Adopt-a-Park volunteers (seen above) cleaning Woodlawn Park. Last year we were able to engage more than 2,800 volunteers and we're off to a great start this spring. We have volunteers working in our parks, and helping with our programs, every single day in the month of April. Thank you!

HELLO SPRING

We are so excited to welcome spring and all of you back outdoors. We are seeing incredible growth in our park usage and program numbers and we need your help in making Des Moines a great place to live, work, and play!


April is National Volunteer Month—a month dedicated to recognizing the importance of volunteers and honoring the significant contributions you make by donating your time and talents to us.


If you haven't been able to watch our 2021 Volunteer Highlight Video, please do. It's a great way to celebrate last year and envision the great success we will have together as a team this year! Thank you for all you do!


2021 Volunteer Awards Video

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VOLUNTEER TIME OFF

Do you have Volunteer Time Off (VTO) in your organization? Here are a few upcoming events that are great for our cop

APRIL-EARTH MONTH

Earth Month


The weather next week is looking up! Join us outside. It's been three years since we've been able to host Iowa's largest Earth Day volunteer event, Earth Day Trash Bash. This year we continue with our modified event spread out over the entire month of April but really need your help!


LEARN MORE

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Help Make Our Playgrounds Safe


There's nothing more fun than bringing fun spaces to DSM! This is a great "team building" opportunity. Get your group together or come alone but be ready to spread some special playground mulch to provide safe places for our kids to play. All tools/supplies are provided.

View Openings
Litter Clean up
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View Openings

Bust a Move Improving our Watershed

Give back and get in a great workout while cutting and removing weedy trees and invasive plants from our woodlands. We've got two opportunities with flexible group scheduling (Fourmile Watershed-Along Gay Lea Wilson Trail, Walnut Creek Watershed-West in Greenwood Park). You set your date/time with our staff, bring the group, and we'll bring the tools/supplies.

LEARN MORE
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Roses are Red

April 21, 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.


Enjoy some sunshine and fresh air in our beautiful Clare and Miles Mills Rose Garden located behind the DM Art Center. Volunteers will help prep the garden for spring. This is a great "team" building opportunity and since it takes most of the day we'll provide you lunch!


View Opening

Cache In Trash Out

Saturday, April 16, 9:30-11:30 a.m.


Give back this weekend and find “cached” prizes during this family fun eco-hunt/clean-up. For more than a decade, we've partnered with volunteers from the Iowa Geocacher's Association and the Westwood Neighborhood Association to host concerned citizens for this unique trash hunt. This year we welcome Central Iowa Trails Association (CITA) as a new partner. Join the fun this Saturday!


Sign Me Up!

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OUR PARTNERS

Ewing Park Soap Box Cleanup

Saturday, April 16, 9:00 a.m.


Greater Des Moines Soap Box Derby volunteers are looking for helpers to help clean up the track in our park. Questions: Email dmsoapbox@gmail.com.


Learn More

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COMING UP

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City Greenhouse, May 12-14th


We've got lots of great openings coming up next month including this gem at our City Greenhouse. Help us move flowers out of our greenhouse for assigned neighborhood volunteers to pick-up and beautify our community. To View Openings Use Password: flower

View Openings
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Learn More
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Bluebird Monitoring

Tuesdays in May, 10:30 a.m.


Want to learn more about becoming a Bluebird Monitor? Naturalist Joel Van Roekel will be walking Greenwood Park every Tuesday during the month of May to monitor boxes. You'll be able to see what a monitor does as you open nesting boxes to check for nests, eggs, and baby bluebirds. Meet at 10:30 a.m.

More Info
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SPECIAL THANKS

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Thank you Maddy Lohmeier and the National Honor Society volunteers that helped prep Franklin Community Garden for our spring opening.

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Thank you Ela, Dani, and the Simpson Youth Academy for partnering with the City and Polk County Conservation in the Fourmile Watershed. You cleaned up 99.8 pounds of trash and cleared away almost an acre of invasive plants.

VOLUNTEERS LEADING THE WAY

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Marketing Supervisor, Jen Fletcher sends out a monthly update to our neighborhoods full of programs and activites. The latest update included our new spring/summer program guide. Click the hyperlinks and check out.

Adopt-a-Block


Cemetery Supervisor Ganesh Ganpat and Recreation Program Coordinator Mallory Machir kicked off the 2022 Adopt-a-Block season with an online orientation last week. Thank you to the 55 volunteers who have signed up this year. Volunteers are given supplies to maintain their "adopted" area in one of our 7 municipal cemeteries. If you missed orientation, you can view it below.


View Spring Orientation

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Adopt a Park/Trail


The Adopt-a-Park and Adopt-a-Trail program is a partnership between Des Moines Parks and Recreation, community members, public/private organizations, and local businesses to assist in the cleanup and beautification of parks and trails. It's been so successful in the first year, almost all locations are adopted this year and there are plans to expand the program in 2023. Thank you to all that adopted and have started cleaning your areas!


Adopted Parks & Trails

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**Although we are almost FULL, be ready for next year when we have new openings.

Bird Bird Bird is the Word


Tweet-up with volunteer John Bissell weekly at 11 a.m. in Gray's Lake Park (meet at the Terrace). From ducks to songbirds, Gray's Lake has it all. If you don't have your own binoculars we'll have a few on hand!


Learn More

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Cemetery Tours


Take a walk through Des Moines history with local volunteer historians Archie Cook and Jeff Kleuver, or with Cemetery Supervisor Ganesh Ganpat. We offer three types of tours. Tour size is limited. Proceeds from our tours support the preservation of our municipal cemeteries. 


Cost: $10

Distance: >1.5 miles, 2 hrs

Age: 12+


Register Now

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Every Kid Gets a Ball


Thank you to our Friends of Des Moines Parks volunteers who are working hard to make soccer more accessible in our community. They gave away FREE soccer balls to all 340 registered youth soccer players.


Thanks to their sponsors including Pro Iowa, Kick It Forward, and the Des Moines Menace. 

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FORE! Our Parks


Friends of DM Parks volunteers annually host FORE! Our Parks golf outing and bike ride at Waveland Golf Course and through the years provided us with almost $2,000,000 of support. The funding has helped thousands of children learn how to swim, built playgrounds and nature trails, purchased E911 Trail markers, as well as assisted with recreation programs/special events.


Register Now

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Mayor's Annual Ride

Thank you to our volunteers who are helping Special Events Supervisor, Molly Rupert at our Mayor's Annual Ride on Saturday, April 30. There's still time for you to register to participate! Our 20-mile ride will be going lake to lake. Participants can win a bike from Bike World and enjoy a post-event celebration at Confluence Brewing. Proceeds from the event go back into supporting our trails.


Learn More

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They're Back!


With safety plans in place, Greenhouse staff Colt Stephens and Dana Sinn welcomed back transplanting volunteers this past month for the first time in three years. Volunteers were very excited to return. Staff and volunteers work together to grow more than 250,000 plants annually to be transplanted into our parks and public spaces as part of our neighborhood beautification program.

DEPARTMENT NEWS

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Help Needed


Please share and help us find great talent to join our team this summer. We are hoping to expand our free summer camp program in our parks but we need more Camp Leaders. Spread the word and help us create summer fun in the sun!


Apply Online

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