Opportunities From: United Way of Central Iowa

Flexible hours. Long-term benefits. No experience necessary.

It's a fact, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Iowa's one-to-one youth mentoring has a real and positive impact on children and their futures by defending their potential. Children enrolled in our programs show consistent improvements in self-confidence, academic performance, and relationships with peers and family members. No experience is necessary, you just have to know how to have fun and want to make a positive lasting impact on the life of a child.

Community-Based Mentoring allows individuals who are 18 or older to visit with a child twice a month for a minimum of four hours a month. Bigs spend time with their Littles participating in activities throughout the community- whether it's going to the zoo, playing catch or just taking a walk, the possibilities are endless. The great part is, with every activity, a friendship grows. We also provide options for individuals to be Community-Based Mentors in pairs--Big Duos or Big Families. Note: A year commitment is required to be a Community-Based mentor.

Currently, there are 100 children waiting to be matched with a mentor. Become a Defender of Potential and change a child's life. Contact us today. Please include your phone number in your response. Mentors must be at least 18 years of age and be committed to spending only four hours a month with a child in need, for a minimum of one year.

Do you have a talent for fundraising?  Enjoy drumming up publicity?  Like the details of event planning?  Just looking to get engaged in the Ankeny community more?

The Ankeny Alumni Association, Inc. welcomes volunteers to assist with the organization's ongoing fundraising, publicity, and event planning efforts. We would love for you to join us! Please contact us for meeting times/dates.

Make a meaningful difference in the lives of families in need by joining IMPACT Community Action Partnership’s Pantry Delivery Program in Polk County! As a Delivery Volunteer, you’ll ensure that essential food and personal pantry items reach those who may not have access to transportation.

Please note that all volunteers must submit an application, and complete orientation/training prior to volunteering with us. Please complete your application by visiting our website at www.impactcap.org/volunteer

IMPACT Community Action Partnership’s Food Pantry in Ankeny, Iowa, is looking for dedicated volunteers to support local families in need. With a variety of tasks available, there’s something for everyone!

As a volunteer, you’ll play a vital role in ensuring smooth pantry operations by:
✅ Stocking shelves and organizing food items
✅ Counting and weighing donations
✅ Maintaining food safety and organization
✅ Packing items for pickup or delivery
✅ Assisting families as they shop, bag their groceries, and load their vehicles.

Whether you're looking for a one-time opportunity or an ongoing volunteer experience, we’d love to have you join us!

Please note that all volunteers must submit an application, and complete orientation/training prior to volunteering with us. Please complete your application by visiting our website at www.impactcap.org/volunteer

We are looking for a few new board members with experience on non-profit boards. Particular strengths would be: passion for addressing homelessness, strategic planning, fundraising, finance. We could particularly use someone with bookkeeping and/or treasurer experience.

Scleroderma, or systemic sclerosis, is a chronic connective tissue disease.  There is no cure and no medicine.  Hardening of the skin is one of the most visible manifestations of the disease. It can also attack internal organs. 

Do you know someone with this disease?   Do you have an interest in helping the Scleroderma community, increasing awareness and education regarding Scleroderma, and supporting research to find a cure?  If yes, then consider joining the Board of Directors of the Scleroderma Foundation Heartland Chapter!

Responsibilities

By joining the Board of Directors (BOD), you will be asked to attend BOD meetings every other month (6 times per year) remotely via Zoom. 

Board members help provide the following:

Qualifications

No specific knowledge of Scleroderma is required.  Business experience with planning, budgets, financial oversite is preferred but not required.  Any previous board experience is a plus.  Information you need to perform your role as a Board Member will be provided.  A desire and passion to assist the Heartland Chapter Scleroderma community is strongly desired. 

Compensation

The Board of Directors is a volunteer position.  As a thank you for your service, Board members may have the opportunity to attend the National Scleroderma Foundation Conference, with expenses paid for by the Heartland Chapter.

Our Three-Fold Mission of Support, Education and Research

Free-Response Question:

How may we contact you?  Please provide your preferred email and/or phone number.

