This year at the 168th Annual Meeting, we wanted to highlight our staff that has performed above and beyond the call of duty. Whether it’s at the front desk, janitorial, or in the child care rooms, our staff makes our Association go ’round. Join us in celebrating this year’s Staff Nominees for the Harrisburg Area YMCA!
Lance Ritter
Part-Time Nominee / Lance has grown up in the Harrisburg Area YMCA. He first began working part-time for the Association Office staff and in 2021, he joined the YMCA Center for Healthy Living at the YMCA & Pennie™ Health Equity Tour. Lance has gone above and beyond in providing support to staff in the areas of healthy living and health equity and always carries out the YMCA mission. There were even times during his school breaks at Central Penn College when Lance would join us on tour to help with set-up, tear-down, registrations, and promoting healthy living to all of those in attendance. Lance never hesitates to complete anything that he is asked to do, whether it is to run copies, stuff bags for events, or enter important data pertaining to the YMCA and its mission within the Commonwealth of PA and the community. He does all of this while attending Central Penn College majoring in Physical Therapy! We will lose a valuable asset when Lance pursues his Physical Therapy career, but he will always be part of our YMCA family.
Megan Maurer
Full-Time Nominee / Megan began her YMCA career at the Northern Dauphin County YMCA as a Fitness Director and quickly advanced to join the team at the YMCA Center for Healthy Living in 2016 as the Senior Program Director of the YMCA’s Evidence-Based Health Intervention programs. Megan has been a critical component of the YMCA mission, especially during unprecedented times. In order for the Harrisburg Area YMCA to rise to fulfill the needs of the community, Megan assisted in seeking funding for our Association. Through relationships that Megan has built with the Pennsylvania State Departments, she has been a driving force in securing funding for our EBHI programs, the YMCA & Pennie™ Health Equity Tour, the COVID-19 Mitigation Tour, vaccine/immunization education, and many more initiatives of the YMCA Center for Healthy Living. Megan not only does work on the ground for these many initiatives, but she can also be found behind the scenes, working in grant administration, budgeting, program reporting, and invoicing in order to secure our funding and keep our initiatives sustainable. Megan also sits on many statewide and national committees and coalitions to ensure that the Harrisburg Area YMCA and its programs and services are represented and known as a trusted and committed organization within the community.
Leroy Brown
Part-Time WINNER! / Leroy Brown or “Mr. Leroy,” as everyone around the building knows him, is a Harrisburg native with a strong work ethic and strong faith. These two things are why Mr. Leroy is so valuable to the Camp Curtin YMCA. He has been employed with us for almost 2 and a half years and always shows up! Mr. Leroy has a calm, pleasant way of going about his daily business and he is a joy to have around. There is never an assignment that Mr. Leroy will turn down and he always tries to make himself available whenever needed, from working split shifts to filling in for last-minute call-outs. Mr. Leroy is just plain reliable, exactly what our children and community needs. It’s nothing new for him, either – he came to work at the Camp Curtin YMCA after 20 years as a school bus driver. Not only is he an intrinsic part of our janitorial team, but he is also an intrinsic part of the lives of our youth at the Camp Curtin YMCA. Thank you, Mr. Leroy! You are truly appreciated.
Dannica Wilt
Full-Time Nominee / Dannica Wilt is one of the YMCA’s young stars and we mean that wholeheartedly. Dannica came to the Camp Curtin YMCA from the Maryland area; she has worked for the Easton Family YMCA and Towson branches in various roles from babysitter to camp counselor. She is highly educated, having both her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Criminal Justice – did we mention she’s in her mid-twenties? Dannica was hired as a Prevention Specialist nearly two years ago; she has now led our summer camp, taken on the role of Program Director, and currently sits as our Child Care Director. Dannica is mature and experienced beyond her years. She loves young people and is one of their fiercest advocates. Moving forward, we know that our community and our YMCA will be in great hands with Dannica leading the way. Thank you for all of your hard work, Dannica!
Pamela Butler
Part-Time Nominee / Pamela Butler has been part of the janitorial staff at the East Shore YMCA since July 2021. Being a senior citizen herself, she has noticed the YMCA acting as a social safety net. Looking at the Y, Pamela sees a free-spirited glow. Pamela notes that attending the Y each day is a grateful blessing, and we couldn’t agree more when Pamela walks through the door! Thank you for your hard work in keeping our building clean.
Jason Parrish
Full-Time Nominee / Jason Parrish is the Senior Director at the East Shore YMCA. Jason has been a staple at our branch for 12 years, and it was by happenstance! Jason needed a job to keep his membership going, and he found a home in the Y. As his role morphed into different job titles, he came to appreciate the many facets of the YMCA in the community. The number of YMCAs with residential programs is in decline, but these programs are important for the communities we operate in. Working at the East Shore YMCA gave Jason the opportunity to continue this program and be involved in developing ideas to further sustain the program in an ever-changing environment. Jason is also up early for every race event, helping with set-up and tear-down and cheering on all the runners along the way. We couldn’t imagine the Y without you, Jason!
