Your YMCA Mission Statement:
Helping people achieve their God-given
potential
in spirit, mind and body.
Charitable Purpose
As a charitable, not for profit organization, we are required to make services available to those who cannot afford them. As Christians, we are called to help our fellow man. The Vicksburg YMCA is proud to stand behind the words: “No-one is turned away because of an inability to pay.” Financial assistance, named scholarships, is available for all programs and membership categories. To get started on this confidential process, please contact the YMCA at 601-638-1071.
Employment Opportunities
The Vicksburg YMCA offers full-time, part-time and seasonal employment opportunities. For more information, please give us a call at 601-638-1071.
Our Junius Ward Johnson Memorial Young Men's Christian Association was established in 1923 when Fannie Willis Johnson, as a memorial to her late husband, Junius Ward Johnson, built and gifted the Downtown Y facility at 821 Clay Street to the citizens of Vicksburg.
A year later, she built and gave the Jackson Street Branch YMCA, to serve the African American population
of the community. The Downtown YMCA included 66 dormitory rooms for men, a youth and adult department, indoor swimming pool, gymnasium, athletic field, etc. Similar facilities were included in the smaller Jackson Street Branch Y.
From its beginnings, the local Y affiliated with the National Council of YMCAs, now known as the YMCA of the USA, and continues today as a member in good standing, consistently meeting and surpassing all requirements for membership.
From those early beginnings, initially serving men and boys only, the Vicksburg Y has remained a viable organization, changing with the times and meeting new interests and needs of the community. An example is the passing of the men's dormitory as that need faded, to be replaced with new programs and activities serving all members of the family.
In 1955, Anderson-Tully Company gifted the YMCA 108 acres of timberland in Claiborne County for a youth camp. Several years later, Mr. C.L. Warner left the YMCA a bequest and Warner-Tully Memorial YMCA Camp was established. Opening its gates in 1960. the youth resident camp has operated every season since and counts thousands of boys and girls from across the Southeast as alumni.
The Wilkinson Ver Beck Branch YMCA on Oak Ridge Road resulted from a capital campaign in 1979 and now includes 30 acres with a large outdoor pool, childcare center and athletic fields.
YMCA VISION 2000, capital funds campaign (1999-2004) raised over $3.5 million to build our beautiful 40,000 sf W.K. Purks YMCA Center, 267 YMCA Place, Located in the growing Beechwood area, this modern facility includes a large gymnasium, indoor pool, fully equipped wellness center, racquetball court, group exercise studio, meeting rooms and athletic fields. It is located on 15 acres in the growing Beechwood area and has repositioned our Vicksburg Association for its exciting future.