This week, the YMCA of the Chesapeake will open the doors of the new St. Mary’s County Family YMCA, located at 21056 Great Mills Road Lexington Park, MD, marking the completion of a decade-long community effort to bring the first-ever Y to Southern Maryland.
Founding Members will be welcomed to a soft opening this Wednesday, September 30th – Friday, October 2nd, and the doors will open to the entire community on Saturday, October 3rd. An official ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for Tuesday, October 20th.
The new branch is the only YMCA of the Chesapeake location on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay and the first Y ever built in the tri-county Southern Maryland region.
“This is a moment years in the making for Southern Maryland,” said Robbie Gill, President and CEO of the YMCA of the Chesapeake. “St. Mary’s County showed up for this community every step of the way getting us in a place to serve a community that has dreamed of a place like this for 30+ years. Now we get to open the doors and show them what that investment looks like. There’s truly no place like this place, and we can’t wait to welcome our founding members this weekend.”
The project traces back to community advocacy that began in 2016 and gained momentum through years of feasibility studies and public-private negotiations. St. Mary’s County commissioners committed $15 million toward construction, and the effort drew support from Maryland’s federal delegation, including Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and Congressman Steny Hoyer, who helped secure a federal appropriation for the project.
More than 300 individual gifts from community donors, along with a volunteer fundraising team of more than 20 people, have raised 20.6 million towards a 23 million project.
YMCA of the Chesapeake branches are built around friendship, accomplishment and belonging — and the new 65,000-square-foot St. Mary’s County Family YMCA is no exception. The facility will serve as a regional hub for health, wellness and community connection, with amenities including:
- An indoor pool for lap swimming, swim lessons and aqua therapy
- A wellness center and full-size exercise equipment room
- Two basketball courts and six indoor pickleball courts
- Group exercise studios
- An elevated indoor walking track
- A sauna
- A dedicated childcare area for members
The new branch is expected to become an anchor for the growing Lexington Park community, including military families connected to nearby Naval Air Station Patuxent River and the contractors who support the base. The YMCA of the Chesapeake is already partnering with St. Mary’s County on early childhood education and has already extended an established YMCA of the Chesapeake program to Southern Maryland: Rock Steady Boxing, a non-contact boxing-based fitness and support program for people living with Parkinson’s disease.
Situated directly next to Great Mills High School, the new Y is uniquely positioned to grow alongside the students and families it serves. That proximity opens the door to meaningful partnerships with the school — from student-athlete programs and volunteer opportunities to after-school engagement and career-readiness initiatives — deepening the Y’s role as a true community hub for Lexington Park’s next generation.
The Y is planning programming tailored to the needs of the Lexington Park community, including free childcare for members during workouts, free swim lessons for local fifth graders, and scholarship-based memberships available for as little as $1 a month for qualifying families — ensuring no one is turned away due to inability to pay.
Memberships for the St. Mary’s County Family YMCA are available now at ymcachesapeake.org. Through October 15, new members who join can take advantage of a limited-time promotion waiving the joiner fee — a $75 savings.
- Founders Weekend Soft Opening: Wednesday, September 30th – Friday, October 2nd
- Doors Open to the Community: Saturday, October 3rd
- Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony: Tuesday, October 20, 2026.
- Membership Promotion: No joiner fee ($75 savings) for members who join by October 15, 2026.
- Address: 21056 Great Mills Road, Lexington Park, MD 20653
About the YMCA of the Chesapeake
The Y is one of the nation’s leading nonprofits and one of the largest Human Service organizations on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Virginia and Southern Maryland; strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. Across the Shore and Southern Maryland, Ys engage 50,000 members and their families – regardless of age, income or background – to nurture the potential of children and teens, improve community health and wellbeing, and provide opportunities to give back and support neighbors. The YMCA of the Chesapeake operates facilities in Caroline, Cecil, Dorchester, Kent, St. Mary’s, Talbot, Queen Anne’s, Wicomico and Worcester Counties in Maryland and on Chincoteague Island in Virginia. Last year, the YMCA of the Chesapeake provided over $2,000,000 in assistance to over 16,000 community members, turning no one away due to inability to pay. Additionally, the Y spent $543,000 on outreach efforts and programming in the communities it serves.
