Foundation Board Member- Volunteer

We’re Looking for Board and Committee Members
YMCA of Three Rivers: Call for Nominations & Expressions of Interest

The YMCA of Three Rivers is looking for Board Members and Committee Members to join our volunteer leadership team on or around September 1st, 2026. The following opportunities are available:

• Up to Four Board Member Seats – September 2026-August 2029, once renewable

These seats will replace Directors whose terms are coming due and will also expand the size of the Board

The Role of the Board

• To ensure that YMCA of Three Rivers Foundation fulfills its responsibilities, operates effectively, and acts in accordance with the principles of being ethical, accountable, collaborative, open, relational, divergent, and proactive.
• To support YMCA of three Rivers Management by overseeing Foundation investment accounts
• Drive the charitable mandate of the YMCA of Three Rivers through advocacy, fundraising, and friend-raising.

The Responsibilities of Board Members

• The Board is responsible for overseeing and governing the financial stability of the YMCA of Three Rivers Foundation, a collection of endowment funds and investments that are used to fund the YMCA of Three Rivers programs and services.
• The Foundation Board regularly communicates with the Board of the YMCA of Three Rivers to remain informed of the YMCA's priorities.
• Board Members are a resource to the CEO and Operational Leadership Team. They engage constructively at meetings, volunteer with intention, and continue to develop their own skills.

Time Commitment

Board Members are expected to:

• Actively participate in Board Meetings, held 3-4 times per year.
  One to two hours, typically held in person at a YMCA of Three Rivers location
• Review materials ahead of each meeting
  Approximately 30-60 minutes.
• Take part in additional meetings, events, or project work as required.

Composition of the Board

• Comprised of 6 Board Members diversely representing our Cambridge, Kitchener, Stratford & Waterloo regional communities, with on Chair and one Vice-Chair.

Making the Most of Your Board Experience

All volunteer roles should create mutual benefit, both for the volunteer and the organization. As a Board Member, you should expect a healthy and welcoming environment that values your perspective, and to be offered opportunities that help you achieve your goals, whether that is developing new skills, gaining experiences that can help you in your career, broadening your professional and personal networks, creating tangible community impact, and more.

We need your help to do this important work.

Desired Lived Experiences and Skills

To strengthen our Y’s ability to serve our communities and contribute to our vision through the Foundation, we invite volunteer Board Members with diverse experiences, perspectives, passion, skills, and expertise.

You might be a great fit if you:

• Are a broad thinker with a passion for the YMCA’s mission and a desire to make a positive impact.
• See yourself as a connector in our communities, strengthening community through collaboration and philanthropy.
• Are connected to one or more of the communities served by the YMCA of Three Rivers: Guelph-Wellington & Area, Kitchener-Waterloo & Area, Cambridge & Area and/or Stratford-Perth & Area

We are particularly interested in strengthening Board skills and experience in areas such as:

• Financial or Investment Expertise
• Public Policy Advocacy or Government Relations
• Fundraising and Philanthropy
• Legal Expertise
• Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Anti-Oppression Expertise

We’re excited if you have lived experiences and/or intersectionality from the following diverse communities:

• Youth & Young Adults (18-29 years)
• Non-Binary Individuals and women
• Members of Black, Indigenous, and Racially Diverse Communities
• Members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ Community
• Individuals with Diverse Abilities

Ideally, you bring previous experience on a Board, preferably with a YMCA association, though this is not a requirement. What matters most is your willingness to fully engage, learn, and contribute.

We embrace diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive YMCA. We welcome applications for these positions from all interested individuals, regardless of skills, experience, or qualifications. Our goal is to attract, develop, and retain committed and talented individuals from diverse backgrounds, allowing us to mutually benefit from a wide variety of experiences and perspectives.

About the YMCA of Three Rivers

For more than 150 years, the YMCAs of Cambridge and Kitchener-Waterloo, the YMCA-YWCA of Guelph, and the YMCA of Stratford-Perth have served our communities. In 2020, we officially unified and became the YMCA of Three Rivers, allowing us to continue showing up for our communities where and how they’ve needed us most.

The Three Rivers name was inspired by the history and legacy that rivers played in each of our communities, including the Avon, Grand, and Speed Rivers. Our name is a reflection of these rivers that have given and sustained life on these lands for centuries; lands that are the traditional territories of the Haudenosaunee, Anishinaabe, and Neutral Peoples. Much like the Y, rivers are places of connection. They bring people together. They unite. They foster growth and well-being. Across our communities, this is what the Y has worked to do. And, in unifying, it is our goal to continue doing this — to show up where and how our communities need us most, and work to meet current and emerging needs — well into the future.

As one of the largest charities in our community, our goal is to ensure our Board of Directors and Committee Members represent a diversity of ideas, experiences, and perspectives. We are on a journey to ensure our Y is anti-racist, anti-oppressive, and continues to evolve through the lens of Justice, Access, Inclusion, Diversity & Equity (JAIDE).

Our Justice, Access, Inclusion, Diversity, & Equity (JAIDE) Commitment

Our JAIDE Journey is about how we take action to make our diverse communities healthier and more vibrant. With dignity and respect, our programs and services inspire individuals to reach their full potential.

In 2020, we began the intentional work of dismantling systemic barriers to help deliver on this commitment. To that end, we are currently invested in intentional JAIDE work. An acronym adopted from our consultative work with AgentsC, JAIDE stands for Justice, Access, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity. Through the lens of this work, we will be reviewing our policies, procedures, programs, and services in order to ensure we are fostering safe, welcoming, inclusive, and supportive spaces for all. Learn more about our JAIDE Action Plan by visiting the JAIDE page on our website.

Application Process

This posting will remain open until the end of the day on April 19, 2026. We will review applications as they arrive and keep our application process open until we find the right candidates for these extraordinary opportunities, though you may not hear from us about next steps until mid- to late-April. To help us reach our diverse communities, we would appreciate your support in amplifying this posting across your network.

If you are interested in this opportunity, please submit a letter expressing your interest and a current resume, along with a note about which position you are interested in, through our Career Centre | Recruitment. As part of our application process, we will be asking candidates to complete a voluntary self-identification survey. Self-identification questions will include gender, community and ethnic representation, and regional connections, with the option to select out of answering any question.

In our JAIDE commitment, anti-racism, and truth and reconciliation processes, we recognize that it’s vitally important for our Board Members to represent the communities we aim to serve. As such, we are intentionally seeking to recruit nominees who are members of communities that are currently under-represented on YMCA Boards across the Federation: Youth and Young Adults; Indigenous, Black and other Racially Diverse People; 2SLGBTQIA+ People; and People with Diverse Abilities (disabled persons/persons with disabilities). We will also be considering diverse representation across the regional and geographical areas that the YMCA of Three Rivers serves our communities.

YMCAs are committed to creating environments that are barrier-free. For any accessibility-related accommodation requests regarding any stage of the process, please inform us in advance so we can arrange reasonable and appropriate accommodations by contacting Michelle Goodman at michelle.goodman@ytr.ymca.ca or 226-898-1672.