Category Archives: General Updates

MHNA’s 2022 Meeting Dates

Please mark your calendars for MHNA’s 2022 membership meetings! MHNA meets on the third Thursday of January, April, July, and October. Unless otherwise noted, the meetings begin at 6:30 p.m. and are held at the Northwest Community Center, 5110 Franklin Ave. Here is a rundown of our 2022 meeting dates:

  • Thursday, January 20
  • Thursday, April 21
  • Thursday, July 21
  • Thursday, October 20. *6 p.m. start for our annual supper.

Help MHNA Fight Hunger

MHNA is renewing its efforts to reduce hunger with a winter food-drive for the less fortunate. We understand that too many of our neighbors struggle to put enough food on the table, and we want to help. Our drive will support the Food Bank of Iowa, DMARC Food Pantry, the two Little Free Pantries in our neighborhood, and the Reach Church’s food pantry.

If donating by check, please make it out to MHNA. Food or monetary donations can be dropped off to Kathy Battles (2729 62nd St), April Wyss (2800 62nd St), or Kathy Roarty (1340 62nd St). April and Kathy R. can also pick up donations if you call/text April Wyss at 515-707-6386, or Kathy R. at 402-657-9905. We will be taking donations now through our annual meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 20, 2022, at the Northwest Community Center, 5110 Franklin Ave. If mailing a check, send it to MHNA at P.O. Box 31036, Des Moines, IA, 50310. 

You can also make a donation via PayPal using MHNA’s email address: merlehayneighborhood@gmail.com. If you make a donation via PayPal, you might consider adding 50-cents or $1 to help offset PayPal’s processing fees.

MHNA members are some of the most generous neighbors in our city. Thank you for helping us make this fundraiser a success!

MHNA Quarterly Meeting & Supper on Oct. 21

What’s better than being able to meet in person for the first time in over a year? There will be food! Please make plans to join MHNA at 6 p.m. on Thursday, October 21 for our quarterly meeting and annual supper at the Northwest Community Center, 5110 Franklin Ave.

Please note that the Northwest Community Center requires visitors to wear masks due to the pandemic, though masks may be removed while people eat.

If you would like to bring a soup, side, or dessert, please call or text April (Beck) Wyss at (515) 707-6386. We’re also going to try a recipe swap this year. If you have a recipe you would like to share with neighbors, please bring a minimum of 10-15 copies.

The meeting portion will begin at 6:30 p.m. and feature neighborhood news, public safety updates, and a city update from Ward 1 City Councilman Bill Gray. Candidates for local offices in the November election will also be allowed 2-3 minutes to introduce themselves. Barring technological difficulties, we will try to livestream the meeting on the MHNA Facebook page for those who cannot attend in person.

We will also have public safety updates and neighborhood news.

Please mark your calendars and tell your neighbors!

Help MHNA Fight Hunger!

2020 was a hard year for all of us and 2021 has started out as a difficult one as well. Many of our neighbors and friends in Des Moines are still struggling to put enough food on the table for their families. We can’t get together in person, but MHNA would like to hold a fundraiser to support the Food Bank of Iowa, DMARC Food Pantry, and the two Little Free Pantries in our neighborhood.

After a discussion with the MHNA board and input from several members, it was decided that we can donate money (cash or check) or food items to MHNA and those donations will be split between 4 organizations:

  • Food Bank of Iowa
  • DMARC Food Pantry
  • Little Free Pantry box at Immanuel United Methodist Church, 2900 49th St.
  • Little Free Pantry box at Grace Lutheran Church, 5201 Urbandale Ave.  

If donating by check, please make it out to MHNA. Food or money donations can be dropped off to Kathy Battles (2729 62nd St), April Wyss (2800 62nd St), or Kathy Roarty (1340 62nd St). April and Kathy R can also pick up donations if you call/text April Wyss at 515-707-6386 or Kathy Roarty at 402-657-9905. We will be taking donations now through Monday March 15, 2021.

You can also make a donation via PayPal, though we encourage people to pay by cash or check if they’re able so MHNA can avoid processing fees. The following link can be used for PayPal donations: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=DQ3UYMUV8HYFN&source=url

MHNA members are some of the most generous neighbors in our city. Thank you in advance for your help in making this fundraiser a success!

MHNA’s spring meeting set for April 15

Spring will be here before we know it . . . hopefully. 🙂 While you’re looking ahead to spring, please pencil us in on your calendar for MHNA’s next meeting at 6:30 p.m. on April 15.

Thereafter, we plan to meet on July 15, and October 21.

We anticipate holding online meetings until things improve with the pandemic. Please make sure we have your email address so we can keep you updated. Online meeting invites are sent to active members and we also livestream on our Facebook page, which can be found at: www.facebook.com/MerleHayNeighborhood.

Once we are able to safely resume in-person meetings, we plan to gather at the Northwest Community Center, 5110 Franklin Ave.

Please mark your calendars and help spread the word!