Chief Executive Officer

THE OPPORTUNITY AT THE YMCA OF THE GOLDEN CRESCENT 
The YMCA of the Golden Crescent is seeking a dynamic, mission-driven Chief Executive Officer to lead a growing, community-focused YMCA serving roughly 10,000 members annually and tens of thousands of program visits each year. With branches in Victoria and Port Lavaca and Program Centers in Bay City, Gonzales, Palacios and Edna, the YMCA of the Golden Crescent serves communities in a multi-county area that reaches from the Texas coast to southwest of Houston, north of Corpus Christi and west towards San Antonio.    

The CEO will advance the Y’s cause of strengthening community through youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility while positioning the Y as a key partner in local collaborations and community initiatives.
With an annual operating budget of approximately $7 million, the CEO will lead a committed team, steward critical partnerships, oversee new facility growth, drive philanthropic growth, and ensure strong fiscal and operational performance across all branches and programs. The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker, a relationship-builder, and a visible and trusted community leader.

ABOUT THE YMCA OF THE GOLDEN CRESCENT
The YMCA of the Golden Crescent is a vibrant, mission-driven organization serving the heart of Texas’ Crossroads region. The association stands as one of the most impactful nonprofit institutions in the region. For a purpose-driven leader seeking an opportunity to shape community well-being at scale, the Golden Crescent Y offers the perfect blend of organizational stability, growth potential, and deep community relevance.

An Organization Rooted in Community
At its core, the YMCA of the Golden Crescent is a community anchor. Headquartered in Victoria and extending across the counties of Victoria, Calhoun, Matagorda, Gonzales, and Jackson—the Y’s reach is both wide and meaningful. Its branches and program centers in Victoria, Port Lavaca, Bay City, Gonzales, Palacios, and Edna allow the organization to serve diverse communities, from small rural towns to more urban centers. The association is known for stepping into spaces where families most need support, often becoming the essential provider of childcare, aquatics, fitness, and youth programming in places that might otherwise be underserved.

Because of this broad reach and recognized role in the region it serves, the YMCA of the Golden Crescent has earned a meaningful level of community trust. Parents rely on its licensed childcare and early learning programs for safety, stability, and developmental support. Local governments and school districts see the Y as a dependable partner. Families from all walks of life benefit from the Y’s commitment to ensuring that no one is turned away due to an inability to pay. This community trust offers a unique platform from which to launch new ideas, build innovative partnerships, and drive sustained community impact.

A Strong Foundation With Room to Grow
The YMCA of the Golden Crescent has a strong operational foundation. Its signature Barbara Bauer Briggs Family YMCA in Victoria is a membership hub with high utilization, strong program participation, and an engaged community base. Its Calhoun County YMCA serves as an anchor in Port Lavaca, while program centers in Bay City, Gonzales, Edna, and Palacios allow for additional outreach in communities seeking high-quality youth development and wellness services.
Successive years of facility improvements—including renovations to the Early Learning Center, enhancements across aquatics sites, and a new partnership in Bay City for an aquatics center and additional future club growth —signal an organization that invests intentionally in its future.

The recent integration of the region’s local university into the Texas A&M System represents a transformational opportunity for the YMCA of the Golden Crescent. As the university gains access to the System’s expansive academic resources, research capacity, and statewide influence, it is poised to elevate educational attainment, strengthen the local workforce, and attract new industries to the region. Expanded degree programs, enhanced faculty recruitment, and increased investment in facilities will benefit students and families while creating new pathways for collaboration with community partners—including the YMCA. For the Golden Crescent region, joining the Texas A&M System is more than an institutional change; it is a catalyst for long-term economic growth, innovation, and expanded opportunities for every generation.

Impactful Programs That Change Lives
The Golden Crescent YMCA’s program portfolio is broad, high-impact, and deeply aligned with the community’s needs.

Early Learning and Childcare
The Y operates multiple licensed childcare and early learning centers, including recent expansions that now allow the association to serve infants as young as 6 weeks. Renovations—such as classroom additions, interior upgrades, and new playground shade structures—reflect a commitment to providing a high-quality learning environment for children. Families across the region depend on the Y for safe, enriching, and affordable care.

