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$60 for 60
Make a donation of $60 or more by August 30th to receive a commemorative t-shirt!

Give to get! Even if you don’t plan to itemize deductions on your next tax return, the cares act allows you to make a $300 charitable gift and then deduct that $300 on your 2020 taxes!

$60 for 60 2

Horizons History

The Founding of Family Service Agency 1960

At the urging of the Linn County Council of Social Planning, the Cedar Rapids – Marion United Fund (now United Way) approves the formation of a local Family Service Agency to meet family counseling needs.

Meals on Wheels Establishment 1964

Meals on Wheels Establishment 1964

Mobile Meals program established by Meth-Wick in conjunction with the Services for the Aged of Linn County. 16 clients served initially.

Mobile Meals Moving Up 1968

Mobile Meals Moving Up 1968

Mobile Meals program transferred to Family Service Agency from Meth-Wick, serving between 45 and 50 meals per day. Mobile Meals then became Meals on Wheels in 1978!

Founding of Alternative Services 1979

Alternative Services founded by Robert Buntz Jr. This agency provided an array of independent living programs and services over the next 26 years.

Financial Wellness Center 1983

Financial Wellness Center 1983

Consumer Credit Counseling Services launches with Scott Shook from First National Bank of Iowa hired as its director.

Survivors Program 1991

Survivors Program 1991

Survivors of Homicide Support Group started by FSA in partnership with St. Luke’s Hospital, county attorneys for Linn and Johnson, and local survivors. Counselor Nick Longworth leads the support group.

Neighborhood Transportation Service (NTS) 1994

Neighborhood Transportation Service (NTS) begins operation, providing rides to workers and students in Wellington Heights six days a week between 6 p.m. and midnight. 560 rides were provided in the first year of business.

819 5th St. SE 2004

Family Services Agency moves to 819 Fifth St. SE, the current headquarters of Horizons. At this time, Horizons begins producing meals in kitchen space at the new facility. Family Services and Alternative Services merge to form Horizons in 2005 and Bob Buntz assumes the role of President and CEO.

Cedar Rapids Floods 2008

Cedar Rapids Floods 2008

Horizons’ Fifth Street office takes on 7 feet, 9 inches of water, high enough tot fill the entire first floor. In spite of this, services continue virtually uninterrupted due to dedicated and creative staff. No Meals on Wheels client misses a meal during this time. In July, Meals on Wheels coordinates production on 60,000 meals to help Salvation Army feed flood victims and volunteers.

Better Business Bureau’s Integrity Award 2010

Horizons is the only nonprofit to win the Better Business Bureau’s Integrity Award. This same year our Meals on Wheels department began offering entree choice options and the garden was created in partnership with Rinderknect Construction and Americorps.

Representative Payee Program 2011

Our Representative Payee Program was launched.

Inaugural Lunchbox Fundraiser 2011

Inaugural Lunchbox Fundraiser 2011

The inaugural Meals on Wheels Lunchbox is held and over 120 local businesses order 2,200 lunches.

NTS Merger 2015

NTS Merger 2015

Horizons merges with Neighborhood Transportation Services (NTS) and Mike Barnhart comes on as the Chief Operating Officer.

Elder Services Merger 2017

Horizons enters into strategic partnership with Elder Services Inc., providing Meals on Wheels to older adults in Iowa City and the surrounding area. The next year Mike Barnhart is named as CEO in January of 2019.

In the years since our doors first opened in 1960, we have weathered many storms and celebrated many successes in the communities we serve.   We’ve developed incredible partnerships with like-minded organizations, been blessed with a tremendous team of volunteers, and through each transition in our community and our own agency, we’ve been supported by all of you in building a place we are all proud to call “home”.   

Honoring the Horizons tradition of providing essential services to the community, we would like to take this opportunity to thank you – our friends and neighbors – for Sixty Years of entrusting us to support and empower local families in need.  Your belief in our mission to “Instill hope, change lives, and strengthened communities”  has helped us grow from a small organization begun with a single grant to a community household name.

Annually, our programs serve thousands of people. Former schoolteachers, printing press operators, and veterans receive a hot meal and a friendly visit from a Meals on Wheels volunteer. Late shift essential employees riding an NTS bus head to work to care for our loved ones in nursing facilities.  First generation home-buyers work with a Financial Counselor to plan their path to the American Dream.  In each interaction, we strive to create meaningful and lasting change in the lives of our clients and communities. 

Over time, our processes have adapted to the evolving needs and opportunities to make a difference.  We work with fellow service organizations as well as local community groups to stay abreast of how our strengths can improve the support network.  From working with healthcare organizations to improve outcomes for older adults receiving Meals on Wheels to working with City officials to develop a socially conscious ride-share program, it’s important to us that we proactively anticipate and respond to community needs.

 Your gift can make a difference and provide resources that make an immediate impact during these ever-changing, challenging times.  Now and over the next Sixty Years, Horizons remains dedicated to serving as a resource for those in need.

Thank you for standing with us as we face tomorrow, together.