Special Delivery

Four low-riding, weighed-down minivans pull up, and, to the excitement of the residents of Oakridge Neighborhood in Des Moines, Iowa, the vans open to reveal stacks of boxes loaded with children’s books. Children, mainly refugees and other immigrants, emerge from the community’s central building and join local kids to carry boxes and push carts up the ramp and inside.

J. Gregory Welch (BA ’02) first heard about Oakridge Neighborhood, a nonprofit organization that provides housing, education, and training for the immigrant community, when the ad agency he works for agreed to do pro-bono work for the charity earlier in the year. Later, as he brainstormed service opportunities with board members of the BYU Alumni chapter in Des Moines, Oakridge Neighborhood came to mind.

Read the full story here: https://magazine.byu.edu/article/going-forth-expanding-literacy-and-musical-community/

Full Name: J. Gregory Welch and Gregory C. Finch
Grad Year: BA 2002, BS 1998
Post date: June 11, 2020