AmeriCorps Week is March 10-16, 2024. The federal organization celebrates and recognizes the millions of Americans who’ve volunteered through the decades to make their communities better by increasing the capacity of nonprofits to alleviate poverty.

The Kansas City Public Library is an intermediary between AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) and the public it serves. Twenty-two federal AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Senior volunteers are headquartered at the Central location; three serve at the Library itself, 10 are stationed at local nonprofits, and nine more support the Library’s Digital Corps arm of AmeriCorps at six branches of the Library.

"Put simply, AmeriCorps members make our community better," says Beccah Rendall, the Library’s AmeriCorps programs manager. "Whether it’s by recruiting volunteers, creating social media posts, working to bridge the digital divide, or participating in days of service, members want to help the community thrive.”

For instance, on the 2024 MLK Day of Service, in conjunction with the nation’s observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day in January, AmeriCorps members across the area packed personal hygiene kits for individuals experiencing homelessness in Kansas City. The Library received enough items to stock all 10 Library locations with hygiene kits, and members sorted enough soap, shampoo, conditioner, and lotion to assist 800 patrons.

Sharon Efunobi serves as a VISTA member at True Light Family Resource Center. “I chose to serve in AmeriCorps to help at-risk individuals and families by providing for their critical needs and connecting them to community resources.”

Efunobi says that she feels the effect of her work when “clients we serve come back to tell me how my help has impacted their life for the better, and how they are so happy I was there at that time they were in need.”

Tamara Boykin Brown is one of the nine local members serving in the Digital Corps, established at the Library in October 2022. In 2023, Digital Corps members like Brown have had more than 3,300 digital literacy interactions with patrons at six branches during regularly scheduled tech drop-in sessions.

Through these interactions, they assist patrons with printing and scanning, applying for jobs, submitting assistance applications, writing emails, and more. Digital Corps members are dedicated to helping patrons achieve their individual goals using technology resources at the Library.

Brown says, “AmeriCorps is an opportunity to serve in a meaningful way. It allows me to be up close and personal with my community. I'm able to help patrons learn new tech skills, the same way others have helped me learn.”

She says she thinks of serving in this capacity as a way to put action behind her desire for community improvement – one patron interaction at a time.

In addition to positively impacting their communities, volunteers also gain job skills applicable to their careers.

“Prior to the beginning of my AmeriCorps service, I was wandering between jobs and endless side hustles,” says Kyle Heflinger, AmeriCorps VISTA member with The Don Bosco Centers. “However, my AmeriCorps position in marketing and development has fostered an appreciation for this industry and makes me want to further develop my skills.”

In the last grant year, AmeriCorps VISTA members serving through the Kansas City Public Library recruited and managed 2,266 volunteers who contributed 22,962 hours of service. They also raised $57,789 in cash resources and $41,900 of in-kind resources through grants and fundraising.

VISTA Summer Associates serving at the Library had more than 10,000 interactions with community members in 2022. AmeriCorps VISTA members also digitized 1,375 historic photos for the Black Archives of Mid-America, coordinated food donations and repurposed over $23,000 worth of unused food to kitchens and families, expanded energy efficient programs in the historic Northeast, supported the development of Yvonne Starks Wilson Park, distributed civic engagement resources, and more.

“I didn't know about VISTA and all the work being done in different communities prior to my service year,” says Damon Patterson, a VISTA member at the Heart of the City Neighborhood Association. “What I thought was just another job or volunteer opportunity has become much more than that to me. Seeing people truly work to make their community better and being part of that keeps me inspired and motivated. If anyone is considering the AmeriCorps path, I would say leap. You won't regret it.”

To join these members in building personal job skills and making meaningful changes in the community, visit kclibrary.org/americorps. And, if you come across any current members during this year’s national recognition week, let them know that you appreciate their work. We certainly do.