Leader's past spurs YMCA screening concerns

10:50 AM CST on Thursday, November 29, 2007
By SHELLY SLATER / WFAA-TV

WFAA-TV
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While hundreds of young girls bond with dads through the YMCA's Guides & Princesses Program, one mom said the creator of her daughter's program has a past that makes her "feel uncomfortable."

The mom, who wished to remain anonymous, said she discovered the group leader was charged, but not convicted, with reckless injury to a child, domestic violence assault and theft. He is also currently on probation for negligent homicide of a child.

The YMCA mom said what she found even more alarming was the fact that the man has had protective orders placed against him to keep him away from his own kids.

"What concerns me is when someone continues to get in trouble," the mom said.
With the troubling information in hand, the mother said she approached the YMCA to address her concerns, but she said she was told she wasn't the first one to come forward with the same concerns. In fact, she said they told her that she was the second or third parent to alert the YMCA.

The YMCA does not screen their participants. The organization says in most activities in which the participants are under the age of 18, the children are being supervised by program volunteers or staff members who have had background screening.

"The YMCA did not do a background check on him when they told me that they would," she said.
That isn't the case with Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. Those who lead a group receive background checks. In addition, some councils even require parents to undergo background checks if they want to go on an overnight trip.

But at the YMCA, Glenn Almack, a Princess leader, said parents police each other.
"Often times, people open up about their past, but obviously you don't hear everything about everybody," he said.

For that reason, Almack said he believes stricter policies could help.

"In a larger community like Plano, or suburban areas like Frisco or whatever, the groups and nations are bigger; and so as things become more broad-based, there may be more need for that," he said.

E-mail sslater@wfaa.com