STAFF REPORT
BELLFLOWER — The Los Cerritos YMCA recently has embarked another step towards the realization of its mission of building strong kids, strong families, strong communities. On Wednesday, October 17th, a workout facility was dedicated and named the Paramount Petroleum Healthy Lifestyle Center.
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Photo by Zion Publishing |
| PARAMOUNT PETROLEUM Healthy Lifestyle Center — Jeff Morris, President and CEO of ALON USA (left, holding the plaque) with Diane Martinez, City of Paramount Councilmember and YMCA Board of Managers are joined by other YMCA executive directors and board of managers, YMCA staff, community leaders, special guests and residents during the October 17th Los Cerritos YMCA, Paramount Petroleum Healthy Lifestyle Center dedication ceremony. |
To celebrate the unveiling of the Pirate Park, the City of Bellflower hosted a grand opening event for the whole community. Both children and adults, headed by no less than the City officials, excitedly participated in the festivities by donning their favorite pirate costumes. The event took place on October 23rd with a live band entertaining the crowd and refreshments galore with everyone partaking.
The creation of the theme park is an effort by the City to improve the image of the Boulevard and attract customers to nearby stores.. Recent business additions include a Subway and the Starbucks, located in front of the park. The cost of the park as estimated by Brian Lee, the City director for community development, is $720,000. And by the looks of it, it’s worth every penny. Shiver me timbers, the Pirate Park has come to Bellflower!
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“Our YMCA is very much like a retirement plan, we are investing in the future of our young people, our families and the cities that we serve. Our dividends are paid off in the thousands of kids that have received swimming lessons and they are now water-safe, our dividends are played-out in regard to older adults that have taken strengthening and flexibility classes here in the facility. We have also provided life-changing camp experiences for the youths and focus on building character. We are continuing to expand through the very generous gift of ALON USA (Paramount Petroleum), truly has become a leader in investing in this community. We are now able to expand our dividends to include healthier families and lifestyles. YMCA would like to thank Paramount Petroleum for its efforts in the community, and making our community a great place to grow up and a great place to grow old,” says Rick Kemppainen, BUSD Superintendent and YMCA Board of Managers Chairman, in his opening remarks. |
The ceremony was in recognition of Paramount Petroleum’s $300,000 contribution to the YMCA. Paramount Petroleum’s gift contributes to the YMCA of Greater Long Beach Association’s goal of $14M which will be used in the renovation of its facilities and for providing updates to the YMCAs in the area so that they may continue to provide excellent services to the communities they serve.
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“We are very appreciative of ALON USA (Paramount Petroleum), for revolutionizing YMCA’s campaign to get to this point. Certainly we are the YMCA for children, and we want to be the YMCA for all members of the family, we want to reach everyone’s life and we are making a tremendous progress. Our goal is to help raise more generations to come,” Alan Hostrup, YMCA Board of Managers CEO, points out. |
Paramount Petroleum’s contribution is vital to serving the needs of the communities that the Los Cerritos YMCA serves: Bellflower, Artesia, Paramount, and Cerritos. The Los Cerritos YMCA’s renovation of its facilities began in October of 2005. The childcare services facility was temporarily relocated to a church located just a mile away. Then in June of 2006, the workout facility was created to serve children, adults, and families, so that they may have a place for workout activities, a key process in maintaining a healthy life style.
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Jeremy Echnoz, Executive Director of the Los Cerritos YMCA offered comments regarding Paramount Petroleum’s contribution: “The YMCA offers different programs, depending on the need of the community. Our focus has been to the youth, but we never stepped into the needs of the adults and we really realized, with the incidents of diabetes, obesity, and heart attacks, what is needed for a healthy lifestyle. Paramount Petroleum’s contribution is a fine example of partnering with a company so that the community may be better served.” |
For more information about the Paramount Petroleum Healthy Lifestyle Center, visit Los Cerritos YMCA at 15530 Woodruff Ave. in Bellflower or call (562) 925-1292.
Alon USA Energy, Inc. (acquired Paramount Petroleum Corporation on July 31, 2006), with headquarters in Dallas, Texas, is an independent refiner and marketer of petroleum products, operating primarily in the Southwestern and Western regions of the United States. The Company owns and operates three sophisticated sour and heavy crude oil refineries in Texas, California and Oregon, with crude oil throughput capacity of 136,000 barrels per day. Alon USA markets gasoline and diesel products under the FINA brand name and is a leading producer of asphalt. |
