Kathleen Boyd lives across the street from the YMCA at the Athenaeum. Before she became a member, she used to watch her friends coming and going from the Y. "I wished I could go to the YMCA," she recalls. Her health issues and the fear of how she would look in front of other people kept her away.
Kathleen suffers from severe Vertigo, a disorder that causes extreme dizziness and imbalance. Her primary care doctor also told her that she needed to lose 20 pounds.
Kathleen prayed hard about mustering up the courage to enter the Y and she finally decided it was time to get a membership. Through financial assistance that the Y provides, Kathleen became a member and, knowing she would need some help on her fitness journey, signed up for an appointment with a Wellness Advisor named Peyton.
Together, they devised a program that would work for Kathleen. With the support of her family and friends and her sheer tenacity, Kathleen began to see improvements in her health. "I move more freely," she says, "I walk livelier and I am happier." She even saw improvements in her confidence. "I can now see my body as beautiful," she says.
In just a short three months, Kathleen has lost those 20 pounds and then some; she is more balanced and she enjoys her weekly meetings with Peyton. "I love helping Kathleen with her fitness goals," Peyton says, "she’s the reason that I love my job."
"Kathleen is a totally different woman today," says Crystal Pippins, her pastor and friend, "the YMCA has taught her discipline and stability and it’s translating into all aspects of her life. When I see her in church, she’s swinging her hips down the aisle."
Kathleen’s joy spreads within the walls of the YMCA at the Athenaeum. She is hardly seen without a smile on her face.