1.
November
6,
2014
To
Whom
it
May
Concern:
It
is
my
pleasure
to
provide
this
Letter
of
Recommendation
for
Hannah
Garside,
a
passionate
volunteer
and
a
true
champion
for
community
betterment
in
the
Des
Moines
Urban
Core
neighborhoods.
The 6th
Avenue Corridor is an ambitious non-profit organization that focuses on the commercial
revitalization of one of the City’s oldest and most diverse neighborhoods. I worked with Hannah directly as
she volunteered to help organize our annual Jazz in July celebration – an all-day multi-cultural music event
that showcases the wonderful diversity of our neighborhood, and helps to overcome the negative perceptions
that have impacted our neighborhood throughout the years. Hannah’s work was instrumental to the success
of our event, which continues to grow as one of the most anticipated dates of the Metro Arts series.
However, Hannah’s involvement went above and beyond simple planning duties. As we know, community
betterment efforts can be very challenging work at times. In the Main Street community, we often refer to
the “CAVE dwellers” – Citizens Against Virtually Everything. When the strong voice of CAVE dweller
threatened to derail not only our Jazz in July event, but also the reputation of our organization as a whole,
Hannah was able to help mediate the situation through her own experiences, and her vast network of
community connections. To say that it was emotionally exhausting is not the slightest understatement. The
fact that Hannah was willing to assist us, while perhaps also putting her own reputation at stake through this
CAVE dweller, speaks volumes to the great passion she has for our community.
In addition to Pearls for Girls, I know that Hannah has been a relentless volunteer for other area
organizations, including Children & Family Urban Movement, also located on 6th
Avenue. In her giving
spirit, she shares with all of us the information she learns in the process, to help benefit all. For example, I
recently attended a grant-writing workshop hosted by Hannah, where she shared valuable tools and insight.
Every community should be so blessed to have a dedicated leader, activist, and advocate as wonderful as
Hannah.
With
best
regards,
Laura
Peters,
Executive
Director
6th
Avenue
Corridor,
Inc.
An
Urban
Main
Street
Program
P.O.
Box
8225
•
Des
Moines,
IA
50301
director@6thavedsm.org
www.6thavedsm.org
515-­‐314-­‐4243