HEATHER PERKINS
WEST COOK YMCA CEO
Effective March 24, 2025
Bringing More than 25 Years of Nonprofit Experience to Organization
I am a proud Y kid. From Y summer camps, service clubs, youth-in-government conferences, to before-and-after school programs, and character and leadership teen overnight camps—I was shaped by the Y. My mom was a single parent, and the Y became my second family. The unwavering love and care Y staff members showed me during my formative years profoundly influenced me. They sharpened my values, and as a teenager, I knew I wanted to repay their kindness by dedicating my professional career to being a Y servant-leader, lifting others, and advancing the Y mission.
For 22 years, I have passionately served as a values-driven Y leader, committed to elevating and advancing the Y mission. I began my journey as a Y Program Director, and over time, I was recruited and promoted into roles such as Executive Director, Vice President, and eventually, Chief Operations Officer. My tenure has been extensive, taking my family and me to various Y associations of different sizes, with budgets ranging from $3.2 million to $47 million.
Throughout my career, I have been dedicated to growing and innovating the Y's three pillars: youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. I have led teams and volunteers to increase membership and program participant growth, improve retention rates, recruit and retain talent, and cultivate meaningful relationships with staff members, board members, volunteers, and community partners. To achieve lasting reputational integrity and community trust, the Y mission must be supported by transparent and compelling storytelling about its vision, goals, and finances. Sustaining the Y mission requires caring for its staff and creating a robust and diverse financial portfolio, accompanied by thoughtful and responsible budgeting and financial reporting.
In every capacity I've held at the Y, I have increased donor and grant contributions, created new revenue streams, and reduced expenses without compromising people, program, safety, or quality. As a catalyst for transformational and innovative change, I take pride in creating conditions that empower individuals, teams, and organizations to achieve their best. I relish opportunities to pose challenging questions and galvanize critical conversations that inspire audacious actions and yield meaningful, positive, transformational results for all.
Every accomplishment in my 22-year Y journey is rooted in four core behaviors:
- Deciding with care and conviction
- Engaging staff and stakeholders to achieve meaningful impact
- Proactively adapting and innovating programs, classes, and partnerships
- Reliably delivering positive and sustainable results
In every role, I bring a deep commitment to partnering with the Y team, members, partners, and stakeholders to:
- Affirm a vision for the future
- Chart a bold, robust, and strategic course to get there
- Build a culture of “caring and daring greatly,” and
- Ultimately ensure the Y’s lasting relevance, impact, and sustainability
I look forward to the opportunity to work with all of you, to enrich your lives, and together, continue to enrich the lives of those we promise to serve. Together, we will continue to strengthen our community for all.