Youth Development and Afterschool Work
The Y has significantly grown its youth development footprint, including new or expanded afterschool programs in Bay City and Gonzales. Youth sports, day camps, leadership programs, and seasonal initiatives round out a robust set of offerings that position the Golden Crescent Y as the leading youth-serving organization in the area.

Aquatics and Water Safety
The association staffs and programs numerous municipal pools—including in Edna, Palacios, Port Lavaca, and others—making it the region’s most influential provider of swim lessons and water safety programming. These efforts save lives, build confidence, and provide affordable recreation for families throughout South Texas.

Health & Wellness
From fitness classes to health coaching to senior programs, the Y’s wellness services consistently draw strong participation. The flagship Victoria branch alone sees more than 40,000 annual program check-ins, reinforcing the Y as a cornerstone of community well-being.

These programs are supported by the Y’s commitment to financial assistance, ensuring accessibility for all. Donors, local businesses and government, foundations, and volunteers entrust the Golden Crescent Y with resources because they see the real, measurable difference it makes.

A Leadership Role with Impact
This is not a bureaucracy-heavy, slow-moving YMCA Association. Instead, it prides itself as a nimble, community-centered organization where the staff consider their colleagues family and the communities they serve as neighbors.   

• With that strong team, the next leader will have the chance to:  
• Shape a long-term vision for growth across a multi-county region
• Expand early learning and afterschool capacity
• Strengthen partnerships with school districts, municipalities, and civic groups
• Elevate fundraising and steward major giving initiatives
• Lead dedicated branch executives and program directors
• Continue facility improvements and explore new capital opportunities
• Strengthen operational systems and build long-term financial sustainability

The board is deeply committed, supportive, and eager for a leader who will bring energy, authenticity, and strategic clarity to the next chapter of the Y’s work. Staff leadership is dedicated and mission-aligned, and they highly value a CEO who engages, invests in development, and supports a culture of belonging and accountability.

Our Mission
To put Christian principles into practice through programs that build a healthy spirit, mind, and body for all.

Our Cause & Values
To strengthen the foundations of community and instill the values of caring, honesty, respect, and responsibility.

Our Culture
The Y Experience – The Y Experience is built from our mission and encompasses the values and philosophy by which we serve and operate
Welcoming – We are open to all. We are a place where you can be yourself and find yourself in others.
Family – We believe our co-workers are more than just colleagues and friends, and we’re confident we are all committed to the Y mission and values.
Genuine – We value you and embrace your individuality.
Hopeful – We believe in you and your potential to do good in the world.
Nurturing – We support you as you become the best-version-of-yourself.
Determined – Above all else, we are on a relentless quest to make our community stronger.

Current Key Strategic Initiatives: 

• Purchase a Child Care Center in Gonzales
• Construction of Field House in Victoria
• Construction of Gymnasium in Port Lavaca
• Construction of Gymnasium in Bay City along with the Aquatic Center
• Construction of Gymnasium in Gonzales
• Currently becoming a Sponsor for the CACFP 

Membership: 4,948 Units; 10,135 people

Branch Information: 

• Barbara Bauer Briggs YMCA Branch
• Calhoun County YMCA Branch
• Bay City Program Center
• Gonzales Program Center
• Palacios Program Center/Express Y 

Core Programs:

• Child Care Early Learning Centers
• After School Program
• Summer Day Camp
• Youth Sports
• Fitness and Wellness
• Financial Development
• Heritage Club/Endowment

Annual Support Campaign: 

• Current Year Goal: $100,000
• Prior Year’s Total: $90,372
• Current Year’s Progress Toward Goal: $140,742
• Total number of people receiving financial assistance prior year: 275

Recent Capital Campaign: completed in 2018 around $3,000,000

CEO Direct Reports: 

• Regional Executive Director
• Associate Executive Director
• Marketing/PR Director
• Office Manager
• Gonzales Program Director

Board of Directors: 20 members with the following standing committees: Finance Committee

Financial Snapshot:

• Current Annual Budget Size: $7,000,000
• Current Debt: $2,000,000
• Current Endowment: $1,200,000
• Last year operating net: $-764,402
• Previous year operating net: $-3,062
• Previous year operating net: $1,115,920.6

ABOUT OUR COMMUNITY 

The Golden Crescent Region: A Connected, Family-Friendly Corner of South Texas
The Golden Crescent region of Texas, centered around Victoria and stretching across the communities of Port Lavaca, Bay City, Gonzales, Palacios, and Edna, is one of the state’s most quietly appealing places to live and raise a family. This multi-county area sits within a comfortable distance of Houston, San Antonio, Austin, and Corpus Christi, offering residents a more relaxed pace of life without giving up access to essential services, modern amenities, or meaningful opportunities. What makes the Golden Crescent special is its blend of small-town charm, community pride, outdoor access, and the growing strength of its institutions—qualities that continue to attract families, professionals, and retirees seeking stability, connection, and quality of life.

