Few organisations can boast four wins at any awards ceremony, yet at the NZ Exercise Industry Awards, last weekend, YMCA Auckland enjoyed just that.

A recognition of the effort and quality of work put in from all the members and staff at YMCA Auckland facilities across the region, YMCA Auckland City was particularly thrilled to win two awards, for Medium Exercise Facility and the Skills Active Award/Te Iti Kahurangi Award

Alongside the Community Excellence award received by Mt Albert Community & Leisure Centre, these awards are a welcome acknowledgement of what a community organisation can achieve, and the impact we have on our communities.

Another impressive win for YMCA Auckland is the Programme Excellence Award, won by the Jumpstart Programme for people with Diabetes, which takes place across several centres, including Auckland City. Jumpstart gives diabetics a real opportunity to take back some control of their body and their weight. With support from Diabetes NZ, Pharmaco and ProCare, Jumpstart is a complete lifestyle package, with 10 weeks of active movement combined with informative sessions focusing on nutrition, goal setting, behaviour change and staying healthy.

The awards represent the effort of our staff and over 500 participants who’ve put in the hard work, and had their lives changed by their results over the past two years. A programme like this is the perfect example of community effort and support: hundreds of people coming together to fight diabetes and improve their lives and the lives of other.

YMCA is also incredible proud of our team members Adam Christian (North Shore Recreation Centre) and Ariel Kulaitus (Glen Innes Pool & Leisure Centre) who were respectively runners up for Small Group Trainer of The Year and "Own" Group Fitness Choreography of The Year.

For a community organisation to win so many awards when up against for-profit organisations and some larger corporations is really quite amazing. YMCA Auckland went toe to toe with these companies and proved that a community can do remarkable things in every industry.