YMCA Hamilton | Burlington | Brantford reports growing impact for 95,000 residents, launches 2026 plan

More than 95,000 people across Hamilton, Burlington, and Brantford, as well as surrounding areas including Haliburton and Indigenous communities, accessed YMCA programs and services in 2025, including 33,500 supported through financial assistance or subsidy, with new data showing measurable gains in youth resilience, senior belonging, and employee well-being, YMCA Hamilton|Burlington|Brantford announced today. 

The results reflect the organization’s first full year of consistently measuring community impact and coincide with the launch of its 2026 Annual Operating Plan, strengthening the YMCA’s focus on resilience, connection, and health across local communities.

View the 2025 Year-End Results and 2026 Annual Operating Plan.

“This work matters because lives are shaped at the YMCA every day,” said Manny Figueiredo, president and CEO of YMCA Hamilton|Burlington|Brantford. “Resilience and belonging are built when people have access to support, connection, and opportunity. The Y saves lives, and this data helps us understand our impact across our communities.”

In 2025, the YMCA helped more people access programs by removing financial barriers and advanced its impact across its priorities for young people, employees, and seniors.

• Young People: More than 56,000 youth were served, with resilience outcomes showing statistically significant improvement in the YMCA Wanakita Student Counsellor Program, where participants demonstrated year-over-year gains, particularly among returning youth.
• Employees: Organizational health remained steady in the healthy range at 77, while the employee recognition score improved to 70, reflecting progress in workplace culture.
• Seniors: 6,465 older adults participated in YMCA programs, with members reporting a strong sense of belonging, including a connection score of 89, placing results in the “strong” range.

The 2026 Annual Operating Plan builds on this momentum, with increased targets, strengthening how volunteers are engaged across the YMCA and introducing a new way of measuring seniors’ mobility and independence through gait speed, supporting healthy aging. The plan also strengthens how donors and community partners support this work, with The Y Saves Lives refreshed in 2026 to help expand impact across our communities.

“Our employees are at the heart of everything we do,” Figueiredo said. “Nothing happens without them. Strong teams create strong communities, and we will continue investing in our people while building the systems needed to lead with impact.”

This year also marks a significant milestone for the Association, as YMCA Hamilton|Burlington|Brantford celebrates its 170th anniversary, recognizing generations of community impact and recommitting to its mission for the future. As part of this work, the YMCA continues to maintain and strengthen its community assets, including advancing plans to secure a new Downtown Hamilton Family YMCA to better serve current and future generations.

Looking ahead, the YMCA will continue strengthening its approach to measuring impact, using data to improve programs, guide investment, and support people at every stage of life. This includes building capacity to use data to guide decisions and track impact.