HeartlandChapter@scleroderma.org

Only 3% of high-performing, under-resourced students end up in a great first career experience. On our social platform, professionals like you can help change that.

Here's how:

1. Sign up via your computer at my.backrs.com or by downloading the Backrs mobile app from the Apple App or Google Play Stores.

2. Tell us a little about your background and experiences by completing your profile. This takes 5 mins. (Up to 15 if you'd like to give students more details about your hobbies and interests.)

3. We add you to identity-based, regional, university, and career-path Affinity Networks where you can connect with students you're well-positioned to support.

4. In Networks, you can answer students' questions, post resources or job/internship opportunities, and share insights into your college and career journey by responding to Backstage Pass posts. Though each of these actions takes a few minutes, they all have meaningful impacts on young people.

5. If you'd like to play a more involved role in a student's journey, you can join their panel of backrs. This enables you to view their goals, post on their personal feed, schedule Zoom check-ins, and even contribute to their Flourish Fund. It's a great choice for those looking to offer low-lift, relationship-driven support.

Best way to see how convenient and rewarding being a backr really is? Give it a try, commitment-free:

Sign up on your computer: my.backrs.com

Or get the Backrs mobile app: Apple App Store or Google Play Store

Research shows that cross-class relationships are the biggest predictors of social mobility. And financial margin increases the odds of college persistence four-fold.

We partner with schools and youth organizations to recruit committed high school and college students into our community. Then, by removing the barriers the keep well-resourced adults from connecting with under-resourced young people, our technology builds bridges across socioeconomic strata, enabling people like you to empower students like Diego R.

Diego R. joined Backrs so he could pursue his dream of becoming a biomedical engineer. Thanks to his talent, hard work, and the support he's received from his backrs, he's well on his way to making that dream a reality. As he explained:

"My brother was born with Chronic Kidney Disease. He’s the man who gives me the strength to pursue Biomedical Engineering and become an accomplished technician. I strive to make the lives of those who suffer like him better. I want to be the change he needs to be healthy."

All of the students in our community are driven to build a better world; when they're given the resources to do so, everyone around them benefits.

Watch this video to learn more about the difference Backrs makes for students: Kaothara's Experience

Being a great backr isn’t about grand gestures or having all the answers. It’s about the small things: sharing a word of encouragement. Passing along a helpful resource. Making an introduction. These actions make a big difference--take it from some of our current backrs: 

"As a backr, I love the opportunity to support and mentor my three proteges as they grow and develop. I feel grateful to be able to guide and shape their future in a positive way. Through Backrs, I have been able to watch them grow into confident and capable individuals, and it has given me a sense of purpose and fulfillment that I can't put into words. It's made a tremendous difference in my life to see them achieve their goals and know that I played a role in helping them get there."

- Ahmed Dawood, Marketer at Apple

"Backrs gives me an opportunity to utilize my expertise to provide mentoring and support to students. Even though my students are a couple time zones away, I have the flexibility to connect with them on my time and have been dedicated to checking my app weekly at minimum to engage in conversations and answer questions. Its exciting to celebrate their wins and talk about future plans. Mentoring was very impactful in my life so it gives me joy to give back in this way."

- Lori Hunt, College Provost

Sign up for backrs today!

The Bidwell Pantry needs used plastic grocery bags to help bag up the pantry guests’ groceries. The Bidwell Pantry serves 6,000 to 9,000 individuals per month. With the rising costs of food and supplies, you can help make a difference more than ever.

We also accept used paper grocery bags and cloth bags. We are currently serving between 100 to 150 families per day and need 2-3 bags for each person's groceries.  

Drop Off Location:  1203 Hartford Avenue, Des Moines IA 50315

Questions:  Contact Missy Reams at missy@familiesforward.org or call 515-989-8404.

About Families Forward:  Families Forward (previously Bidwell Riverside Center and Hawthorn Hill) Has four main programs: Bidwell Pantry, Child Development Center, New Directions Shelter (emergency housing), and The Home Connection (long term housing). For over 100 years, our mission has been to provide compassionate, life-changing assistance to families and their path to self-sufficiency.​

Need a project to do at home? We need bags for the Families Forward Bidwell Pantry. Recycle your old t-shirts into no-sew t-shirt bags.  We can use over 120 t-shirt bags per day, so we welcome large donations of these bags. (We are now serving 6,000 to 9,000 people per month.)  

