YMCA North

Four years ago, Misty Ross was anxiously waiting in the lobby of Spokane’s North YMCA, preparing to interview for a Welcome Center Host position. Steven Troup, a Welcome Center Supervisor for the Y witnessed something special that day as he was preparing for Misty’s interview.

“Someone was struggling with the front door and I happened to see Misty hop up and immediately help the person while greeting them with a smile,” said Steven. “I knew right then and there- this is the perfect person for this job. She went outside of herself, she saw a need, and she handled it.”

Once Misty was on board, Steven and the rest of the staff could see she was a natural, but Misty needed some minor accommodations to help her out.

“We made some minor adjustments to the working station to better accommodate Misty. As it turns out, those accommodations have helped us all greatly and helped her to succeed in building better relationships with our members,” said Steven.

In those four years, Misty has flourished in her position, priding herself in her ability to remember the first and last names of the hundreds of members she greets each week.

“Getting to know the members has been the best part of the job,” said Misty.

While Misty has been great at making connections with the membership, the job has not been without its challenges.

“Two years ago I had to learn a whole new computer system for checking in members,” said Misty. “It was hard at first, but I got the hang of it and ended up liking it a lot better than the old system we were using.”

Now Misty is looking to take her relationship building skills to the next level. She is currently training to work at the YMCA’s Membership Sales Desk and hopes to soon be a part of the Y’s Membership Sales team.  Congratulations Misty!