The Day Pi Phi Changed My Life

Books have surrounded Iowa Eta MISSY REAMS her whole life. “I think that’s why Pi Beta Phi’s literacy work resonates so deeply with me,” she says. “I grew up on a farm in Iowa and spent a lot of time with my grandparents, who lived in an old farmhouse across the road. My grandmother was a country school teacher at age 16, then an English teacher and eventually ran the Osceola, Iowa, Schools' library system. An entire room in her house was filled with well-loved books. Until I became a Pi Phi literacy volunteer, I don’t think I realized how many children grow up in homes without books.”

After graduating from Drake University, Missy entered the IT field and joined a prominent Des Moines data and technology solutions company. She stayed involved with Iowa Eta until the demands of career and motherhood intervened. “I traveled extensively for work, and as a single mother, working evenings and weekends and struggling to find child care, I wasn’t able to attend many events,” she says. “When my son was old enough to stay home by himself, I was ready to recommit.” At her first Des Moines Alumnae Club planning meeting, Missy found herself welcomed by two Pi Phis who were Alumnae Advisory Committee members at her chapter — LAURIE HOSKINS, Iowa Alpha, and ANN WEAR WILEY, Iowa Gamma. Missy was asked to serve in the club’s communications role, and Laurie asked for her help planning the club’s Fraternity Day of Service celebration.

“I had served on my company’s Cares Committee for years, but my involvement was limited to dropping off supplies at a local elementary school,” Missy recalls. “Through our club’s literacy activities, I started to work with children and learn about their needs. Seeing how excited the children were to receive books surprised me immensely. If not for our Fraternity Day of Service events, I don’t think I would have ever truly understood the impact of our literacy projects on the children in my community, or the need that exists here.”

Missy soon became President of the Des Moines Alumnae Club and represented the club at the 2011 Convention in Orlando. As she watched Pi Phi leaders launch our Read > Lead > Achieve ® philanthropic effort and honor our partnership with First Book ® with a $1 million gift, she realized the experience was more than just a celebration of sisterhood – it was a monumental moment. “At that moment, Pi Phi changed my life,” she says. “To see what we, as members of Pi Phi, could do together truly overwhelmed me. I realized our organization’s true potential for impact.”

Missy returned to Des Moines determined to make an impact for local children. “I was on fire,” she laughs. “We visited multiple schools, taking loads of books with us each time. We gave away 1,500 books to families at a local mall. We met with teachers and librarians, invited more club members to get involved and found new ways to reach the children in our city.” The more they served, the more the club members’ understanding and knowledge of the need in Des Moines grew.

Around the same time, Missy saw an ad for two certificate programs in community leadership and volunteer management. Intrigued, Missy used her vacation and personal time to complete the programs, letting her passion for Pi Phi literacy work and her growing awareness of the need in her community propel her forward. In January 2014, she enrolled in an MBA program with an emphasis in Nonprofit Management. That October, she followed her heart on a course set in motion three years earlier. Missy walked away from her corporate job of 16 years to work in the nonprofit sector, joining Bidwell Riverside Center in Des Moines as volunteer coordinator. In addition to overseeing Bidwell’s basic facility needs and IT support, Missy manages the highest-serving food pantry in Iowa and 2,500 volunteers. “Most importantly, my job is to advocate for the families we serve and share their stories with the community,” she says. “Only with understanding will our world change, and only with understanding will our citizens know how and why they should help.”

Since her life–changing experience at convention, Missy continues to draw inspiration and momentum from “aha!” moments during her work with Bidwell and Pi Phi: hearing a child exclaim “Best day EVER!” when receiving her first new book at a Fraternity Day of Service Signature Event; seeing the long reach of Pi Phi’s work when a senior citizen who couldn’t pay his monthly bills humbly requested a new book to read with a grandchild; and feeling the palpable excitement of hundreds of literacy volunteers in one place, united by one mission.

“Pi Phi opened my eyes to something I didn’t realize was a problem,” Missy says. “Because of that connection, I’ve rededicated my life’s work to making sure those in need in my community are treated with kindness and respect. My dream is for every Pi Phi to grow in her understanding of the difference literacy makes for children. If families don't have enough money for food, they don’t have money for books. With so many families struggling, it’s our responsibility to inspire and motivate children to read. To put a book in the hands of a child is empowering that child. Giving a child the lifelong love of reading will change that child's life.”