“On Wednesday 25th May we learned the desperately saddening news that Paul Cloke, a Trustee for YMCA Exeter, had died following a heart attack. Paul was an amazing Man of God, who put his all into his Trusteeship at both YMCA Exeter and St. Petrock’s. Before becoming a Trustee, Paul was greatly involved in volunteering with…
Councillor Phil Bialyk officially opened YMCA Exeter’s brand new Sidwell Studios with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday 10th May, 11am. The event, attended by city and county Councillors, marks the unveiling of a fantastic joint venture to tackle Exeter’s 1-bed housing crisis by taking an abandoned warehouse near the city centre and converting it into…
As we look forward to the opening of our brand new Sidwell Studios, we also want to take a moment to praise God for the incredible heritage we’ve been blessed with over the years. We’ve recently had the privilege of welcoming Bob Whitchurch (YMCA Exeter Chairman 1986-1996) back as a volunteer and it’s been amazing…
Thank you to everyone who came along to Sleep Easy on Friday 11th March and to everyone who supported us in so many ways. The amount of involvement, support, creativity and commitment was wonderful, and we thank all the participants and their supporters for raising a fantastic £7,000. This is going directly to help with…
Today we are celebrating International Women’s Day and what better way to start than by hearing from the first female President of YMCA Europe and YMCA Exeter’s valued partner, Emma Osmundsen. ——– It’s 4 o’clock in the afternoon. Emma Osmundsen is supposed to be on holiday, but when I interrupt her day with a phone…
Callum Hardy was 18 years old when he slept rough for around five months. Here he tells his story: At 18 I found myself homeless and sleeping rough. I can remember the first night. I was scared. Lost. And cold. So cold. The hardest part was falling asleep. I didn’t know what would happen to…
YMCA Exeter resident, Natalie Overson was 16 years old when she staged a sleep-in with fellow youth, determined to keep their youth centre in Okehampton open. “When we heard our youth centre was going to be shut, we couldn’t believe it. There was no way we were going to let it happen,” explains 23-year-old Natalie…
Residents treated to an early Christmas tradition Opening their front doors on 6th December, each of our residents discovered they’d been treated to gifts from St Nicholas – famous for his kindness – and traditionally celebrated by children across parts of Europe. The surprise gifts were thanks to the hard work of our German intern,…
Over 80 guests, YMCA Exeter residents, staff and friends from the past and present joined us at our Service of Thanksgiving in Exeter Cathedral on Sunday 7th November. We celebrated together, sharing the evening with our President, the Rt Rev’d Robert Atwell, Bishop of Exeter, the 175 years of working in the city and local…
Our October half-term fundraiser saw some fantastic bake sales take place across the city in support of YMCA Exeter’s work with local young people. A few highlights of the week were our friends at Exeter City Living raising an incredible £184 at their staff team social event. Local Estate Agents, Wilkinson Grant, kindly contributed a…
