Iowans are being prodded to give some thought to how they’ll change their communities for the better in two weeks. Saturday, October 27th, is National Make a Difference Day. David Burrier is spokesman for the Des Moines-based Hope Ministries, which is repackaging the annual effort as "Make a Big Dif Day in Iowa," and he encourages everyone in the state to give it a try.
Burrier says: "They can make a big dif by volunteering some time and helping sort donations. They can make a big dif by bringing a turkey or a ham to our Hope Cafe. They can make a big dif by donating a coat at Burlington Coat Factory who’s doing a coat drive for us." Hope Ministries is a privately-funded group that provides food, clothing, shelter and recovery programs to the homeless, hungry and displaced in central Iowa. Burrier says if you look around, you’ll see there’s someplace you can lend a hand.
"There’s a lot of ways to make a big dif. It doesn’t take a whole lot of time, investment or money," Burrier says, "find something you can do either through Hope Ministries or by plugging in to your communities somewhere and Make a Big Dif Day." He says there are all sorts of programs underway across Iowa that are designed to help those in need, like one called HUGS.
Burrier says HUGS stands for Hats, Underwear, Gloves and Socks and they’re hoping people will donate those items through their place of worship. It’ll all be stockpiled at Hope Ministries and distributed to the needy from there. For more information and ideas, visit "www.hopeiowa.org".
The head of the Iowa State Patrol will be retiring in December to take a new job with the state’s prison system. Colonel Robert Garrison says he’s accepted the newly created position of chief of security for the Iowa Department of Corrections. Garrison says he’ll oversee security operations for Iowa’s nine prisons. He says his 32 years with the state patrol have prepared him for his new assignment.