LIHUE — While it is a homecoming, there’s still a lot of work ahead. Kapaa High School graduate Jacy L. Youn was named Kauai area executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Hawaii. “I’m excited. For me it’s
LIHUE — While it is a homecoming, there’s still a lot of work ahead.
Kapaa High School graduate Jacy L. Youn was named Kauai area executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Hawaii.
“I’m excited. For me it’s kind of come full circle,” said Youn, who moved back to Kauai to take the new post after working in communications, banking, journalism as well as on the club’s Alliance Board from 2004 to 2008 before leaving for law school. “It just seemed like a really good fit. The Boys and Girls Club is so special to my heart.”
In her new post, Youn is responsible for leading the Kauai branch, including resource and board development, establishing strategic alliances with the community and civic officials, and supervising the Kauai team.
BGCH maintains three clubhouses on Kauai in Lihue, Kapaa and Waimea and serves 1,000 kids a year.
Youn said she’s looking forward to building and renewing relationships across the island as the director position has been vacant for around a year.
“There are a lot of areas for opportunity because the position has been vacant for so long to reach out and partner with the community and that’s what I’m excited about,” she said.
A focus will be fundraising to support the nonprofit that’s the largest youth organization on the island.
“There’s a lot of opportunity here and a lot of untapped resources because we haven’t had an ED here, my staff has been focused on taking care of the kids,” she said. “We are very fortunate. Kauai, as a community, is very generous, but there is a lot of need here.”
BGCH serves more than 14,000 youth, ages 7 to 17, each year on Oahu and Kauai.
Prior to joining BGCH, Youn served as corporate communications manager and AVP of Central Pacific Bank in Honolulu, and as a legislative research attorney at the Hawaii State Capitol. She was most recently managing editor of Hawaii Business magazine.
Youn earned a bachelor of arts degree in journalism, with a minor in writing, from the University of Northern Colorado, and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law. She is an alumna of both the Pacific Century Fellows and Leadership Kauai programs.
“Jacy has the diverse skillset and the high leadership caliber needed to oversee the successful growth of our Kauai operations,” said BGCH President and CEO Tim Motts. “We’re happy she’s decided to return home to Kauai to lead our team and help strengthen our operations.”
Youn, who started work June 10, is happy to be home.
“The kids, at the end of the day, is the reason I came back to the organization,” she said.
