Story Corner: Bruce Cates
Bruce Cates, 71, is nearing his ninth year of working at our YMCA’s SACC team. He’s technically retired but far from ready to retreat from serving our Y. “I don’t consider YMCA a job, I consider working for the YMCA a calling,” says Bruce. Bursting with ideas, he’s ready to roll up his sleeves and help grow our Y’s impact in the community.
It’s not a surprise that our YMCA attracts passionate community builders from all walks of life.
Bruce’s resume highlights are too many to list here, but he recalls his work with Indigenous Communities with the greatest fondness. He was also Citizen of the Year in Yellowknife in 1998 and 1999, was awarded the Distinguished Service Award of Canada by Tennis Canada in 2002 and was also selected Volunteer of the Year by the City of Burlington in 2022.
And if that wasn’t enough, Bruce is deeply committed to bringing physical literacy to children, specifically those from disadvantaged circumstances. He is a huge proponent of diversity and inclusion and envisions a future without diversity gaps throughout the community.
His love of people
A quick survey of Bruce’s impressive work history reveals a common thread: his love of people. At the top of his vocabulary are words like relationship building, networking, engagement, volunteering, and giving back to society. Above all, Bruce is a huge advocate of our Y’s staff and wants to harness the power of our Y community.
Bruce wants to see the Y grow and thrive and have an even bigger impact than it does already.
A pillar of society
For Bruce, the YMCA is a “pillar of society.” What he means by this is that the Y offers people a sense of community. Our charitable organization plays an enormous part in people’s lives. Newcomers to our cities can find a sense of belonging, or assistance with finding employment. Most profoundly, our Y serves children by offering a safe space to play and connect.
Children get an opportunity to play sports and attend camp, often thanks to the subsidies our Y provides and the mentorship of staff like Bruce.
We’re lucky to have people like Bruce on our team. — YMCA Story Corner
Reproduced from the YMCA Story Corner with attribution. The line that closes this tribute is the line we hope closes every story told about Bruce’s work — and the line that anchors the foundation that bears his name.
