Maple Syrup Day

For more than 20 years, True North AmeriCorps (TNAC), a program of the Lake Superior YMCA, has connected dedicated AmeriCorps members with young people and communities across northern Minnesota. What began in 2003 with a focus on tutoring has evolved to meet the changing needs of local students and families. Today, TNAC members work alongside 15 community partner sites, supporting young people in schools, afterschool programs, and community-based settings. Their service, which spans from Hill City to Duluth and Ely to McGregor, focuses on increasing students' interpersonal skills and social competencies—including self-awareness, social awareness, self-management and responsible decision-making. Members spend time getting to know students, observing their strengths and challenges, and identifying opportunities to help them build the skills they need to thrive.

When Mary and Jim Zastrow arrived at Lake Nebagamon’s YMCA Camp Tall Pines in the mid-1970s as summer camp counselors, neither imagined the Y would become a lifelong thread in their story. For Mary and Jim, this legacy gift honors their values—a welcoming community, youth development, and the belief that the Y changes lives. “The Y has been there for us at different stages of our lives," Mary said. "Now we want to help be there for the Y and the many people whose lives will be shaped by these experiences, as ours were.”

At 87 years old, Del Laughlin still walks through the doors of the Superior Douglas County Family YMCA nearly every day. Del grew up in Spooner, Wisconsin, and moved to the area in 1960 for work. It wasn't long before he found his way to the YMCA. In 1969, he joined through a program called Indian Guides—a father-and-son initiative for boys aged 4 to 6.