With nearly a year at its new location under its belt, the Westport Weston Family YMCA’s future is looking brighter than ever. On Wednesday, the nonprofit organization announced the procurement of a $40 million bequest from the estate of Ruth Thomas Bedford, the beloved town benefactor who died in June of last year. According to YMCA Director of Communications Scott Smith, the bequest is likely the largest gift in the Y’s history, and both YMCA spokesmen and First Selectman Jim Marpe have been vocal in expressing their gratitude. Combined with Bedford’s $40 million gift to the Norwalk Hospital, her latest investment in the town totals $80 million. In other words, it’s a big deal. Scott phrases the YMCA’s reaction to the gift as “awestruck.”
“We were awestruck that Ruth Bedford committed $80 million to the betterment of our local community and truly humbled that [Bedford] chose the YMCA to help deliver on that promise to improve the lives of those we serve through her investment in us.”
To implement the bequest, the YMCA’s Board of Directors and Board of Trustees have formed a financial planning committee that will develop a long-term strategy for it. While the report is due later this year, the organization maintains the gift will go toward the “long-term viability” of the facility. In particular, Smith names three areas of focus: “endowment, building improvements and programs, [and] ensuring that our Family YMCA will continue to serve as a center of community life, wellness and fellowship for generations to come.”
Most important, says Smith, the YMCA will look to honor the generosity of the Bedford family. In 1923, Ruth Bedford’s grandfather, Edward T. Bedford, gave Westporters the downtown Y facility, an act that introduced a century of Bedford town philanthropy. The YMCA is committed to respecting the family’s enduring town vision. “While this bequest is historic in terms of its magnitude,” Scott says, “the context of the gift is that it’s part of a continuing legacy of support from the Bedford family.”