150 Years of Showing Up: The YMCA of Greater Seattle Celebrates Pride
Last updated: June 8, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. PT
Originally published: June 8, 2026, at 10:53 a.m. PT
This year, Pride hits different.
As the YMCA of Greater Seattle marks our 150th anniversary, we are reflecting on a century and a half of community, care, and an ongoing commitment to being a place where everyone belongs. Pride month gives us the opportunity to honor that journey honestly, celebrate the people who make this organization what it is, and look forward together.
Seattle's LGBTQIAA+ community and the Y have been growing side by side for longer than most people realize. And just like any relationship of deep value, it has is continuously moving forward.
A Shared History, 150 Years in the Making
When the YMCA of Greater Seattle was founded in 1876 by a group of 28 community members, the organization's focus was straightforward: provide housing, meals, and basic services to people who needed them. Seattle was not yet an incorporated city. The idea of Pride month was nearly a century away.
But community care has always drawn people together, including people who had nowhere else to go.
From the 1920s onward, the Downtown Seattle YMCA's residential rooms offered something rare for young men arriving from rural towns or returning from military service: independence, privacy, and proximity to others like them. LGBTQ+ historians have documented that urban YMCA spaces across the country served as informal gathering points for early queer communities, and Seattle was no exception.
You will not find openly LGBTQ+ names in our historical rosters from those decades. Society forced our queer neighbors into the shadows. Yet we know they were here. They lived in our residential rooms, swam in our pools, and found community in our halls. As we celebrate 150 years, we honor their quiet resilience and recommit to ensuring no one ever has to hide who they are at the Y again.
Seattle's queer history and the Y's own evolution have moved in parallel ever since. From the founding of the Dorian Society in 1967 and Seattle's first Pride gathering in 1974, to the grief of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s and the Y's deepened commitment to vulnerable youth alongside champions like Cal Anderson, to the eventual growth of the Y Social Impact Center and our partnerships today with UTOPIA Washington, the Lavender Rights Project, and the Seattle LGBTQ Commission, the throughline is the same: showing up for the people who need it most.
150 years in, we are still learning. We are still growing. And we are more committed than ever.
See Calendar of Pride Events Across Region
Voices from Our Community
The Y is not an institution in the abstract. It is the people who show up every day. This Pride, we asked some of our LGBTQIAA+ staff to share what Pride means to them.
Patrick Carr
Branch Executive, Downtown Seattle Y
Patrick Carr’s YMCA journey has come full circle. Seventeen years ago, he began his career in the Y movement at the Downtown Seattle YMCA. Today, he is back where it all started, this time as Branch Executive.
For Patrick, Pride is rooted in both celebration and gratitude. “Pride, to me, is about celebrating the history of those who came before us and honoring the sacrifices they made to help create a world where LGBTQ+ individuals can live openly and authentically as themselves.”
That spirit of advocacy shows up in everything he does. Patrick has served as Chair of the YMCA of Greater Seattle’s LGBTQ+ ERG, as a member of the African American Resource Network, and currently chairs the YMCA’s National LGBTQ+ ERG Steering Committee, where he focuses on the intersections of identity and creating environments where people feel empowered to show up as their full selves.
To Patrick, belonging means never having to code-switch. “A space that welcomes my whole self and values my lived experiences naturally creates a sense of belonging. I see this reflected every day at the Y.”
Ron Okimoto
Branch Executive, Auburn Valley Y
Ron Okimoto has been part of the Y movement for 35 years, and his leadership has always been guided by one thing: the aloha spirit. Rooted in warmth, humility, and deep care for community, it is a value he carried from his home in Hawai’i all the way to the Auburn Valley YMCA, where he now serves as Branch Executive.
Ron came out as gay in his 40s, a journey he describes as one of hard-won peace. “Pride, for me, is not just about celebration. It is about honoring the journey it took to become whole and being grateful for the ability to live, lead, and love fully as myself.”
As an Asian gay leader in the Y movement, visibility is something Ron takes seriously. He wants aspiring leaders with intersecting identities to know they can rise to the highest levels of leadership and still show up as their full, authentic selves.
