Lindsay Young Downtown YMCA

🏆 We need your vote! 🏆

The YMCA is honored to be nominated in this year’s Community Choice Awards, and we’d love your support!

💙 Best Fitness Center
💙 Best After School/Summer Camp Program

If the YMCA has been your place to get stronger, make new friends, reach your goals, or simply feel at home, we’d be honored to have your vote!

Thank you for being part of our Y family and for supporting a place that’s so much more than a gym. Vote today and help us bring home both titles! 🏅

2026 Knox Stars Community's Choice Awards Voting Ballot Check it out now!

We're going to NORWAY! Join us!

Join Our April 2027 Trip to Norway!

Venture to a place where crashing ocean meets craggy mountains, forging the natural majesty of the Norwegian fjords. From Bergen to Oslo, you’ll be awestruck by the grandeur of Norway.

Interested? Come to a no-obligation interest meeting September 15th at 10am at the Pilot Family Y Outdoor Pool building.

Learn more: https://groups.gocollette.com/en-US/link/1433090

Week 7 🍎

This week, the YMCA of East Tennessee served 25,944 meals through our East Tennessee Grab & Go sites, YMCA Summer Day Camps, and community lunches at our outdoor pool.

Every week, families share messages of gratitude with us. This week, one story from a family in Rutledge especially touched our hearts (shared with permission):

"Hello, thank you so much for the food program. It's an enormous help.

Currently our family has undergone tremendous financial strain as on 6/4 they found a tumor, which was scheduled to be removed 7/7. We have not been able to get help with SNAP or TANF in any way, and without your program our girls would be without. As a parent missing many meals just to be sure the girls eat has been hard. Unfortunately Grainger County seems to be strained... We appreciate everything you do and are glad because it's not Knoxville. You don't exclude the children in the least from a program that is dire. The fact you offer it is amazing, and again thank you!"

This is why the YMCA serves communities far beyond our city limits. We work alongside schools, community partners, and local organizations to reach families in rural communities and other areas where the need is greatest.

This week, we're confident we'll surpass 200,000 meals served for the summer.

As we celebrate that milestone, we hope you'll remember that every single meal represents something much bigger than food; it represents hope, dignity, and one less child going hungry.

Thank you for supporting our YMCA and your neighbors across East Tennessee!

Week 6 of our Summer Food Program is in the books, and because of your support, 26,546 meals were served this week across 10 Grab & Go meal sites, 6 YMCA Summer Day Camps, and our community lunches at the Pilot Family YMCA Outdoor Pool.

That brings our summer total to an incredible 165,064 meals served!

From East Knox to Big Ridge, from Rutledge to communities across Union, Grainger, Blount, and Knox counties, we're intentionally reaching communities where families often live miles from the nearest full grocery store and where access to nutritious meals can be a challenge.

Thank you to our staff, volunteers, partners, donors, and supporters for helping us feed kids across East Tennessee!

All YMCA of East Tennessee locations will be CLOSED on July 4th, but the Outdoor Pool at the Pilot Y will be your holiday celebration headquarters, open from 10am-4pm!

Don't want to miss your workout? Add 24-Hour Access to your membership to work out on the Pilot Y fitness floor 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Learn more at
ymcaetn.org/news/24hour.

Step into the Roaring Twenties for a night that changes lives.

🎉 Tickets are officially on sale for the 2nd Annual YMCA of East Tennessee Evening of Impact Gala!

📅 Thursday, September 10, 2026
🕕 6:00–9:00 PM
📍 Riverview Family Farm

Put on your fringe, feathers, pearls, suspenders, or fedora and join us for an unforgettable evening featuring:
🎷 Live swing jazz & dancing
🎲 Fantasy casino games
🚗 Vintage Model A photo opportunities
🍽️ Heavy hors d'oeuvres & Riverview Farms ice cream
✨ Silent & live auctions, plus an inspiring paddle raise

Best of all, every ticket helps make YMCA programs like swim lessons, childcare, summer camp, and more accessible to local children and families through our Annual Campaign Financial Assistance Fund.

🎟️ Early Bird pricing is available July 1st–August 1st! Learn more and reserve your ticket at ymcaetn.org/events/evening-of-impact.

Own a business or know someone who does? Sponsorship opportunities are available and are a wonderful way to support families across East Tennessee while connecting with community leaders.

Let's celebrate, give back, and make an even bigger impact together.

Another week and thousands of summer meals reaching thousands of East Tennessee kids!

In Week 5 of our YMCA Summer Food Program, we served 27,865 meals across our 10 drive-through grab-and-go sites, 6 YMCA Summer Day Camp locations, and community lunches at the Pilot Y Outdoor Pool.

That brings our summer total to an incredible 138,518 meals... and counting!

Whether it's a camper enjoying lunch with friends or a parent picking up a week's worth of meals at one of our grab-and-go sites, every meal makes a real difference.

Want to be part of the impact?

👉 Volunteer at a grab-and-go site: https://qrco.de/bgiMQ0
👉 Sign up to receive meals: https://qrco.de/bgiLw

Thank you for helping us nourish children, strengthen families, and build a healthier community, one meal at at time!