Springfield YMCA celebrates 150 years

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Friday night, the Springfield YMCA celebrated 150 years with a special homecoming event.

Angie Sowle, the CEO of the YMCA in Springfield said time has changed the center's role, "The role the Y's played as the community in the world has changed over the years. The beauty of the Y's and the Y has changed, too. And that's why we stay relevant and valid. So it's really fun to just look back and see who we used to be and who we are now."

The Gala featured cocktails, dinner, and a silent auction.

The event was free and open to the public from 5:30-9:00 p.m.

Sowle added the money raised all went to help the community of Springfield, "Every dollar raised here tonight will go directly to programs that help support children and families in the community who need -- need help affording their participation in YMCA programs."

The money from the silent auction went towards their financial assistance program, which Sowle said helps them continue their purpose fo fostering a stronger, healthier community, "It's really difficult for a community to reach its full potential if a good portion of the people living there can't reach theirs. So it really is kind of just getting things down to a granular level and helping individuals, meeting them where they're at and seeing what the Y can provide for them."

Governor JB Pritzker and Illinois Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski spoke as well as a two-time gold medal winning swimmer, Ryan Held.

The program also featured local historical video of Springfield's YMCA journey from 1874 until now.