Sault YMCA hires interim CEO in wake of 'departures' among senior leadership

The YMCA of Sault Ste. Marie has quietly hired a new chief executive officer to lead the charitable organization on an interim basis.  

Mary Kloosterman — who has 20 years of experience with YMCAs in Kingston, London, Sarnia, Chatham-Kent and Goderich — officially replaced former chief executive officer Robert Burns Aug. 21. Burns had been at the helm of the local YMCA since October 2021. 

Sault YMCA public relations manager Don Ferguson also confirmed the recent departure of chief financial officer Michael Goodship in an email to SooToday, but declined to offer further details on either of the changes in senior leadership due to confidentiality concerns.         

“The board of directors of the YMCA of Sault Ste Marie has made a change in senior leadership of the organization following the departure of some members of the leadership team,” said Ferguson. “We respect the importance of confidentiality when it comes to individual contracts and employment details and therefore will not comment on any specific details of those departures.”

Ferguson said more information regarding the interim leadership positions will be made available in the coming weeks.

The Sault Ste. Marie YMCA currently has over 2,750 members, with more than 2,000 children participating in its programs every year.