Hannah Bridi Parr
Part-Time Nominee / Hannah is a lifeguard at the Friendship YMCA. She has been a tremendous help to our aquatics department ever since she started at the Y! She joined us when we opened our doors in January 2021 and has been willing to jump into any necessary shift and offer a break to other guards. Hannah will sometimes work the early morning shift and come back to close at the end of the night. She has an awesome attitude and works hard until the job is done. Being a lifeguard is a hard job, and Hannah does it with style and professionalism. We are so fortunate to have Hannah on our staff team and we are happy to honor her for the employee recognition she deserves!
Justin David
Full-Time Nominee / Justin has been with the Harrisburg Area YMCA in various capacities over the years, working at the Camp Curtin, East Shore, and Friendship YMCAs. Justin has always been the consummate YMCA professional, able to deal with any situation in front of him. When Justin worked at the East Shore YMCA, he always showed kindness and a helping hand to our residents, and that kindness has been extended to the members at the Friendship YMCA. Justin is always willing to pitch in and help those in other departments; he will help bring child care supplies into the Y, help maintenance unload a skid of supplies, or run out to a school to assist with Drug & Alcohol programs. Justin deserves this recognition as a great full-time staff person at the Friendship YMCA. We couldn’t ask for a better employee to be the face of our Y. Thank you, Justin!
Amanda Frame
Part-Time Nominee / Amanda has been with the Northern Dauphin County YMCA for three years and works the closing shifts and weekends at the Front Desk. Amanda is very personable and responsible, helping and assisting members in any way possible. She takes ownership of her shift and is very conscientious of everything she does. She gets to know the members and helps them feel welcome. Amanda is also part of our housekeeping staff and, within the last year, has taken a lead role in managing the housekeeping responsibilities for the facility. She has also worked in our Child Watch room and assists with the annual Hometown Heroes 5K trail run. Amanda will step in wherever she is needed, and we can’t say thank you enough! Family and faith are very important to Amanda; she lives with her husband Ben and her two children and volunteers at the Northern Dauphin Christian School where her children attend. We congratulate Amanda and are grateful she is part of the Northern Dauphin County YMCA staff.
April Hoke
Full-Time Nominee / April Hoke has dedicated a ton of time and effort to growing and sustaining the YMCA Child Development Center at Halifax over these last several years. Not only has April jumped into every classroom when needed, but she also redesigns classrooms and maintains all cosmetic upgrades for the daycare facility. She previously managed a smaller daycare center for the Y and, through her success, has advanced into managing our larger YMCA daycare for the past five years. As the Child Care Director, April puts in many extra hours with our school-age and daycare programs. What she has done over the past few years with rebuilding a staff team, sustaining veteran staff, and assisting our community with all of their child care needs is truly commendable. She not only cares for the Y and the kids of the community, but she has continued to do it all while caring for her ill mother and battling her own health obstacles. She even continues to maintain a Keystone Star Level 4 status for the daycare, which is the highest recognition a licensed child care center can have in Pennsylvania! Great job to April, you’re the motivation for setting the standard way above average!
Angelica Ried
Part-Time Nominee / Angelica Ried first joined the Y with her family in 2006. She always loved the group fitness classes and felt the calling to start teaching Zumba®; she received her license in March 2011 and started teaching at the Y in June of that year. Throughout the years, she has expanded her role with a number of additional certifications ranging from Insanity to PiYo to Spinning® to AquaZumba®! Angelica’s high energy and pleasing demeanor shone and she quickly became a popular instructor at the Y. In April 2015, the Group Fitness Coordinator position opened and Angelica was hired to manage the entire program, which at the time offered 100 classes per week and managed over 40 employees. Angelica has proven to be a caring and selfless leader, always putting the Y and our members first. During the pandemic, she worked tirelessly to bring classes back to the Y after unprecedented closures. She rehired staff and created a new, modified schedule; additionally, she was instrumental in offering a new virtual group fitness platform. Angelica also offers to cover floor hours in the Wellness Center when we are short-staffed. Angelica’s determination, dedication, and positive attitude show each and every day how great of an asset she is to the Y and our community.
Jody Sparmblack
Full-Time WINNER! / Jody began her journey with the YMCA in December 1998. She started as a trade staff member, trading her time as a Tour Guide in exchange for a membership. In 2000, she became a part-time staff member and, after 8 years of faithful service, Jody moved into a full-time position at the Welcome Center. Since 2008, Jody has been serving as our weekday opener. During the last 14 years, Jody has never ONCE failed to open the building at 5:30 AM sharp each weekday morning. She knows the names and faces of the “morning crew” and greets them with a smile every day. Jody is a kind, helpful, thoughtful, and caring presence at the Front Desk and has a reliable ear to listen to both staff and members alike. Reliability and perseverance are words that characterize Jody’s life and character. The most stunning exemplification of these traits was in 2018 when Jody was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. She underwent immediate treatment to cure the cancer; in a 21-day time period, Jody would receive treatment for 6 days, rest and recover for 7 days, and then come back to work for half days the rest of the week. This treatment process lasted nearly a year and Jody never lost her smile, nor her optimism and love for the community. She steadily worked through her treatment plan toward recovery and rejoined us at full-time hours once her treatment was complete. She continues to be a positive presence at the Welcome Center and a “day-maker” for those who need to be uplifted. There is no more deserving individual to be recognized than Jody, and it’s our joy to see her recognized for her faithful and dutiful service to the Y!
