City Serve DSM · Founded 2017 · Founder & CEO
Serving the people who serve our city.
A standalone 501(c)(3) for the teachers, first responders, social workers and Iowa National Guard families of Greater Des Moines. It's also a church-growth strategy and a local outreach strategy unlike anything most churches attempt.
- Church growth strategy
- Local outreach strategy
- No strings attached
- Consistent + creative
Why it's different
Doors a church can't open on its own
Most church outreach is a one-time event: a meal, a cleanup day, a back-to-school drive. City Serve is built for the long haul, and it's structured to go where churches usually can't.
We build long-term relationships with schools, first responders, social-service organizations, the Iowa National Guard and other community partners. We listen first, then bring together the people, ideas and resources that can help, including adding capacity when a partner lacks the staff, time or resources to do what it wants to do. And we keep coming back, consistently and creatively.
Because City Serve is an independent 501(c)(3), it can partner with public schools, police and fire departments, social workers and the Iowa National Guard. It also removes the barriers that sometimes exist between corporations and religious organizations, so businesses can serve the city alongside the church. City Serve operates in partnership with Capitol City Church, and much of the serving is done by its people.
100% of corporate donations go directly into community partnerships: meals, appreciation, encouragement and comfort for the people who serve our city.
Consistent + creative
Each partner has its own team that serves every month, with a fresh idea each time. We keep coming back. Consistency becomes relationship, and relationship becomes trust.
No strings attached
We ask before acting and expect nothing in return. The partner sets the goal and keeps the credit, and we add people, ideas, resources and follow-through.
Everyone serves together
Church members, corporate employees, students and neighbors serve side by side, often people who would never otherwise meet.
We add capacity
Many partners want to do more for their people but lack the staff, time or budget. We help them do what they can't do alone.
The model
Trust, then credibility, then influence. Each stage earns the next.
Serve
Builds trust
Every partner gets a dedicated team that shows up month after month with fresh, practical ways to encourage their people.
Mobilize
Builds credibility
As trust grows, the partner names what they want to accomplish. We bring the people, ideas and resources to help them do it.
Connect
Expands influence
Businesses that want to help, resources ready to invest and organizations that know the needs, brought together and coordinated.
Three principles guide every project: Ask before acting. No strings attached. Everybody wins.
What it means for the church
Outreach that grows the church
My philosophy of outreachBe a friend to our community by being Jesus’ hands and feet, earning the right to share our faith by loving and serving people into a saving relationship with God.
City Serve gives a congregation a way to serve its city every month, not once a year. Members build real relationships with teachers, officers, firefighters and soldiers, and they serve alongside business leaders and students. Over time, the church becomes known as the people who keep showing up.
That earned trust opens doors for the gospel that no advertising campaign could. For the church, City Serve is both a church-growth strategy and a local outreach strategy, with no strings attached.
My role
Founder & CEO
I founded City Serve in January 2017 and lead its strategy, fundraising, corporate and civic relationships, and volunteer mobilization. City Serve operates in partnership with Capitol City Church.
Who we serve
- Public schools & educators
- Law enforcement
- Fire departments & first responders
- Social workers
- Iowa National Guard soldiers & families
Latest from City Serve
What we're up to this week
City Serve posts about twice a week, and the page holds hundreds of examples of what we do. This feed updates on its own. For the full story, visit cityservedsm.com.
If the feed doesn't appear, your browser may be blocking Facebook content. See the posts on Facebook.
Get involved
Businesses, schools, agencies and volunteers can all find a place to serve.