Speaker

Kevin A Tarpley

He/Him/His
Founder/President and Executive Director
Youngstown Lifeguard Academy
Youngstown, OH
United States

Hon. Kevin A. Tarpley I,
Founder/President
and Executive Director









The Honorable Kevin Tarpley is the founder of the Youngstown Lifeguard Academy. He has over 45 years in Community and Public Service. Mt. Tarpley was born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio. He returned to Youngstown after living most of his life in the Boston, Massachusetts area.

His original aspirations were to become a famous Comedian or a Veterinarian. He realized that his academic challenges created a problem for him pursuing Veterinarian career and became heavily involved in community service when he was granted a membership at the Downtown YMCA, which were seeking to integrate more people of color into their operations. This is when Mr. Tarpley recognized there was another opportunity calling him.

Mr. Tarpley served as the YMCA Leader’s Club President from age 12 to age 18. In between that time, Mr. Tarpley secured his American Red Cross Lifeguard Certification at the age of fourteen for the Youngstown Parks and Recreation Commission. He was promoted the next summer to Assistant Pool Manager at age 15. The following summer at age 16, he was made the Pool Manager for Chase Pool becoming the youngest person to ever fill such a role. He told his mother, Katie E. Tarpley, “Ma, I’m making grown folks’ money.”

At the age of eighteen, Mr. Tarpley became an American Red Cross, Water Safety Instructor to train more young people within the city of Youngstown to become Lifeguards so that they too could earn money from a city job which far outpaced the earning from a summer CETA job.

Mr. Tarpley was recruited by Bob Doyle, Executive Director of the YMCA to become Associate Youth Director at the YMCA because of the leadership demonstrated as a YMCA Leader’s Club member.

Mr. Tarpley became Mayor Patrick J. Ungaro’s represented on the Youngstown Community Action Council’s, Board of Director is at age 20. Because of the role with Mayor Ungaro, Mr. Tarpley convinced the mayor to allow him to create and establish the Youngstown Youth Council, Office of the Mayor that would allow young to add their voice to community affairs.

Mr. Tarpley continued to train city youth to become Lifeguards for the city of Youngstown Parks and Recreation Commission 11 pools up until he was recruited out of Youngstown by the founder of YouthBuild, USA; Dorothy Stoneman who was impressed with the mission, operations and presentation of young people who participated in the Youngstown Youth Council, Officer of the Mayor, Patrick J. Ungaro, which she observed as a guest speaker of the Youth Council. She invited Mr. Tarpley to serve in the role of National Youth Coordinator. To do national what he had started in Youngstown.

Mr. Tarpley served as National Youth Coordinator for 10 years. Run and was elected to office becoming the city of Somerville first Black male to ever win a city office in 1998. He went to serve as the Somerville Board of Alderman representing Ward 2 in the city. He served as chair of a number of the Board’s committees. Served as Board Vice=President and Board President.

Mr. Tarpley returned to Youngstown in December of 2018 to help his hometown get a win, which he believed the Academy idea that sat on his desk for 14 years was just the win the city needed.

Contact:
HonKevinTarpleyi@yahoo.com
+1 330-774-9799


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