YMCA Country Sneaker Ball

Saturday evening saw residents and community leaders “lace up their boots and sneakers” for the YMCA Country Sneaker Ball to support the YMCA of Collier County, which now encompasses both the South Campus on Marco Island and the North Campus located on Pine Ridge Road in Naples. 

Saturday evening’s event, held at the YMCA’s north campus location, had attendees dressed in traditional Western attire. The ever-popular Ben Allen Band brought the music, allowing everyone to do some boot-scootin' and two-steppin' all night long. The country theme was carried through by the caterers, who provided attendees with a variety of delicious barbecue and all the fixings for their enjoyment.

Upon entering the event, attendees were given paddles to participate in the bidding, raising funds to support the YMCA’s Early Learning Program Scholarship Fund. That program provides much-needed funding for low-income families in our community. 

Cindy Love-Abounader had served as the longtime CEO of the former Greater Marco YMCA. 

Once two separate operations, they combined efforts under a single leadership in 2022 to take advantage of various efficiencies, which led to economic and budgetary benefits as well as better serving the Collier County community with enhanced programming and services. 

Both campuses share a united board of directors and utilize sub-committees to deal with site-specific issues and planning before bringing those potential matters before the Board of Directors for their direction.

“We are really blessed to live in a community that is so supportive of all our programs, and we just want to thank those in attendance tonight for their continued support for the YMCA,” said a smiling Love-Abounader, with two of her grandchildren at her side. “Their generosity and support means the world to so many.”