Abbie Benge left Simpson College after graduating in 2015 and took the typical and expected next step: She got a job in her chosen field of communication.

Her next big move surprised even her. She wanted to pursue ways to give back to the community. “I was looking for more than what was happening at work,” she said in an interview. 

She considered what she enjoyed doing and where she could really effect change.

She started a nonprofit in 2016, Do More Iowa, which is something of a life hack for smaller nonprofits. 

The idea: An organization may need to throw a fundraiser or put on an event but it may not have staff or volunteers who are skilled in that. Do More Iowa’s mission is to help those nonprofits put on those events; its volunteers are skilled in sales, marketing, event planning and more.

“Do More Iowa eliminates the burden of event planning and fundraising from smaller nonprofit organizations who do not have the staff to accommodate their needs. We have a team of experienced professionals here to help you and get your name out there!” the group’s website says.

There are dozens of groups that could benefit from this work, but Benge and her team decided to focus early on three areas: youth development, animal rescues and cancer research. 

Nonprofits fill out an application for Benge’s team to consider. Do More Iowa is all volunteer-run and has a full board that helps run and operate its projects. Once a nonprofit is chosen, a team is put together to support its fundraiser or event. 

Recent projects include an event with Campfire Iowa, and up next it will be working with the Dream Foundation for an event later this summer or early fall, Benge said.

“I don’t know of any other group like Do More Iowa,” said Rachael Harms, who is on the board of directors and is the go-to person for event planning. “We help take away the things that nonprofits traditionally lack in experience or time (i.e., event planning, marketing, collecting donations, etc.) to allow them to spend more time on their actual missions.”

Harms got on board after seeing a post on social media about the group; she was attracted to the animal rescue and children focuses. She submitted an application and soon joined in. 

Since then, she’s worked on several auctions for groups such as Furry Friends and Pet Projects. At times, the work gets more hands-on; she helped collect the baskets that were part of an auction.

In addition to serving as a nonprofit executive director, Benge works at in marketing as a client relations manager and attends classes in pursuit of a master’s degree in public administration at Drake University in her spare time. She expects to graduate in the spring.

“It is definitely difficult to manage a full-time job, Do More Iowa and school,” Benge admitted. But she quickly mentioned several times during an interview how much effort and support Do More Iowa’s board members give.

“I have learned so much I have been able to apply in real time to Do More Iowa. The entire organization has learned a lot and benefited in many ways,” she said. 

As the executive director, Benge’s main responsibilities are to keep track of projects, work with the board and reach out to the community for networking with potential clients or donors, and to seek other funding streams. Do More Iowa’s current sponsorships are U of I Community Credit Union and Fidelity and Guaranty Life. 

“We are just getting our feet wet in all that we are capable of,” said Benge.

Here’s what she’d like the business community to know: “By supporting Do More Iowa, you are in turn supporting many other causes and organizations because that’s what we do. We support nonprofits that need our help in many ways. Our guidance and support are unlimited — and yours can be, too,” she stresses.

“I think the most important thing for the community to know about Do More Iowa is that our services are 100 percent free,” said Harms. “We can help with anything from marketing to event planning to fundraising.”

A longer-term goal is for Do More Iowa to stand on its own and keep helping nonprofits, perhaps through a broader network.

“Creating a startup takes a long time, to become fully funded by itself, but one day we hope Do More Iowa can get there,” Benge said.

What’s ahead for Do More Iowa? “We are looking at adding an additional area of focus to our three causes we support,” Benge said. “One of our focuses this year is really supporting other nonprofits in any way possible, from assisting in planning and attending their events, to volunteering or participating.”

Do More Iowa is currently accepting applications for 2019. You can learn more about Do More Iowa at its website, www.domoreiowa.org, or on Facebook.