Palacio Podcast
Alfredo Velasco Grew Up in the YMCA. He Went on To Lead One.
Alfredo Velasco is President and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Long Beach. Velasco heads an organization that, according to the organization’s website, encompasses a service area with a population of nearly 850-thousand people, six branches, numerous childcare sites, as well as a number of other facilities. It is an organization that he knows well. He should, he practically grew up in it.
“I was about eight years old. My mother signed us up for swim lessons at Burbank YMCA. My two brothers and my sister and I began with swim lessons.”
But those lessons came with a price; a price the family couldn’t afford at first. Velasco’s mother applied for and received financial assistance.
“I never forgot that. It spoke to me of the value that the YMCA has for its whole community and that it wasn’t going to leave any child behind.”
The swimming lessons led to basketball, flag football, and a punt, pass and kick contest. The latter would preview a future experience for Alfredo Velasco. He would go on to UCLA football as a place-kicker player. All that exposure to the Y made it easier for Velasco to accept a position when the Y came knocking after college.
For Velasco, those early days at the Y mirrored the mission of the organization. As he explains it, “The Y’s mission is to help all people realize their fullest potential through services and programs that we provide for the community.”
The mission and the impact of the Y on his own life were among the topics that Alfredo Velasco shared during an interview with PalacioMagazine.com at his offices on Long Beach Boulevard.
The Mission of the Y
“The YMCA of Greater Long Beach is a purposeful and collaborative cause-driven movement that is responsive to community needs. In every neighborhood, we lead through inclusive ad innovative services that unite community partners, connect individuals and families to improve the health and well-being of all.” For more information on the Y’s mission, visit HERE.
Alfredo Velasco Biography
“Alfredo Velasco’s life began in Mexico City where he immigrated to the United States in the 1960s. His family grew up in Burbank and he remembers being supported by the YMCA through financial assistance. Later, he attended UCLA on a football scholarship (Velasco became an All-American placekicker) where he graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in History.
After graduating from college, he moved to San Diego and the YMCA came knocking. Alfredo Velasco was the Regional Executive Director for the YMCA of San Diego, where he served for twenty-three years. Velasco has been the President & CEO for the YMCA of Greater Long Beach since June of 2013. He currently serves various State and National Boards while locally serves as a Foundation Board Member of the Long Beach Rotary Club.”
