Wenatchee Valley YMCA’s decision to sell Lake Wenatchee property strikes chord in community

LAKE WENATCHEE – After nearly a hundred years of ownership, the Wenatchee Valley YMCA announced it would sell the Lake Wenatchee YMCA Camp property on April 4, sending shockwaves through a community of former volunteers, staff, and campers.

According to the YMCA, the camp faces mounting financial challenges, with capital and operating losses totaling more than $2 million over the past decade. YMCA President and CEO Dorry Foster said the organization had made efforts over the last five years to seek out grants and donors and make improvements. However, it was unable to meet the amount of money needed to meet current child safety codes while still being financially sustainable.

“At the end of the day, we realized it's a $10 to $15 million capital campaign basically, to update the facilities to make it more financially sustainable. At the same time, our fire insurance, our property insurance, was cut. So any improvements we make could be wiped out in one summer. We do not have property coverage up there. We are self insured,” said Foster.

According to Foster, the organization was also confronting the loss of its partnership with school districts due to funding cuts, as well as a majority of its campers, which come from the Snohomish area, due to the Snohomish YMCA’s recent purchase of Camp Casey.

The decision to sell was ultimately made after the organization started fundraising for the construction of its new facility. Potential donors started to question the YMCA’s business model, particularly looking at the camp’s losses, said Foster. An anonymous donor pledged $3 million on the contingency that the camp would be sold.

“In January, we had received our guaranteed maximum price for construction…And if we did not [have enough funds to proceed], we had to put it off another year. Well, every year has been a $2.5 million dollar increase to postpone construction,” said Foster. “We were saying possibly goodbye to a $3 million gift. We would then be forced to say no to construction, and no to the project, which would mean that we would inevitably have to return all of the capital gifts received.”

Following the announcement, Wenatchee Valley YMCA Board Trustee Rufus Woods wrote an op-ed in the Wenatchee World, stating that the sale was “inevitable.”

“As a member of the Y’s board of trustees and someone who spent several summers at that camp, I can confirm that this was a wrenching decision because none of us wanted to close the camp because of our love for it,” wrote Woods. “But as we studied the issue, it became abundantly clear that the camp was financially unsustainable and there was no hope of turning it around.”

In response, former staff member Chris Palmer published an op-ed with Source One News, titled “'Inevitable' Is Not an Excuse: The Community Deserved a Voice on Sale of Lake Wenatchee YMCA Camp.”

“To call this inevitable is to erase the power of community will. It dismisses offers of help, voices of support, and creative problem-solving that continue to emerge—even now. Let’s be honest: due diligence without public involvement isn’t diligence. It’s a closed-door meeting. And inevitable is what you say when you've already stopped listening,” wrote Palmer.

Palmer and former staffer Taylor Hoehn became the admins of a Facebook group of nearly 250 members called “Save Lake Wenatchee YMCA Camp,” with former staff, campers, and volunteers sharing sentiments, frustrations over the organization's transparency, and ideas on how to intervene. Neither Palmer nor Hoehn responded for immediate comment.

“People that have reached out to me directly are expressing that loss, that sense of needing to understand the process. Some are angry, as expected,” said Foster.

The organization plans to begin marketing the 25-acre property after the 2025 summer camp season. If and when the property sells, Foster said the first $3 million of the sale would be mandated for its outdoor recreation endowment, which currently has $5,000. It is yet to be decided whether the residuals will go towards the construction of the new facility or alleviate long-term debt service for the new YMCA campus on 5th Street in Wenatchee.

According to Foster, the organization is planning to provide outdoor equipment rentals, promote bicycle education and access, expand day camp offerings, and partner with Snohomish and Yakima YMCAs to maintain overnight summer camp. 

Taylor Caldwell: 509-433-7276 or taylor@ward.media