they built this building, our whole community has changed because we get people from the east and the west. And there’s so many activities here! My great-granddaughter is learning to swim here. The Y is outstanding.”

Lastly, Mathis thanked her team, the volunteers, the YMCA’s partners, donors and supporters and elected officials for everything. “On behalf of the Rockaway YMCA, thank you for your support over the last 10 years. We’ll see you for the next 10.”