My name is Mark Healy. I have been involved with YMCA Ireland for six years. Opportunity has always been a buzz word for young people, with many seeking it out throughout their teenage years. I have been lucky enough to have been given many opportunities because of my involvement with YMCA Ireland. As a young person, I got the opportunity to be involved in youth councils such as Comhairle na nOg and many different YMCA groups focusing on Sustainable Development Goals and Global Youth Work.

Since then, I have also been given opportunities on a national level to organise and host YMCA Ireland’s National Youth Assembly in 2021. Following that, I received the opportunity to be involved in Ireland’s Youth Assembly with many other passionate young people from around Ireland. I strongly believe in creating a community and connecting young people from around Ireland and around the world. I like to think I got some of this belief from the YMCA community.

YMCA Ireland has given me many international opportunities to meet like minded people from around the globe. I attended YMCA175 in London in 2019 and YMCA World Council in Denmark in 2022, where I got the opportunity to expand my community of people. I have also been involved with YMCA Europe’s Roots for Peace project where I have made lifelong friends. Most importantly, YMCA Ireland has given me and many other young people the opportunity to make meaningful friendships and lasting connections.

Mark Healy | YMCA Cork Region