The YMCA of Middle Tennessee was honored to name long-time advocate and volunteer Chip Howorth as the recipient of the Order of the Red Triangle, Y’s highest volunteer honor, for 2023.

Howorth first became involved with the Y as a child when his family moved to Nashville and his mother helped to start the first swim team at the Green Hills YMCA, so he knows first-hand the positive impact the Y can make on children and teens. After graduating from the University of Mississippi and the University of Tennessee College of Law, Howorth returned to Nashville and reengaged as a Y member and volunteer, eventually joining the Green Hills YMCA Advisory Board.

In 2019, he was recruited to the YMCA of Middle Tennessee’s board of directors and soon after joined the nonprofit’s Property Committee in the midst of two historic construction projects—the first, a massive renovation and expansion of the Brentwood Family YMCA; and the second, the redevelopment of the Y’s Downtown campus. Howorth now chairs the Y’s Property Committee and has worked tirelessly to support the organization’s efforts to enhance and expand its facilities to give members the best experience possible.

“For more than two years, Chip has been present with our YMCA staff on weekly—sometimes semi-weekly—construction calls offering an outside perspective and bringing valuable domain knowledge and advocacy to help the Y be good stewards of its resources, and managing projects on-time and on-budget at a time when that’s a rare occurrence,” said YMCA President and CEO John Mikos.

Howorth currently serves as the managing partner of Adapt Development Company, a Nashville-based firm providing meaningful changes to the aesthetic, use and purpose of real estate through an astute improvement process. He is a prior chair of the Phoenix Club of Nashville, a former board member of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Tennessee and Junior Achievement, and is chair-elect and chair of Mission Advancement for the Urban Land Institute of Nashville.