Ty Demmitt: Joining the movement

Believing in York helped Ty Demmitt believe in himself.

Presented by: Our York Media

Ty Demmitt feels like he’s part of a movement in York.

“It’s revitalization from the ground up,” he says.

He grew up playing volleyball at Northeastern and earned his degree from the Art Institute of York. As a kid, he saw York as a city of vacant storefronts. But, over time, that began to change.

People were working together for the good of the city and having a real impact; Ty wanted to be a part of that.

Doug Knight, John Beck, Peter Bottros were all people leading the movement in York, Ty says.

They’ve helped him believe in the city – and himself.

He’s tired of hearing people complain about problems. He wants to be a part of the solution.

“We all like to think that positivity is a magnet,” he says. “Positivity breeds positivity.”

We all like to think that positivity is a magnet. Positivity breeds positivity.

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Ty Demmitt

Ty is using his positivity to impact the generation coming up behind him. He’s behind the Buy a Lid, Feed a Kid campaign with the Locals Only Collective, helping to feed hungry kids in York.

Teaching kids how to co-exist and to live a positive life is part of the movement, Ty says.

Art is one of the ways he wants to continue helping that next generation. It’s what helped him deal with challenges he faced growing up.

“As a kid, I made some bad decisions,” Ty says.

There were people who helped him out then, but he wants to have an impact on kids before they go down a negative path.

“I want to be able to impact kids at an earlier age than when I learned,” he says.

Whether through art, music, science or sports, Ty is committed to the movement he sees in York — and to helping the next generation succeed in carrying the positivity forward.

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