Jacques and Victor Wieciech met at a Starbucks in Ft. Lauderdale where they both were living at the time. Their first date was a coffee date, followed by a trip to the zoo where it rained so hard they had to put their cell phones in plastic garbage bags to avoid ruining them. That made it hard for Victor to talk to his daughter who called in the middle of the date to see how it was going, but somehow they persisted; carrying on with smiles on their faces that seem to be part of this couple’s DNA.
Fast forward to today. Jacques and Victor live in Maryland, to allow Victor to be closer to his four children. For Jacques, a South African by birth, the move also meant transferring his opera studies, which started in England, to Anne Arundel Community College.
Just as the stars seemed to align in Jacques’ and Victor’s personal lives, they aligned as well in their work lives. Jacques is the Senior Fitness Director at the Y in Pasadena and Victor is the Facilities Director overseeing property management at the Ys in Catonsville and Parkville as well as the Y’s Randallstown Swim Center.
As busy as they are in their work lives, the two are clearly kept on their toes by their 11-year-old grandson, Landon, who lives with them and is definitely the light of their lives! Jacques shares that he had worked at the Big Vanilla Fitness Club when it was converted to the Y in Pasadena in 2017. He left briefly when the couple moved to Rehoboth for a while. When he left, Matt Lewis, Senior Executive Director for the Y in Pasadena, told Jacques that there would always be a place for him at the Y. Jacques took him up on that promise when he returned just a month before the COVID shut down in March of 2020. During that time, Y family centers were repurposed as child care centers for children of essential workers. This enabled Jacques and Victor to enroll Landon in the program and Jacques got to be there with him every day. Landon loved going to the Y every day, which he nicknamed “Corona Camp!”
As tough as that time was, Jacques recalls this as an important time when silos were broken down, saying “we used to just go to meetings and then go our separate ways. Then this happened and everyone pitched in and worked together. It helped me realize I’m a part of something bigger. It gave me a sense of community and of being seen.”
Victor discovered the Y’s focus on community through his onboarding, saying “I was really impressed with all the Y does; all the outreach. I thought that ‘this is something great.’ I should have worked for the Y years ago. It's just the right fit.”
Reflecting on being gay, Victor said that he “came out at age 31. I had four kids at that time, ages one to eight. Perhaps because of my size, my presence, I don’t present as a stereotypical gay man necessarily.” Jacques adds that, "when we walk in a room, we don't fit the mold visually." He adds, "we're also not incredibly sensitive about it because we're confident in who we are.”
Thinking about how diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) shows up for them at the Y, Jacques and Victor feel seen and valued for who they are. Jacques’ view is that “how people interpret DEI shifts based on demographics and geography. The issues and concerns will be different. But we sometimes (as a society) get lost in the woods and forget that DEI means everybody: white, Black, gay, straight, non-binary etc. Everyone.” Victor adds that “people get to know us for who we are, and then find out we're gay. They know us as human beings first. It’s how you show up in the world. It's your whole self.”
Being his authentic self, Jacques has supported the Rally for the Y fundraiser for Send a Kid to Camp by singing opera in the lobbies of Y family centers while members biked for the cause (The Y's Opera Star)! And, although the Pride event was this past weekend at the Y in Pasadena, they decided to volunteer at the Juneteenth celebration at the Randallstown Y Swim Center instead.
As our country and our Y celebrates Pride Month this June, I feel privileged to be colleagues with Jacques, Victor and all of the Y’s associates who identify as members of the LGBTQ+ community. As a Y and as a community, we celebrate them this and every month.
All the best,
John K. Hoey
President & CEO
The Y in Central Maryland