Amanda Diers
Small-town Dreams Initiative Advisor“In this role, I’ve realized how many generous people are out there who want to see great things for their communities.”
It was the potential loss of a small-town tradition that spurred Amanda Diers to get involved in her community.
The Guttenberg native and her husband had moved to Colesburg when they heard that the town was going to discontinue its annual Fourth of July fireworks show.
“My husband said, ‘That’s something I remember from my childhood – we can’t lose our fireworks!’” Amanda says.
From there, she joined the Colesburg Community Club. Not only did she help save the fireworks by raising money through monthly aluminum can donations, she also started working on other initiatives to strengthen the place where she and her husband were raising their family.
In that role, she applied for her first grant and learned about the work of the Community Foundation. In 2022, she joined the Foundation’s local affiliate, the Foundation for the Future of Delaware County, as its executive director. Then in 2024, she expanded her responsibilities, simultaneously taking on the role of the Foundation’s Small-town Dreams Initiative advisor.
Wearing both hats, she builds relationships with people like herself: People from small communities in Eastern Iowa who want to build strong futures for the towns they love. “We are empowering people to have the courage to invest in their communities. I love getting people excited about what they can do for the places they care for,” she says.
The Colesburg community continues to be a passion for Amanda and her entire family. Her husband is an industrial technology teacher for the local school district, and they both love taking part in local activities with their two children, Josie and William.
Thanks to Amanda’s work, one of those activities is watching the town’s fireworks display.
