PvilleYI hosts poverty conference in pleasantville
June 5, 2024:
In June 2023, PvilleYI Co-Founders Jennie Koenig and Emily Caulkins attended a Marion County Poverty Conference hosted by The Well, an organization in Marion County that serves those in need. The conference provided PvilleYI with a unique perspective that helped as we served our community members in Pleasantville.
Pleasantville's poverty level is 5% over the state level. In the last 20 years Pleasantville's poverty rate has more than doubled from 7% to 16%. And as of 2020, 25% of those under the poverty level were 6 years of age or younger.
With these statistics in mind, we worked with The Well to bring a Poverty Conference to Pleasantville. We invited leaders from our school, city, churches, and organizations to attend.
On June 5th 2024, our team hosted the Marion County Poverty Conference at Pleasantville’s High School Library. The conference was well-attended with representatives from nearly every church, organization, and leadership team in our community.
Jayson Henry, Well CEO, led the conference. PvilleYI provided a lunch for participants catered by Halftime Bar and Grill.
This conference is part of our effort to make Pleasantville a compassionate and welcoming community for people of all demographics. Thank you to everyone who attended and all those who helped make this possible!
Resources that were passed out at the event were:
A Framework for Understanding Poverty by Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D
Girls Prom Prep and Brunch
On Saturday, April 22nd, PvilleYI hosted a free girls prom prep day and brunch. We had five volunteers ready to do hair and makeup for girls for free. These were by appointment, and our volunteers were busy the whole day!
In addition, all girls attending the PHS prom were invited to drop-in for a prom day brunch. We served them a beautiful charcuterie-style spread complete with yogurt parfait, fruit, pastries, chicken salad sandwiches, meats and cheeses, and of course, Girl Scout cookies! Tables were also decorated with tulips picked from our very own gardens.
Girls were also welcomed with an ice-coffee bar and a delicious breakfast punch.
Each girl left with a gift bag containing a pura-vida bracelet, scrunchies, candy, gum, and a few items they may need in a pinch on prom day including some tissues, bandaids, makeup wipes, and lip gloss.
We absolutely loved to welcome these girls with open arms and bless them with some hospitality on their special day!
A HUGE THANK YOU goes to our hair and make-up volunteers: Holly DeGoey, Sierra Hutton, Taelor Sheets, Grace Hayes, and Chelsea Bender. Also to Brenda Goodale who donated acrylic nail sets for the girls to have! And to Tammy Clark for her help in set up, welcoming, and clean up.
Another HUGE THANK YOU goes to Ali and Mike Cranmer for donating pastries from jaarsma and Pella beef sticks/cheese curds.
Girl Scout Troop Mommy & Me Spa Day
On Friday, May 6th, PvilleYI was excited to be invited to help out at a very special Mommy and Me Spa Day hosted by Pleasantville’s Girl Scout troop! We provided a table where the girls could give their moms a luxurious sugar hand scrub, followed by some lovely lotions and perfume. We also donated a bag of goodies for each mom and daughter to take home with them. It was a FUN time!
Happy Fourth of July from PvilleYI!
Wow! We were SO excited to have our 4th of July festivities back this year. Covid-19 was on the rampage in 2020 but thankfully we can carefully begin to get back to some sort of normal again. We are super THANKFUL for all the many essential employees who have worked so hard during this trying time.
We are extra thankful for our freedoms, this year!
Happy 4th of July from PvilleYI! We loved tossing candy and fun patriotic novelties as well!
May Day Baskets 2021
Happy May Day! We continued our tradition of surprising each child at Pleasantville Elementary with a May Basket. We placed them on each desk before school, and we made sure the faculty and staff got one, too!
Art Supplies Donated to PHS
When we heard that the PHS CSD Art Department was in need of some supplies, we knew we needed to help! Creativity is such an important, God designed part of who we are. Fueling creativity in young people gives them purpose, gives them something to do, and helps them grow.
PvilleYI donated over $1,000 in supplies including sketch books, paints, colored pencils, and so much more. This was all made possible by the the incredible generosity of those who have donated to our organization! Great job, Pleasantville. Look what a wonderful thing you did!
The art supplies are already being put to good use. Look at these awesome Kindness Cards the students created for the residents at our local nursing home! We love this beautiful act of kindness, you guys! Great job!
We will treasure this beautiful, handmade thank you card!
