Something remarkable has been happening in Ketchum since the new Y opened its doors.
The invisible gate that had been steadily closing off that community started to open.
Little by little, Ketchum had been becoming accessible only to those who could pay the hefty price of admission or who could inhabit it with the temporary work visa that in other places is commonly known as a job.
Ketchum had been passively sending its young and its old packing. At the same time, it hid the welcome mat.
With the help of community-minded donors who contributed millions of dollars to the construction of the facility and with the help of the city of Ketchum that leased property to the Y for a tiny sum, the Y put out the welcome mat again.
It's teeming with activity—2,500 members and counting who range in age from tiny tots to octogenarians and who come from everywhere in Blaine County.
Now that's a growing community.
The Y ended the chilling silence that had crept into a town whose neighborhoods are largely uninhabited except during holidays when vacationers keep it at bay. There's a happy hubbub outside and inside the Y as kids and those who are kids at heart zoom down the pool slide to a watery crash or gear up for adventure on the climbing wall. Even teens—the most easily bored of our species—are finding the Y and its programs to their liking.
As a family-centered facility, the Y is bridging the gaps that separate people, even in small communities—age, income, ethnicity and geography. Sports and fitness are common ground, and the Y provides a space in which our unique mountain culture may regenerate and grow.
As visitors discover the facility, the pools at the Y will become an important amenity for them and should contribute to the viability and sustainability of the area's tourist-based economy.
The Y won't be everyone's cup of tea, to be sure. There is still room in the market for specialty gyms and exclusive facilities that will attract clientele with different needs and interests.
Like any new operation that has just opened its doors, the Y had some glitches that made people grumpy—traffic, parking, lighting to name a few—but the organization is addressing them. We are confident it will continue to change and adapt to people's needs and schedules.
The importance of having a community facility that welcomes everyone cannot be understated. It's a major step in creating strong valley-wide community bonds.