Making no-sew t-shirt bags is a great project that you can do from home and allows you to re-purposes an old t-shirt.​ No-sew t-shirt bags are sturdier than plastic bags, can hold more food items, and be re-used.  This project is also kid-friendly and environmentally friendly.

We also need used plastic grocery bags, paper grocery bags and cloth bags. 

Drop Off Location: 1203 Hartford Avenue, Des Moines IA 50315

For Instructions: Click here to view the instructions to make the bags.

Questions? Contact Missy Reams at missy@familiesforward.org or call 515-989-8404.

About Families Forward:  Families Forward (previously Bidwell Riverside Center and Hawthorn Hill) Has four main programs: Bidwell Pantry, Child Development Center, New Directions Shelter (emergency housing), and The Home Connection (long term housing). For over 100 years, our mission has been to provide compassionate, life-changing assistance to families and their path to self-sufficiency.​

We need a person who is willing to simply type down what will become the process for volunteers to monitor and respond to our phone text messages and phone emails, our social media in boxes, and our website chat messages. This person would need to have time to meet in person or virtually with the Executive Director for this task. This will be an ongoing task until the entire process is documented so that the communication volunteer positions can be listed. This person would also need to write down the process for the volunteer coordinator as well. The volunteer coordinator will be the person to manage the communication volunteers.

Volunteer Job Title: Grant Writer

Purpose: We are looking for two volunteers who will work as a team to research and apply for grants that ultimately help to keep the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow financially secure.

Location: Remote

Key Responsibilities:

·       Identify and research grants to apply for from various government, private foundations, and corporate sponsors.

·       Prepare and submit grant applications.

·       Keep track of grant deadlines and ensure the requirements of grants are met.

·       Build relationships with funding organizations, ensuring follow-up on the progress made in our organization due to a grant being awarded.

·       Attend monthly White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee meetings either virtually or in-person.

Reports to: Director of the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee

Length of Assignment: A commitment of at least one year on the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee

Qualifications & Skills:

·       Passion for the values of our Pow Wow: multiculturalism, intercultural dialogue, friendship, education, and celebration

·       Previous professional or volunteer experience in grant writing preferred

·       Excellent verbal and written communication skills

·       Organizational and time management skills

·       Able to work well in a team as well as independently

·       Must be willing to undergo a background check

Training & Support:

·       General volunteer onboarding

·       Ongoing guidance and communication with the Director as well as the whole of the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee

Age Requirement: At least 18 years of age.

Volunteer Job Title: Public Relations & Social Media Volunteer

Purpose: The position of Public Relations & Social Media Volunteer is the lead in managing our social media as well as our media contacts. This volunteer acts as the “face” of the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow.

Location: Remote

Key Responsibilities:

·       Take the lead in managing our Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok pages.

·       Create a content calendar for all of our social media channels.

·       Build new relationships and maintain our current relationships with media contacts.

·       Meet in-person, over the phone, and/or virtually with our media contacts.

·       Craft news stories to pitch to media outlets.

·       Create and distribute press releases.

·       Act as the “face” of the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow, ensuring that the Pow Wow is protected from harm and/or misinformation.

·       Attend monthly White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee meetings either virtually or in-person.

Reports to: Director of the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee

Length of Assignment: A commitment of at least one year on the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee

Qualifications & Skills:

·       Passion for the values of our Pow Wow: multiculturalism, intercultural dialogue, friendship, education, and celebration

·       Previous professional or volunteer experience in public relations and/or social media preferred

·       Excellent verbal and written communication skills

·       Organizational and time management skills

·       Able to work well in a team as well as independently

·       Must be willing to undergo a background check

Training & Support:

·       General volunteer onboarding

·       Ongoing guidance and communication with the Director as well as the whole of the White Eagle Multicultural Pow Wow Committee

Age Requirement: At least 18 years of age.