Hanley Institute Awarded 2025 YMCA Peace Medal for Youth-Centred Community Leadership
Flesherton’s Hanley Institute is the 2025 YMCA Peace Medal recipient, recognized for empowering youth and fostering community leadership.
A youth support centre that began with one woman’s decades of experience in front-line addiction and youth work has now been recognized with one of the region’s highest community honours.
The Hanley Institute, based in Flesherton, has been awarded the 2025 YMCA Peace Medal for its role in creating safe, consistent spaces for young people to develop life skills, build connections, and find support in South Grey.
The medal was presented at a ceremony on November 20 hosted by the YMCA of Owen Sound Grey Bruce, with elected officials and community members in attendance.
Founded in 2018 by Jenny Hanley, the Institute was launched in response to a growing gap in youth services across the rural south of Grey County.
After securing the former United Church building in Flesherton in 2020, the group turned it into a full-time community hub where youth now gather for everything from drop-in programs to creative workshops and volunteer projects.
The centre’s focus isn’t on crisis response or clinical services. Instead, it’s about prevention — creating consistency, care, and community before more serious issues take hold.
At the ceremony, two youth participants described the Institute as a place where they’ve built friendships and learned how to navigate challenges with confidence. They emphasized that the impact extends beyond programs; it’s in the relationships and routines that many young people might not otherwise have access to.
In accepting the award, Hanley acknowledged the broader network of people who make the work possible: volunteers, community partners, and the youth themselves.
The YMCA Peace Medal, first introduced in 1987 in Fredericton, is awarded to individuals or groups who contribute to peace-building through the values of Participation, Empathy, Advocacy, Community, and Empowerment — known as the PEACE principles.
Past recipients have included local activists, volunteers, and educators working quietly behind the scenes to improve their communities.
YMCA Owen Sound Grey Bruce CEO Sarah Cowley said the Hanley Institute stood out for its ability to build lasting, local impact without access to large-scale resources or institutional support.
“This work happens without fanfare,” Cowley said during the event. “It’s everyday peacebuilding — the kind that keeps kids connected and communities strong.”
The YMCA maintains a list of past Peace Medal recipients at its Owen Sound facility. Alongside this year’s award, the organization noted that 28 individuals and now 14 groups have been recognized locally since the medal was introduced.