Community Corner

Urbandale Woman Flexes Her 'Power of One' Muscle

Quietly and humbly, one Urbandale woman has organized a service event on Martin Luther King Jr. Day for three years. This year, hundreds of struggling Urbandale families benefited.

Jane Robinette has always made service a part of her life, but in 2008 she became convinced that a single person can make a difference.

Robinette, an Urbandale artist, was volunteering as an Iowa Caucus precinct chairwoman to get a young black man elected president. 

She was inspired by then-Sen. Barack Obama's "Yes, we can!" message, so shortly after he was inaugurated she wanted to make a difference on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

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"I started thinking about things I would want to do. I wanted to support the food pantry. I knit a bit and I know knitters. And I'm an artist, so I knew that art would be a part of it."

"She makes me want to be a better person. She doesn't form a committee, she just does it."

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So Robinette, 51, created and organized Urbandale's "Give Care" event for 2009 National Day of Service. And she's been doing it every year since — pretty much on her own.

"It is the perfect story of how one person can make a difference," said Eileen Boggess, director of the, which benefits from the event.

"She makes me want to be a better person," Boggess said. "Who does that kind of stuff? She doesn't talk it to death. She doesn't form a committee, she just does it."

Obama's Inauguration Inspires Urbandale Woman to Serve Others

Robinette created an event that has grown steadily at the for the past three years. On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, people brought canned goods, personal-care products such as shampoo and deodorant, plus warmth items — hats, mittens and scarves — to the library.

The items were distributed to families through the Urbandale Food Pantry, itself only three years old. Some thought a food pantry unnecessary in this prosperous Des Moines suburb, but then the recession hit and the pantry's clientele has been growing by leaps and bounds.

"They are our neighbors," said Boggess. "They are people who are used to being the ones who served, but find themselves needing help."

The library, which offered a free room for the five-hour knit-in and collection, also started its own tradition by advertising that library patrons could get a dollar off their library fines for every food item brought in.

And Robinette provided art supplies for children to draw cards to give to families who will receive extra food and knitted items. She asked them to draw what a hug looks like, what friendship looks like, etc.

"It's great that Jane has stuck with it for three years," said Boggess. "I think it's grown every year."

More Need Yields More Donations

This year, the event yielded $640 in donations, 908 food items, 527 personal care items, and 243 knitted hats, mittens or scarves for the Urbandale Food Pantry, said librarian Janine Bauer.

Robinette's husband, Matt McCright, helped her, especially in transporting the two truckloads of donations to the pantry. She also had a few volunteers at the event, all the rest she did by herself.

She used social media to connect with knitting groups and, over the years, she's collected the names and email addresses of people who've participated, so she designed a flyer and sent it out via email. The library promoted the event on its website.

"This year we had more knitters than ever. I know it was over 20 people," Robinette said. "It was great to have everybody there. It was just fun!"

Robinette said she was glad the event became even more popular this year because it came at a challenging time for her — she also had a couple of exhibits opening at the same time.

"This year, one of the volunteers asked if I wanted help," said Robinette. "I might have a small little committee next year."


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