DES MOINES, Iowa — IMPACT Community Action Partnership is pleased to announce that its Chief Operating Officer Julie Heck, was awarded the National Sargent Shriver Personal Achievement Award. The award was presented on Thursday, August 24, in Atlanta at the National Community Action Partnership annual conference. This recognition honors individuals across the country who transformed their lives, embody Community Action’s spirit of hope and work to assist others. The award is named for Sargent Shriver, the first director of the federal Office of Economic Opportunity which initiated the Community Action Program in 1964.
Seventeen years ago Julie Heck started with community action in the most entry level position. At the time she was a single mother with a high school education; she took the job as a way to support her three children. Then things started to change. Julie learned she was passionate about helping other families. And her supervisors learned Julie was tremendously capable. In a short time following, Julie earned her bachelor's degree summa cum laude from Simpson College and numerous professional certifications all while working full time and raising her family. She is now a strategic force for IMPACT as well as the entire network of Iowa community action agencies. In every meeting and decision, she continues to bring her unique perspective of the experience of poverty, keeping teams focused on the mission.
“Julie is so deserving of this award,” said Anne Bacon, IMPACT CEO. “She is a tactical and compassionate leader, and a critical force in growing our mission to assist families with essential needs. She is truly the brains and the heart of IMPACT and the community action model. We are all very proud of her!”
View the five-minute video about Julie’s personal and professional journey:
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IMPACT Community Action Partnership’s mission is to reduce the barriers and burdens that families in poverty experience by increasing access to essential needs. IMPACT serves over 55,000 individuals annually in five Central Iowa counties: Boone, Jasper, Marion, Polk and Warren. IMPACT’s key services include: housing, energy and food assistance. IMPACT is one of 1,000 nationwide and 16 statewide community action agencies.
For Release – August 28, 2023
For more information, contact: Terri Mork Speirs, Chief Development Officer 515-348-4247 tspeirs@impactcap.org
For IMPACT News: www.impactcap.org/news