KAREN RHYNE ENJOYS BEING AT THE CENTER OF FITNESS, FUN AND FRIENDSHIP AT THE HARTSVILLE Y

A few of the Y crew at the front desk in the early afternoon, Karen Belue Rhyne is front desk and membership supervisor.

If you happen to head into the Hartsville YMCA you will find it difficult not to notice that those working are glad you are there - and it will not only be the computer voice “welcome” as you present your ID number. Those who are there often are often greeted by name and even visitors usually feel like they have been ‘here’ before. There is a culture in the entry of the Y that begins at 4:40 a.m. and goes right to evening closing. Those welcoming greetings and welcoming vibes are intentional and designed as part of a Hartsville Y culture that is nurtured daily.

One of those who fosters that culture and offers the nurturing that a people-focused culture requires is Karen Belue Rhyne who is the front desk supervisor as well as membership services supervisor since 2014. She is a veteran of the Upper Pee Dee YMCA for 27 years over two different time periods. She was hired in 1991 by Mary Ore, one of the earliest Hartsville Y leaders. Karen started her career working in the daycare with children from six weeks to 10 years. Her first time with the Y was from 1991 to 2010, when she had to leave to help care for her husband, Norman Poston who had lung cancer. She returned to the Y in 2014.

“I just love coming into work every day and it has been that way pretty much since I joined,” says Karen. And you can see watching the daily interactions of Y staff that her attitude is infectious. Tiffany Simcic, Aquatics Director, is helping out behind the desk and says she likes to be part of helping people as they come in with questions and ideas. Robbie Johnson, Building Supervisor, is helping around the front this day, because he really enjoys being able to converse with people coming and going from their workouts. And the energy continues to show around the front desk.

As we were sitting in a couple of rocking chairs at the entrance, Jennie, one of the childcare workers was on her way out after her shift. She came by the conversation to tell Karen, “You made someone happy today,” referring to an earlier incident and eagerly sharing the compliment. Spending a few minutes in the Y lobby just about any time of day can show evidence of the positivity that is shared by members and staff.

“Our Y has a strong feeling of working together. We are all team players and that makes such a difference in enjoying the day and your job,” observes Karen. She sees one of her major roles as a problem solver and her measure of success is when things continue moving smoothly. And she will tell you that years ago when she moved into her current job one of the major challenges was moving from co-worker to supervisor. And with that in mind, you get an idea of the leader she strives to be – one who is open to being approached by those she works with so that issues are often resolved before they arise.

Nique Knockemus, who serves as Director of Operations at the Upper Pee YMCA, thinks Karen’s role is way beyond the job title. Karen is like the Matriarch of our Hartsville YMCA. She fosters positivity but even further, “she watches out to make sure we are all okay,” said Nique. Nique said that “some days we will run into co-workers having a bad day, or members who don’t have things going their way but Karen is usually able to step in to resolve things.”

Karen, who is a long-time resident of Hartsville having moved here in 1978 from Union, S.C. with her husband who was with the railroad. Her family had moved in 1968 as her father took a job with the Hartsville Milliken plant. Karen raised her family in Hartsville with all three of her children as Hartsville High graduates. In fact, two of her children, Shelly and Joey had their first jobs as junior YMCA counselors. So, the idea of fostering a family atmosphere in the workplace comes almost naturally.

And, Karen met her husband, Jack Rhyne when she was filling in at the Chesterfield YMCA branch. (Hartsville, Chesterfield and Darlington make up the Upper Pee Dee YMCA) He was signing up for membership and they connected. They have been married for 13 years and share some of their fun times singing together at the Hartsville First Presbyterian Church and at events like Open Mic night at The Riparian. And they also spend a great deal of their free time watching grandchildren play or perform at a variety of events around the community.

Going in and out of the Y on a daily basis it is easy to see and to feel evidence of the teamwork and the family-feeling that is working across the culture. Donovan Lambert has been with the Hartsville Y for about eight months in addition to his studies in business management at Florence Darlington Tech and his own work as a landscaper. Donovan, like many of the other Y workers, is cross trained and he works the fitness center, the front desk and occasionally he will fill in at the Darlington Y. Donovan says he finds “our whole group seems to work well as a unit. There is a sense of camaraderie, a sense of family that makes the Y a good place to work.”

In observing her work and role at the Y, Karen went quickly to the big picture. “I do not think Hartsville would be Hartsville without our Y. We provide a safe harbor for children of all ages from the little ones in the nursery to the older ones who will play hour upon hour of basketball or spend other hours swimming or achieving challenges in the fitness center. The Hartsville Y is like one very big family,” concludes Karen.