10 Corey Briggs, executive director of the YMCA in Columbus, said YMCA membership and visitor use increased significantly after the fieldhouse opened. YMCA membership is now probably close to 13,000 people, he said, compared to about 7,000 people before the fieldhouse opened. “We’ve been amazed,” Briggs said. “Within the first week or two that we were open, we had 100 people on the fieldhouse turf at all times. There’d be soccer games going on and footballs and baseballs being tossed.” If you haven’t seen the fieldhouse yet, Briggs offers this invitation: “Come check it out. There is something here for everybody.” FOR ALL WELLNESS Built for the community The Columbus Fieldhouse is the second phase of a wellness initiative that began in 2012. That year, Columbus Community Hospital conducted a community health needs assessment that identified challenges impacting people, including rising obesity, diabetes and heart disease rates. In response, hospital leaders looked to build a facility where people could exercise and improve their well-being. The result was the Columbus Wellness Center, built in 2015 in partnership with the YMCA. Inspired by the success of that project, a joint hospital-YMCA wellness committee conceived the Columbus Fieldhouse project, which broke ground in 2021. No city or county tax dollars were used to build the $55 million fieldhouse; it was completely funded by Columbus Community Hospital, the CCH Foundation and many community donors. Bright future Hospital leaders and fieldhouse staff say there could be opportunities to bring additional services and programs to the fieldhouse in conjunction with the YMCA. “It’s just an amazing facility,” Hansen said. “If you can dream it, we probably can do it in that building.” See what’s at the Columbus Fieldhouse Visit columbushosp.org/for-the-community/columbus-fieldhouse. Bringing health care news to your home (continued from page 8)
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