Long Island City YMCA records

Now located near the intersection of Queens Boulevard and Van Dam Street, the Long Island City (LIC) YMCA branch was established in 1919. The branch has operated from several different facilities, both rented and purpose-built, with its first full-facility building constructed in 1999, nearly 80 years after the founding of the branch.

The early programs undertaken by the branch were supported by local industries, including American Chickle, National Sugar, and Sunshine Biscuit. These and other businesses encouraged their workers to participate in Y programs such as English-language and citizenship instruction during the branch's early years. For several years in the 1950s, the status of the LIC branch was reduced to that of an extension of the Flushing branch. In 1959 the LIC YMCA was re-established as a separate branch, and under the leadership of Frank Tempone, long-time executive director, the Long Island City YMCA developed into a solid source of community activities.

The branch has a long history of providing extensive sports programs, most of which have operated at local school and park facilities and fields. The reputation of the LIC sports programs led Ed Moffett, program director in 1983, to observe that young people from all over the city play for LIC YMCA teams. Several professional athletes emerged from the LIC YMCA's sports programs, including hockey player Joey Mullen.

(Information taken from The YMCA at 150: A History of the YMCA of Greater New York, 1852-2002by Pamela Bayless and from the Long Island City YMCA records)