Alyssa Begin's Y Story

Alyssa Begin grew up going to the YMCA in La Crosse, WI.  

“In high school, I was in sports (volleyball, basketball, softball), but got injured resulting in a shoulder dislocation. After two surgeries, I could no longer participate on the teams, so I started working out at the YMCA."

She worked at Y-Watch at the La Crosse location, then joined the downtown Kids Club team when in Duluth for college, and then worked as a wellness coach/PT as she went to school for exercise science.  

“My family lived very close to the YMCA in La Crosse, WI (less than one mile). It was a safe place to hang out with friends after school to shoot hoops/work out. After leaving high school sports due to injury/surgeries, I wanted to continue to be active and developed a routine to come work out individually or go to classes at the local YMCA." 

“I love that I have been able to come full circle, see all sides of what the YMCA has to offer – from participant, to worker, to parent. I have really come to appreciate all that the YMCA has to offer."

“I feel like the staff does such a good job to get to know program members personally. The staff greets my child by name every time I drop her off, and that makes such a huge impact for me as a parent. I know I’m leaving my child in a program where the staff are invested and want her to have a good time. It makes a huge difference and is reassuring and comforting knowing the Kids Club staff know my child as an individual."

When she was younger, it was a safe place for her to be with her friends. 

“And I’m sure my parents appreciated me being there vs. anywhere else," Begin said.  

When she had to leave sports, it was a place for her to still be physically active. Going at the same time every day, she said the people there became like her teammates.  

“I feel like lifting at the YMCA set me on my career path to PT. When I first started lifting, it was very male-dominated. When I come to work out now, I see the majority of people lifting are women. That’s what I went into PT for, to help educate people - especially women - about the importance of moving your body, and being physically active," she said. 

The biggest impact the YMCA had on Begin was changing her career path, she said. After her injury, she wasn’t sure where she was going to go in her education, but after working out and making the connections she did with the YMCA, it was pretty clear to her once she graduated high school. 

She developed relationships and made connections with members and staff, people she said she wouldn’t have otherwise met. 

She remembers teaching a boot camp class many years ago. 

“There was a mom that would drop her kids off at Kids Club, and then come work out in the class. Later in life, my friend was pregnant, and that same woman became her doula, and I knew I would reach out to her again if I was going to have another baby," Begin said. “I saw her recently at Aldi, and I recognized her, but wasn’t sure if she’d remember me. We passed each other in the aisle, she immediately turned around and we spent some time reconnecting and catching up."

When she first started personal training at the Downtown Duluth Area Family YMCA, she recalls being very nervous and wasn’t sure how to handle the dynamic of new clients. She remembers a coworker that took the time to connect with and encourage her.  

“He let me shadow him, answered my questions, and overall became a mentor for me," she recalled.