How Kellie found her Tribe

Four years ago, Kellie Masters was a stay at home mom with a busy schedule taking care of her child, Addy who was born with medical issues. Kellie says, “My life from the moment she was born till she was 8 months old was consumed with medical appointments, procedures, and scheduling the next medical test.”

As Addy started to grow, she became stronger and developed great progress in her development. Kellie was still taking her to weekly medical appointments and her friends kindly suggested that she find an outlet where she could find a much needed break from the stress.

Kellie loved being in the water and applied for an aquatics position at the Northshore YMCA. Kellie got the job and started teaching swim lessons and water aerobics classes. At first, she was nervous about leaving her child while she was working, but enjoyed being able to bring her daughter to the Y with her and use the two hours of free drop-in childcare each day available to Y employees and members.

Kellie quickly began to adapt back to life in the workforce and loved helping others build confidence in the water. She found it very rewarding to connect with members and watch kids advance through swim lessons. The time she spent in the water and increased activity also helped Kellie improve her health. After a year and a half of working at the Y, she lost 100 lbs!

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Kellie was able to quickly grow into a leadership position at the Y, moving from Swim Instructor to CPR Trainer to eventually becoming an Aquatics Director at the Sammamish Community Y. She now runs our Adaptive Aquatics program for youth with special needs, an amazing program that gives kids opportunities to learn how to swim in a safe and supportive environment.

We love having Kellie as a part of our team and she is grateful for what working at the Y has done for her family. Kellie believes that it truly takes a village to raise a child and feels that the supportive environment at the Y has helped support Addy into becoming the strong kid she is today. “I love that my child gets to be a Y kid and has so many people supporting her.”

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Kellie encourages other stay at home moms to consider a position at the Y. Kellie says, “It’s never been just a job for me. It’s a cause. Working at the Y is an opportunity to give back to your community. We need to teach kids how to swim. It’s a calling. Even working two hours a week fills such a need.”

If you’re looking for a great job with flexible hours, great benefits and a supportive team environment, apply at the Sammamish Y today.