YMCA CEO Steve Tarver was a champion for health equity. Louisville must continue his legacy.
East Louisville residents live longer than West Louisville residents by as much as 12.6 years, and social inequities are often the root cause of health inequities. Attaining health equity throughout the community is a crucial objective that every community should strive for. Louisville has conducted multiple studies on the repercussions of health access disparities and the social determinants influencing health outcomes. While these studies are important, the next step is the work.
YMCA's Steve Tarver championed health equity
Over the past 23 years, Louisville has been fortunate to have a leader who helped three mayors, civic leaders and passionate health and wellness supporters. As president and CEO of the YMCA, Steve Tarver championed health equity with not just words, but actions.
As we move closer to Steve’s departure into retirement, it is well worth noting that he was among the first to address the social determinants of health and wellness. He observed that restricting health access to even a small segment of the population adversely affects everyone. There are tangible examples illustrating how he tackled health inequity head-on, and these examples serve as valuable lessons for all of us.
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Steve’s most notable accomplishment sits at the corner of Broadway and 17th Street. The recently constructed Republic Bank Foundation YMCA is a testament to Steve’s vision of fostering a more equitable community in terms of health access. It was his deep understanding of the social determinants of wellness and health outcomes that motivated the entire YMCA of Greater Louisville community to help build that facility.
He successfully bridged the Ninth Street Divide, refusing to allow historical injustices to interfere with the opportunities for tomorrow. In this way, he has impacted the lives of the residents in west Louisville neighborhoods by addressing the disparity in health access. Steve also assembled a coalition of community partners – Republic Bank, Norton Healthcare, ProRehab, Family and Children’s Place and others – inspiring them with his vision for a community resource, addressing public health from multiple angles – physical health, mental health, economic well-being and more. It is these organizations among others that will help continue the legacy.
A champion for Louisville's marginalized kids
Last summer, Steve addressed Swim Equity, highlighting the unjust marginalization of underserved children due to limited access to pools and water safety lessons. These children are 2-4 times more likely to drown than more privileged children. While historical and cultural factors are certainly culprits, Steve worked to find a way to help improve the odds for these kids. He initiated discussions, stepped up to the plate, and joined a coalition of local officials and leaders by providing free passes to YMCA pools. Additionally, he organized a series of free water safety clinics to equip young people with fundamental skills for navigating water safely.
With his pending departure, we must find ways to continue this work and follow his lead. One of the ways Steve accomplished so much was by doing something that might sound simple but is in fact quite demanding – he consistently showed up. Everywhere. Whether it is a YMCA event, a community meeting addressing health access, or an opportunity to inspire people, he endeavors to be present. He devoted time to engaging local leaders, greeting supporters, or asking questions about ways the Y can help. He enjoyed spending time chatting with young children, often kneeling to eye level. We need to engage with others at whatever level to connect, addressing health equity, every day, at every opportunity. We can all learn from his example.
Black children are drowning. Race and poverty should not be barriers to swim lessons.
Louisville must advance health equity
When I look back on Steve’s impact on this city, I am hopeful that Louisville remains committed and vigilant in protecting this legacy. We must find ways to advance health equity and improve community health. We must remain committed to supporting underserved communities like West Louisville, where health access has been lacking for far too long. Most of all, we must continue to offer opportunities for our youngest citizens to adopt healthy habits so they can carry Steve’s torch and pass it to the next generation.
As Steve plans his departure and retirement as our CEO, we, the YMCA of Greater Louisville board, employees, staff, and families are grateful to him for his consistent leadership, his guidance, and his ability to expand the YMCA’s influence to benefit health and wellness across our neighborhoods and communities. He has helped to transform lives by addressing health equity, and we are all now guardians of his legacy.
Thank you, Steve - for everything you have done for Louisville.
Howard Holloman, Jr. is Board Chair of YMCA of Greater Louisville
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: YMCA CEO retires. Louisville honors his legacy of transforming lives.
