It started as a small movement, a simple inquiry about a volunteer opportunity at On With Life. At the time, there was no way of knowing what this small gesture would mean for the organization. However, 11 years later, the giant wave of impact Janelle Conley has made at On With Life is evident.
Janelle first heard of On With Life while reading an article about the organization, which mentioned it was always looking for volunteers. She reached out and was given a tour of the facility in Ankeny. On her first day of volunteering, Janelle spent time with music therapist Amy Bishop, who opened Janelle’s eyes to the impact of music therapy. Formerly a music teacher, Janelle greatly appreciated the ways music can be used to connect and communicate with the persons served.
“It took that one afternoon at On With Life, and I knew I had found a volunteer ‘fit’,” said Janelle.
Since then, she has spent countless hours at On With Life connecting with persons served and their families. She takes persons served for outdoor walks, writes them notes, plays piano for weekly chapel and assists with several celebrations throughout the year, such as the annual reunion, Valentine’s dinner, and Cocoa and Carols celebrations around the holidays.
“The friendships I have gained from staff, persons served, and other volunteers are so gratifying,” said Janelle. “It always makes my day to receive a communication from a former person served or family member.”
One of the first persons served Janelle made a connection with was Rachel Clasemann, who was at On With Life in 2011 following a car accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury. Spending time discussing music interests with Rachel and visiting with her family “sparked joy and made an everlasting influence on my volunteering” according to Janelle.
In her 11 years at On With Life, Janelle has continuously evolved her role at the organization, building upon her impact. She has served on various committees over the years, including the Celebrate Life fundraiser that she has helped with for the last six years, and begun serving on the On With Life Foundation Board within the last year.
In 2016, the Janelle Conley Butterfly Garden was named in her honor as part of the Ankeny therapy grounds project; a tribute to the time, love and passion Janelle has dedicated to On With Life.
It was this passion that connected On With Life with Herman Meinders, the leading contributor to the current Giant Strides capital campaign. Janelle had met Mr. Meinders in 2002 through her brother, Mo Grotjohn, who has worked for Herman for 30 years. When Mo came to Ankeny in 2014 to visit his sister and see On With Life for the first time, he was impressed not only with the facility and the work they do, but by the dedication and love Janelle clearly had for the organization. He returned home to Oklahoma City with brochures, information, and stories to share with Mr. Meinders about On With Life.
“He agreed On With Life was definitely worthy of financial support from The Meinders Foundation,” said Mo.
Over the next handful of years, The Meinders Foundation became known as one of On With Life’s generous donors, including the funding for the Janelle Conley Butterfly Garden, and was a clear candidate for an ask to the Giant Strides campaign. Upon this ask Mr. Meinders called Janelle to ask about the expansion project, wanting to know more about On With Life’s prior growth, current programs, and how the organization would benefit from the campaign. He was particularly interested in the Parkinson’s Disease programming, being a Parkinson’s patient himself.
“As soon as they hung up, Herman said to me, ‘Wow, Janelle is really passionate about this, isn’t she? She was able to answer every question I asked her!’” said Mo.
Just minutes later Mr. Meinders contacted Janelle again to let her know he would be personally contributing to the campaign – a one-million-dollar donation that gave the Giant Strides campaign an amazing start to its five-million-dollar goal.
“I will never forget that phone call or the trip to Oklahoma City in which I visited with and thanked Mr. Meinders on behalf of On With Life,” said Janelle.
A year later the impact of Mr. Meinders’ donation becomes more of a reality as groundbreaking is anticipated this spring for the new outpatient facility and inpatient room renovations. It is because of generous donors like the Meinders’ that allow On With Life to continue offering the best care to more and more people and to continue raising the bar.
“As more people benefit from On With Life’s services, hopefully, the domino effect will transpire,” says Janelle.
“Family members will share of their experience and On With Life will be a resource known to people from all corners of the country.”
What started as a simple inquiry about a volunteer opportunity helped bring On With Life to this moment. A time when On With Life can proudly look back on the services and care provided for more than thirty years, but also look forward to an exciting future that will allow it to further reach those who need it. On With Life is here in this moment, stronger than ever, because of the people who are passionate about and support its mission; people like Janelle.