The Many Cs of the YMCA: Civics, Christianity, Physical Culture and Community with Maureen Flanagan Battistella

The Young Men’s Christian Association helped define American civic and moral values at the turn of the last century, but today, many chapters are more concerned with healthy living and a broader sense of community. In this Windows in Time presentation, historian and researcher Maureen Flanagan Battistella describes how the Young Men’s Christian Association influenced civic infrastructure, social relationships, and the lives of young men and women in Southern Oregon and the Pacific Northwest over the last 150 years.

Maureen Flanagan Battistella is on the Sociology/Anthropology faculty at Southern Oregon University. She is a curator of the Stories of Southern Oregon collection in the Southern Oregon Digital Archives at SOU’s Hannon Library, on YouTube, and in the Internet Archives. Battistella’s research focuses on contemporary land use, agricultural heritage, and culinary narrative in Southern Oregon.

This program is being offered in person and via Zoom for a limited number of registered attendees.

The monthly Windows in Time lunchtime lectures feature well-known writers and historians and bring alive the people, values, and events that shaped our southern Oregon heritage. Lectures are jointly sponsored by the Southern Oregon Historical Society (SOHS) and Jackson County Library Services..

The Windows in Time series is currently held on Online on the first Wednesday of the month. The program is one hour, from Noon – 1 p.m. and is led by a variety of guest speakers. It’s a free event but registration is required.

You can find information about all Windows in Time events on the Jackson Country Library Services website.