In the final days of May, AMOS gathered 100 Iowans from 24 communities across the state for a seminar at Iowa State University focusing on the 1980s Farm Crisis.  The seminar was organized by AMOS leaders from 17 member institutions and 3 rural communities currently exploring AMOS membership.  

The daylong event focused on the research of Dr. Pamela Riney-Kehrberg and her book "When a Dream Dies."  In small groups, urban and rural Iowans shared powerful stories from the Farm Crisis and re-imagined how local institutions organizing together could impact the pressures impacting families across the state today.  AMOS' next steps include 3 summer training opportunities in Northeast and Central Iowa towards the launch of local house meeting organizing campaigns this fall. 

[Originally published in De Moines Register]

The last time we met with Pope Francis in 2024, as representatives of AMOS, A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy, and our colleagues from the South and West Industrial Areas Foundation, the nation’s largest and longest-standing community organizing network, he counseled us to not lose our sense of humor and quoted St. Thomas More’s Prayer for Good Humor:

“Grant me, oh Lord, a sense of good humor.”

One hundred twenty leaders from 40 Iowan communities converged in Perry, IA for the 'Building Bridges & Organized Communities' seminar, hosted by A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy (AMOS).  Led by 12 faith leaders spanning 15 denominations — including Protestant, Catholic, and Evangelical traditions — the gathering was more than a meeting; it was a call to action. The aim? To forge deep, cross-community relationships and build the power necessary to confront the issues weakening Iowa’s families and rural communities.

The day included a hard look at data from Iowa State University's Rural Shrink Smart project, followed by small group house meetings to listen and share stories of the realities facing families across rural, urban, and suburban Iowa communities. 

The energy moved quickly from analysis to action.  In host community Perry, where residents have dealt with a school shooting and meat packing plant closure in the past year, church leaders committed to meet again to grow their power to act in Dallas County. Participants from across the state committed to next steps for organizing together to push back against the forces pressuring their communities.

In a public assembly at St. Paul AME, 140 AMOS leaders secured commitments from new DMPS Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts and four school board candidates to work together to expand 'Let’s Talk Now' and restorative justice practices, support student mental health, and retain and diversify the Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) teaching workforce.  In the meeting, Superintendent Dr. Roberts announced that DMPS will change hiring practices for people with criminal records.

[Excerpt]

Charice Williams, the Hiatt Middle School student engagement coordinator [and Bethel AME Church leader], spoke about the importance of having school staff who look like their students and about the barriers to achieving this goal.

Williams told those gathered about a woman... who was previously incarcerated but ultimately earned a master's degree and 30 years later has worked for both the state and county. Yet because of her criminal record, the woman was not eligible for a stipend position as part of the district's school-based mentor program Sisters 4 Success, Williams said.

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The city of Des Moines and A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy (AMOS) are accepting applications from community stakeholders interested in sitting on the advisory committee for a proposed Community Land Trust in an effort to reserve land for permanent affordable housing....

Officials and AMOS say the land trust will be classified as a nonprofit organization with the goal to provide “a supply of sustainable housing for residents with low to moderate incomes” and strengthen, stabilize and preserve neighborhoods...

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Lauridsen Skatepark is being certified with USA Skateboarding during a public event Sunday, Polk County and Catch Des Moines officials tell Axios.

Why it matters: The designation means the facility will be a regional skateboarding hub and likely attract more Olympic-qualifying events, Laura Jass, director of sports for tourism advocacy group Catch Des Moines, tells Axios....

DSM police previously had a "three-strikes-and-you're-in-jail" policy to discourage public skateboarding....

• Groups like A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy (AMOS) then led nearly two decades of organizing and fundraising that resulted in Lauridsen Skatepark.

[Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Dew Tour]

Scoop: Lauridsen Skatepark Gains Certification, Axios [pdf]

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"The Des Moines Police Department's Crisis Advocacy Response Effort is one year old. The program began after seeing an influx in mental health 911 calls that didn't require police assistance. Since it started, CARE has successfully responded to 1,503 calls...

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About six years ago, AMOS asked families what kept them up at night. Parents said they needed services for children in mental health crises.

“Kids were waiting months to see a therapist. They were not getting what they need from a system designed for adults,” said Crystal Loving, of First Unitarian Church. A child in the midst of a mental health crisis would be handcuffed, put in the backseat of a police car, and enter the juvenile justice system rather than get the mental health care that was needed."

[Excerpt]

"On May 18, 100 Polk County residents celebrated the launch of a new mental health workforce program at a Mental Health Workforce Kickoff at Corinthian Baptist Church. The $1.8M mental health workforce investment from Polk County’s ARPA funds will go towards up to $20,000 in loan payments for 90 new mental health professionals. To be eligible, therapists must commit to work for 5 years at a Polk County community-based mental health provider, have a masters degree, and student loan debt....

Dr. Cathy Beck-Cross, LMSW, EdD, Associate Professor of Social Work at Grand View, is excited. "We are thrilled for this opportunity for Grand View master's degree graduates entering the workforce to provide mental health services. Polk County, like the rest of Iowa, has a shortage of licensed therapists, especially ones who are bilingual. Many thanks to County officials who moved this initiative forward, and to AMOS for their advocacy in the process."

[Excerpt]

Two parishioners from Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart in Ankeny collaborated with others to move bureaucratic mountains to create a plan that helps children suffering mental health crises.

Jan Brown and Sue Murphy said their faith plus a passion for helping people in pain fueled their drive to fill a gap in health care in the Des Moines area....

“It wasn’t charity, it was justice,” Brown said.

Brown and Murphy along with representatives of AMOS... did research, talked to families, visited with hospital officials and legislators and built the political will to figure out a new system...

Now they’re trying to ensure that it has long-term funding and that there are counselors who can meet the need of the community including refugees and immigrants who call central Iowa home.

Brown said: “That’s our goal is to listen to concerns of families and improve the communities we live in.”

Fueled by Faith, Advocacy for Children Pays Off, Catholic Mirror [pdf]