YMCA HELPER FOR 63 YEARS.

Byline: Sandra J. Terrell Staff Writer

OAK PARK - Darcy Bostrup, 84, has been volunteering for 63 years with the YMCA. For 30 of those years he has volunteered with the Y'smen (pronounced ``wisemen''), a service organization that supports the YMCA. ``It is in 66 countries,'' said Bostrup. ``There are over 27,000 volunteer workers. It is the biggest volunteer group in the world.''

In 1979, he got involved with the YMCA in Thousand Oaks. He has traveled to many other countries to start new groups for the Y'smen. ``I was an international officer with the Y'smen. I spent a whole month (traveling) in Liberia, Guana, Nigeria and Egypt,'' said Bostrup.

Before his retirement in 1976, Bostrup worked as an electrical engineer with McDonnell Douglas. He and his wife, Jeanie, have been married for 57 years and now live in Oak Park. After his retirement, he continued to volunteer. Since the YMCA is no longer an organization just for men, Bostrup and his wife are both Y'smen International Officers.

Bostrup says the Y'smen organization was a very good influence on his son, Gary, who is a scientist at the Rockwell Science Center in Thousand Oaks. He also has two daughters, Sheri and Renee. Sheri is the mother of three girls, lives in Simi Valley and works closely with the Girl Scouts. Renee has three children and owns two restaurants in the San Fernando Valley.

The YMCA is currently in the process of building a brand new YMCA in Thousand Oaks on 35 acres of donated land. The first phase was completed 2-3 years ago. The second phase will be an auditorium and office buildings.

The YMCA has been such a successful organization that ``many leaders have traveled to the United States from Europe and Japan to see how we operate and how we make money,'' said Bostrup. Each year, the YMCA hosts many fund-raising activities. There is a golf tournament held in various locations in Thousand Oaks. It is open to YMCA members and to the public each spring.

One of the many moneymakers for the YMCA is the Indian Guides' Pancake Breakfast. ``The Guides and their dads prepare the breakfasts at the YMCA, and the Y'smen always help. Everyone is invited,'' said Bostrup.

In the Ventura County area, the YMCA takes care of more than 5,000 kids from the Conejo Valley and Simi Valley areas. Darcy Bostrup will be a YMCA team captain for the Family-to-Family Campaign running through March 3, 2000.

For information about the YMCA or activities, call Steve Willmont, executive director, or Linda Price, office manager for the Conejo Valley YMCA, at [phone].

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Photo: Darcy Bostrup