AMHERST, N.S. — In the mid-1980s there was talk in the community of building a new YMCA in Amherst.
Kent Leslie heard the rumours and was invited to attend a meeting of the Amherst Y’s Men’s Club to learn more about the new Y being planned for downtown Amherst.
“The YMCA was in the building where the air force club is now. I used to use the YMCA when I was a kid but got away from it,” Leslie said. “When I heard about them building a new YMCA I wanted to get on board.”
While he didn’t join the YMCA board or that of the Y’s Men’s club, he did get active in the fundraising committee, working to put the finances in place to make the new building a reality - something that happened in the late 1980s when the new facility on Church Street was opened.
While the YMCA would close for a couple of years in the mid-1990s due to financial issues and would come close to closing again nearly a decade ago for the same reason, Leslie hasn’t lost his faith in the YMCA and what it means to the community.
“I still believe in the YMCA dream. It’s important that this place be viable because it’s a very important part of our community,” Leslie said. “At the same time, the Cumberland Y Service Club, which is what the Y’s Men are now, are also important to the community in the programs and services it supports for children as well as adults.”
The Y Service Club also has a social aspect that he and his wife, Joan, have come to enjoy over his 34 years. While there were plenty of business meetings, Leslie said there were a number of fellowship events including potluck suppers.
He said it has also been enjoyable working on Y Service Club projects, including operating the annual Christmas parade - cancelled this year due to COVID-19 restrictions - selling citrus and Christmas trees and putting up exhibition curtains for community events while also providing bartending services at other gatherings.
Along with its support of Amherst Little League, the Y Service Club has been a huge supporter of the Amherst Food Assistance Network with its annual food drives each spring and fall.
“That’s a major endeavour, but we’ve had tremendous support from our community partners to make it happen each spring and each fall,” Leslie said. “It’s that partnership that helps us help the most vulnerable people in our community through the food bank. It means a lot to every member of our club to be associated with this project knowing what it means to the community.”
Run for the Sun
Leslie, who over the years has competed in marathons in Boston, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Montreal and Washington D.C., was also instrumental in organizing the Cross Border Challenge 5K, 10K and half-marathon races in June in Amherst.
The race is now called the Run for the Sun and will return in 2021 in the post-COVID world.
Leslie’s commitment to the community and the Y movement has resulted in him being honoured with a Golden Book Tribute in 2016. The tribute is recorded at the Y’s international headquarters in Geneva, Switz.
In 2019, Leslie was the recipient of the prestigious Purdy Cougle Memorial Award as the Maritime Y’s Man of the Year. It was presented at the 71st Maritime Region Convention of Y Service Clubs held in Amherst.
“It was a shock. It’s an important award within the Y and it’s satisfying to be recognized. No one does this because they want to be recognized, but it’s gratifying when it does happen,” said Leslie, who has 29 years of experience working as plant manager of Atlantic Windows in Port Elgin, N.B. “My satisfaction is seeing the club and this facility thriving and doing great things in our community.”
Over the years, Leslie has served as president of the club on two occasions- in 1997 and 2016 -and has served two terms on the Cumberland YMCA board of directors.