Victoria: The Region’s Hub of Services, History, and Opportunity
Victoria, the largest city in the region, serves as the cultural and economic hub. With strong hospitals, including Citizens Medical Center and DeTar Healthcare System, Victoria offers a level of medical care not always found in mid-sized Texas communities. Its school districts and private schools are known for engaged families, solid programs, celebrated fine arts, and strong extracurricular offerings.

Victoria’s historic downtown features preserved architecture, local shops, restaurants, and a growing calendar of community events. Families appreciate the city’s safe neighborhoods, many parks, youth sports programs, and the Riverside Park system—one of the largest municipal parks in Texas. Victoria is also home to a diversity of housing choices, from well-established traditional neighborhoods to new subdivisions designed around families and modern conveniences. With its university now aligned with the Texas A&M System, residents feel a renewed sense of momentum and broader educational options for local students.

Port Lavaca: Coastal Living and Natural Beauty
Situated on Lavaca Bay, Port Lavaca offers a relaxed coastal lifestyle with plentiful recreational opportunities. It has long been a favorite for fishing, birding, and boating enthusiasts, and Lighthouse Beach and Bayfront Peninsula Park are treasured community gathering spots. Families who love the outdoors appreciate its calm shoreline, piers, and the slower pace of coastal living. The community’s economy blends petrochemical industry jobs with tourism, fishing culture, and locally owned businesses.

Bay City: Growing Industry, Good Schools, and Family-Friendly Living
Bay City, located in Matagorda County and future home of the Y’s new aquatic center, is a community with growing economic opportunity thanks to manufacturing, agriculture, energy, and the nearby coast. Families are drawn to its highly engaged school district, active youth sports leagues, and affordable neighborhoods. Bay City offers an appealing balance of rural comfort and steady economic activity. The nearby Matagorda Bay Nature Park and coastline provide opportunities for fishing, kayaking, camping, and nature exploration, making it ideal for families who want outdoor access close to home.

Gonzales: Historic Charm and Strong Civic Pride
Gonzales is known for its rich Texas history—famous as the birthplace of the “Come and Take It” spirit—and its well-preserved architecture, courthouse square, and small-town pride. The community values its heritage, and its schools and civic institutions reflect that sense of shared identity. 

Palacios: A Quiet Waterfront Town with Cultural Diversity
Palacios is a smaller but culturally rich coastal community known for its shrimping industry, diverse heritage and laid-back waterfront lifestyle. Residents enjoy scenic walks along the seawall, fishing opportunities, and easy access to coastal wildlife. 

Edna: A Friendly Community with Small-Town Convenience
Edna, the county seat of Jackson County, is known for friendly neighborhoods, good schools, and a very manageable cost of living. Families appreciate its quiet streets, community events, and easy access to Lake Texana—one of the region’s top destinations for camping, fishing, hiking, and family recreation. 

A Region for Families and a Balanced Way of Life
Across the Golden Crescent, the common threads are stability, community, outdoor access, and affordability. The region offers:

• Quality hospitals and medical services uncommon for its size
• Strong schools with engaged families
• Diverse housing options, from renovated historic homes to new construction
• Outdoor recreation, including bays, rivers, parks, wildlife preserves, and the Gulf Coast
• Short commute times and low congestion
• A genuine sense of community connection

For individuals or families seeking a place that blends opportunity with livability—a place where people are known by name, children grow up with room to breathe, and work-life balance is achievable—the Golden Crescent region stands out as one of Texas’ most quietly appealing places to call home.

Information Sites:
City/County Website: victoriatx.gov 
Chamber of Commerce: victoriachamber.org
University/College: tamuv.edu
Hospital System: DeTar and Citizens
School System: visd.net