“Belonging means being able to show up as your full self and know you are welcomed, valued, and supported,” he says. “As leaders, we help create the conditions where people feel safe enough to be authentic.”
Sara Biancofiori
Vice President of Youth Development
Sara Biancofiori’s story with the Y is, at its core, a story about belonging finding you before you fully find yourself.
Her journey began at the YMCA of Monroe County in Bloomington, Indiana, where a mentor saw something in her she had not yet seen in herself. That belief led her to a summer internship at Camp Orkila, then to being a Teen Director at the Bellevue Family YMCA and eventually to her current role as Vice President of Youth Development. Along the way, the Y gave her something equally important: the space to grow into who she truly is.
“I honestly believe that without the belonging, mentorship, and acceptance I found at the YMCA, I may not be living as openly and authentically as I am today,” she reflects.
For Sara, Pride is less about a single moment and more about a journey. It is the accumulation of everyday experiences of feeling seen, valued, and included that gave her the confidence to live openly, marry her wife, and build her family in a community rooted in belonging.
“I want young people, staff, and families to feel what I felt: that they belong here exactly as they are.”
Sonya Gaysinskiy (she/her)
BASE Supervisor, Highland Terrace Elementary, Shoreline School District
Sonya Gaysinskiy has been with the YMCA of Greater Seattle for two years, and in that time she has made her presence felt. As a BASE Supervisor in the Shoreline School District, she works daily with children and families of all backgrounds, and she is intentional about making sure every family structure is reflected in the books and curriculum she uses.
“There is no one way to define love or what a perfect family looks like,” she says. “It is important to me as an educator to establish the standard that we accept everyone regardless of gender expression or sexual orientation.”
For Sonya, Pride is deeply personal. She is queer, married to a non-binary person, and surrounded by a community she calls her own. Pride, to her, means being her truest self without shame or fear.
Her message to those still figuring out how to be an ally is refreshingly straightforward: “You do not need to know the ins and outs of gender identity or sexual orientation to respect your fellow human. It is okay if you do not get it at first, as long as you try.”
Through the YMCA of Greater Seattle’s LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group, Sonya also serves on the planning committee for the Seattle Pride Parade.
Crystal Fong (she/her)
HR Associate Business Partner, Youth Development
Crystal Fong joined the YMCA of Greater Seattle in December 2024, bringing with her over 15 years of experience in human resources, communications, and project management. In her role supporting Youth Development, she is focused on shaping a workplace culture rooted in authenticity, belonging, and respect.
For Crystal, Pride is deeply intentional. “Pride means centering, loving, and trusting yourself,” she shares. “Trusting yourself strengthens your inner voice and steadies your gate as you walk the path only you can travel.”
What has struck her most about the Y is something that might seem small but carries enormous weight: the language people use. “The YMCA of Greater Seattle is the first and only workplace where those around me, without hesitation, use the term ‘partner’ when speaking about their significant others,” she says. “To be safe and seen at work frees me to channel my efforts and energy where they belong, in service of the mission.”
Her message is simple and powerful: “We are not required to be anything more than human to deserve dignity, integrity, and respect.”
Cameron Muller (he/him)
Abuse Prevention and Accreditation Compliance
Cameron Muller works behind the scenes at the YMCA of Greater Seattle, but the impact of his work is felt throughout the organization. In his role focused on abuse prevention and compliance, he helps create the safe, supportive environments that allow children, families, and communities to thrive.
As a transgender man, Cameron knows firsthand how much belonging matters. “There have been times in my life when I wasn’t sure I would ever feel comfortable in my own skin,” he shares. “Pride is a reminder that authenticity is worth fighting for and that there is incredible strength in choosing to be yourself, even when that feels difficult.”
What he values most about the Y is that inclusion is not just a talking point. “It is something I have seen reflected in the people, the culture, and the mission,” he says.
His message is one of simplicity and humanity: “LGBTQ+ people are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for the same opportunity everyone wants: to be seen, respected, and valued for who we are.”
Outside of work, Cameron enjoys exploring the Pacific Northwest with his wife Anna and his stepson.
