YMCA announces new board members

Sparta/White County Family YMCA has announced the appointment of three newly-elected members to its board of directors.

Carleen Benson, Brian Clark, and Roger Mason will be joining Dr. Chad Griffin, Topher Wiles, Chris Sparkman, and Ben Holland who will be remaining on the board and assuming leadership roles as officers for the Sparta/White County Family YMCA.

Dr. Chad Griffin was re-elected as Chief Volunteer Office (CVO) of the Board of Directors and will be returning for a one-year term. Wiles, minister at Central Church of Christ, was elected Vice-CVO/CVO-Elect, and will take the mantle of CVO in 2023. Sparkman, with Woodmen of the World, was another newly-elected officer, appointed to Secretary of the Board while Holland was re-elected Treasurer of the Board.

“As a volunteer led charitable nonprofit, our Y relies on the time and talent of community leaders to help set the financial and strategic direction of our organization,” Kyle Goff, CEO said.

Goff went on to introduce the three new members of the YMCA board of directors.

“Carleen was born and raised in New York and Pennsylvania and moved to Tennessee 32 years ago. She is currently employed at Jeff’s Body Shop,” Goff said, noting that Benson was also a previous board member of the White County Fair and coordinator of the Backpack Assistance Ministry and that her family affiliation with the YMCA are among some of her fondest memories.  “She believes the YMCA is medicine and crucial development for all: children-teens-seniors. For each of us to support each other and build a strong community whether it be physical or spiritual thru the activities the YMCA offers.

Goff introduced Mason, who was the facility’s Aquatics Director in 2021 and also serves as a White County commissioner.

“Roger is looking forward to continuing to serve our local Y as we, a team of stewards, responsible for what God has given us, seek to serve our local community by providing opportunities for personal development, growth and recreation,” Goff said.

Mason is a current graduate student at TTU and a special education teacher at White County Middle School.

As for Clark, Goff said he comes to the YMCA with a strong history of serving with non-profit and charitable organizations as well as spending his career in leadership roles as a Senior Vice President / Senior Portfolio Manager with US Bank’s Private Wealth Management Group in Cincinnati and Nashville.

“While in Cincinnati, Brian was on the Board of the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Cincinnati and the Board of Santa Maria Services. He was also very involved with his local church and their mission’s program,” Goff said, adding that Clark and his wife moved to Sparta, in 2017, to begin their transition into retirement and that he had become involved with Life Church, in Sparta, and the community outreach programs offered there as well as being involved with the White County schools’ Warrior Academy Program. “Brian’s desire to help and mentor children and the community around him has inspired him to become a member of the Board of the local Sparta YMCA starting in 2022.”

“We are honored to welcome these three to the board, and I look forward to working with them to continue to better serve our community,” Goff stated.

While there were new board members and new officers appointed recently, the Sparta/White County Family YMCA also said good-bye to two board members who had spent many hours over the past years dedicating their time to the betterment of the facility, programs, and the White County community.

“Unfortunately, we did lose two servant leaders. Frankie Floyd, who served six years, and Ashley Dicus, who served three years, were part of the Class of 2021. I owe them both so much,” Goff said. “Frankie was part of the CEO search committee that brought me to the Y and has served as Vice-CVO since I have been with the Y. We have made so much progress in the last three years, and these two have played a large role.”