Greensburg YMCA to be overseen by Pittsburgh branch during leadership transition

A leadership team from the YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh will evaluate and oversee the YMCA of Greensburg for the next four months while it seeks a new CEO, leaders said Wednesday.

Following the departure of Suzanne Printz, the Greensburg YMCA’s outgoing CEO, the Pittsburgh location will “provide executive leadership for (the Greensburg location) and assessment of programs and services,” according to the announcement.

Pittsburgh leadership also will assist with planning during the transition. Amy Kienle, president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh, will oversee the organization with support from her leadership team, the announcement said.

The arrangement was set up through the state alliance of YMCAs, Printz said.

“Anytime there’s a turnover of CEOs, the state alliance leans in,” she said. Printz announced in November she would be leaving her post.

“This is not unusual in the Y world. It’s almost in our DNA to collaborate with each other and provide support and assistance when necessary,” said Carolyn Grady, senior vice president and chief development officer at the Greater Pittsburgh YMCA. “Others have done it for us. We’re excited, frankly, to do that. We see it as an opportunity for mutual learning.”

Printz emphasized the move is temporary, and the Greensburg YMCA is “not going anywhere.” The eventual search for a new CEO to fill Printz’s seat will be the Greensburg organization’s responsibility.

“There are great things ahead, and I am personally excited for the Pittsburgh Y and their expertise to come in. But the Greensburg Y is staying, and this is a temporary arrangement.”

In a statement, Sydney Beeler, president of the Greensburg YMCA Board of Directors, said she is looking forward to the Pittsburgh staff coming on board to lead the Greensburg YMCA through its transition period and into a “next phase of growth.”

“We have made strides within the organization and have the opportunity to continue to propel forward key strategies and initiatives by utilizing systems and expertise that the Pittsburgh Y has the capacity to offer,” Beeler said.

The future for the Y

During the transition period, Printz doesn’t expect much will differ for the average Y member.

“Nothing is going to change,” she said. “This is a very temporary arrangement until next steps can be decided with the person who will take over for my position.”

Pittsburgh leadership will be looking at different aspects of the Greensburg location’s operations, including buildings, membership, equipment and childcare programs, to see how it can best achieve its goals, Grady said.

“It’s simply an opportunity for us to lean in and help them as they transition to their next CEO,” Grady said.

Printz said the more than 155-year-old Greensburg YMCA hasn’t fully recovered yet from the shakeups of the early years of the pandemic.

At about 1,700 members, the organization has 65% as many members as it did pre-pandemic in January 2020. About 100 new members joined between last July and December, Printz said.

“We haven’t bounced fully back since covid, but we are getting there,” she said.

Passing on the reins

Printz became CEO in April 2020, leading the Greensburg YMCA through the pandemic, staffing shortages and uncertainty for nonprofits as a whole. Before being appointed CEO, she served as membership director.

In a newsletter to members at the beginning of January, Printz said she felt it was time for someone with different expertise to take the helm as CEO.

“For the last several months, I notice myself not recovering from the lows like I used to. I’m snapping at people. I’m frustrated when the normal day-to-day ebbs and flows occur. This is not how I want to lead. This is not how anyone should lead. I am confident that this is God’s way of telling me it’s time for me to move on,” Printz wrote.

“I also believe it is God’s way of moving the organization along to the future. It is my hope that those that come after me will also seek God’s will because, if He is in it, and the mission is being followed, good things will follow.”

Printz and her husband founded a financial services firm, Nonprofit CFO, in December 2022, with the goal of serving small nonprofit organizations that lack the resources to employ a full-time financial services team.

“We had a successful first year, and I will be joining the team enabling us to serve even more clients,” Printz said of her next steps after stepping down as CEO.