New YMCA CEO makes goal to promote services

Ryan Quigley

Journal Pioneer

Working on promotion and expansion of services to outside of Summerside will be big goals for the YMCA, said its newly named chief executive officer Rick Cuttell.

Cuttell, who is a former Olympian and Pan American games competitor for both high jump and long jump, was recently chosen to be the organizations new C.E.O. for P.E.I. He has held executive director positions with organizations such as Wheelchair Sports Association (Saskatchewan), the British Columbia Soccer Associations, the B.C. College of Physicians and Surgeons, the B.C. division of the MS Society and most recently the Military Family Resource Centre of Saskatchewan.

Cuttell said right now they are focusing on promoting the YMCA around the province.

“We’re probably one of the best kept secrets the Island has,” he said. “Everybody in Summerside seems to know the YMCA and where we’re located and that’s fantastic. However when you go to some of the other parts of the province we’re not as well known.”

Cuttell said they have been working on assessing the needs of those in the province in order for the YMCA to serve the community better.

“So we want to not only to go and improve what we are currently doing in Summerside but get out to some of the outlying areas. It’s called our Outreach program and that would extend right into Charlottetown,” he said. “We’ve now changed our name from the Summerside YMCA to actually P.E.I. So now we’re a provincial organization so our mandate has changed to take a look at all communities, not just the one community.”

He said one of the things they do well right now is the Childcare centres and he wants to expand the option to other communities for disadvantaged families.

“One of the other areas we want to get into is the fitness type programs that are out there,” he said. “Obesity in our children is a huge, huge problem.”

Cuttell said the YMCA is currently seeking out partners in the communities and for facilities to use.

“I want to have another half a dozen partnerships come out and do a barbeque and support our Y kid’s Equip to Learn program as well as some of the other after school programs.”