Our blog, our baby

We finally did it. You’re officially reading United Way of Central Iowa’s very first blog post. You wouldn’t believe the amount of preparation we’ve put into reaching this milestone; I feel (a little) like a new mother. The baby’s finally here!


We launched this blog because we wanted to start a conversation. We promise to make this a place where you can talk about the issues and challenges facing our community. We want it to be a place where we can talk about solutions that will drive real and lasting change, too. We want more than anything to hear from you.


I want you to meet our Speak United Central Iowa bloggers. You’ll hear from one of them at least three times a week, every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. They’ll be blogging about Giving, Advocating and Volunteering in central Iowa – and talking to you about their work. Please get to know them!




Give. Colin Peterson is a campaign manager for United Way. He’s worked here about a year, and as you’ll soon see…he’s got a lot to say! He’s very tall and barely 27, but all that energy and enthusiasm around Giving has started causing some gray hairs to sprout. Check it out the next time you see him. He also plays bass in a very cool band, but he won’t sing for you so don’t ask. Read Colin’s first blog on Monday, Feb. 23, 2009.

Advocate. Lisa Sieren (pronounced “seer-in”) is United Way’s public policy coordinator. That means she’s our wonk when it comes to legislative issues. And she keeps us in-the-know on important policy matters that affect our focus areas of education, income and health. Lisa, you’ll see, is way-smart and on-the-spot poised. But here’s a secret: she’s a rock music addict. Nickelback’s her favorite. Huh? Get out! Read Lisa’s first blog on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009.

Volunteer. Rachel Manuel is the volunteer engagement coordinator for United Way – and, at 23, our youngest staff member. But she’s no rookie here: Rachel is crazy-busy in our community. She’s also a self-described “smarty pants” who’s studying for her MPA at Drake and defending the integrity of every Millennial on the planet. If you have a pulse, she will find a way to put you to work, doing something good for someone else. Read Rachel’s first blog on Friday, Feb. 27, 2009.

Speak United Central Iowa. Here’s what I’ll be doing: as the official Speak United Central Iowa blog editor, I promise to: a) not act my age (I’m way old); b) keep the place decent and respectful; and c) pick up after ourselves, should we make a mess. Even so, I’ve started a UWCI blog about news and stories dealing with Education, Income and Health. My blog won’t be on a schedule like the star bloggers I just introduced. But I hope, with your help, it will be relevant. I have so many things I want to share.






So. Until next week: LIVE UNITED. And forgive (gasp) the length of this first blog post. It won’t happen again. I promise. Word count: 531. Ideal word count for blogs: 250-500. I’m on the case.