The Future
When a newspaper editor wrote nearly 25 years ago that Pleasant Hill would never be a town, his vision was extremely short sighted. The city worked through the sixties and seventies to establish services a town would need. However, it was not just services that attracted people to the area.
Those who moved to Pleasant Hill spoke of the atmosphere of the town, the peacefulness, the sense of community. These attributes make a town. It is the sense of community that is readily apparent in the volunteer organizations.
The oldest community organization is the Pleasant Hill Community Ladies Auxiliary. Beginning in 1959 as the Ladies Volunteer Fire Department Auxiliary, the group would help anyone in need. Ruth Grant, first president of the auxiliary, said that the group would help families whose homes had burned and would deliver fruit and cookies to the elderly at Christmas.
Today, the auxiliary has the goal of promoting "good will, loyalty, and friendship within the community." A condolence committee (currently chaired by Joyce Delk) offers to serve dinner when a member of a family dies. Also the auxiliary holds a monthly bingo to raise money for projects such as the youth center and library fund.
The current officers of the auxiliary are: Kathy Nothdorf (president), Laura Tucker (vice-president), Martha Foster (secretary), and Jannie Klopfenstein (treasurer).
Another group that helps to foster community pride is the Jaycees. Organized in 1969, the group sponsors a number of projects such as the annual Fourth of July celebration, the compiling of the Pleasant Hill phone book, gun safety classes, and recreation night for the kids. Ron McClung was the first president, and under his leadership and that of subsequent presidents he Pleasant Hill Jaycees have received a number of awards from the state headquarters. Currently having about 35 members with Linn Jones as president, the group’s goal is “individual development through community involvement.”
Education has always been a focal point of the community. When the people of Pleasant Hill saw that a school was going to be built in the town in 1972, they decided that the community should have an organization to support it. In July of 1972, the Home School Community Association (HSCA) was created. It was formed as a volunteer group with the goal of involving everyone, not just parents of elementary children, in the affairs of the school.
HSCA serves as a ready source of volunteers to help in the education of the students. The group has sponsored fun night and held book sales and roller skating to raise money. The money has gone to buy books for the school library as well as games and educational aids. Theo and LaVoy Haage are the current co-chairpersons.
For the children of Pleasant Hill, community spirit begins at school and with recreational activities. Melvin Kiner, the current principal, is expecting between 380 to 390 students for the 1981-82 school year in grades K-6. Junior high grades 7, 8, and 9 go to Hyatt Junior High in Des Moines. High school students have their choice of Des Moines high schools, but most go to East High just as students did when the old Pleasant Hill district paid tuition for students to attend Des Moines schools.
A Place For Youths
As has been the case for most of Pleasant Hill's history, there are few organized activities for teens. In response to the teens' need for someplace to go and something to do, officers Jean Anderson and Bob Evans of the Pleasant Hill Police Department organized a youth council in May 1981. The teens on the council meet to discuss common problems and organize events for others their age to attend. The group's main goal is to raise enough money to build a teen center in town. The center would be a place to play games and dance, but more importantly it would be a place to go.