Iowa State Pay It Forward

Iowa State Pay It Forward We are an optimistic group of students who engage in servant leadership to create positive life experiences.

With a mission to reveal leadership through service relationships, and action!

This week’s Feature Friday is Katie!Katie is a junior in Landscape Architecture with a minor in Environmental Studies. A...
04/10/2026

This week’s Feature Friday is Katie!

Katie is a junior in Landscape Architecture with a minor in Environmental Studies. After college, she hopes to work for the National Parks Service or start her own practice. She’s been involved with PIF for two and a half years, and on leadership for one year. In addition to PIF, Katie is also a member of The Navigators and Women in Landscape Architecture on campus.

Her favorite part of Pay It Forward is being able to support her local community and meet so many amazing Iowa State students, and loves that being on core gives her the opportunity to work with a team who shares common values of helping the people and community around us.

Katie has been an integral part of our core team this year. As treasurer, she puts in a lot of work behind the scenes. Her cheery spirit and can-do attitude make her an amazing leader and we appreciate her time and efforts for the club.

Yeah Buddy!

Make a difference in the Ames community on Saturday, April 25th!Check out our Day of Service volunteer projects on the l...
04/08/2026

Make a difference in the Ames community on Saturday, April 25th!

Check out our Day of Service volunteer projects on the link in our bio!

To sign up: Simply put your name, ISU email, and phone number in an empty spot! Everyone is welcome to sign up for multiple projects (make sure they don’t overlap), and you will get an email with details and instructions about your chosen projects before Day of Service!

Sign Up in our bio 👆🏻

2026-27 Bus core and Chapter core application is now open!Looking for a meaningful leadership position that will make a ...
04/03/2026

2026-27 Bus core and Chapter core application is now open!

Looking for a meaningful leadership position that will make a lasting impact? Joining the Pay It Forward team is an amazing opportunity to meet service-driven people, build leadership skills, and make a real difference!

We are looking for passionate individuals to be our Bus Core team, as well as various Chapter Core positions, such as president, vice president, treasurer, volunteer coordinator, advertising and recruitment chair, and fundraising and donations chair! Find detailed descriptions of each role in the application.

Apply before the deadline, April 17th at 5PM! You will be contacted to schedule an interview after the application closes.

Apply on the link in our bio 👆🏻

We can’t wait to have you join our team!

Sign up for Spring 2026 Mini PIF Tour is open!📍 Le Mars, Iowa | April 18-19 Leaving Ames early Saturday morning & return...
04/01/2026

Sign up for Spring 2026 Mini PIF Tour is open!

📍 Le Mars, Iowa | April 18-19

Leaving Ames early Saturday morning & returning Sunday morning

Mini PIFT is a miniature version of our biggest event, the Pay It Forward Tour, that happened during spring break! Mini PIFT is a great opportunity to serve, travel, and make connections over just one weekend! It follows a similar schedule, just on a much smaller scale -

Morning: Volunteer with a local nonprofit

Afternoon: Tourism activity in Le Mars

Evening: Leadership activities and time to connect with others

Sunday: Breakfast together and driving back to Ames

💲 Cost: $20 covers transportation, meals, housing, and activities. Just bring your energy (and a little extra $ if you love souvenirs)!

🛏 What to bring: Everything you’d need for one day and night. A pillow and sleeping bag are helpful since group housing is generously provided by a local church.

👥 Safety: For the weekend, we’ll stay together as a group at all times. All activities are pre-planned by our Bus Core, so you can focus on service, connection, and fun.

Sign up on the link in our bio 👆🏻

2026 Pay It Forward Tour is officially over! We are back in Ames after travelling for 9 days.Thank you to our wonderful ...
03/22/2026

2026 Pay It Forward Tour is officially over! We are back in Ames after travelling for 9 days.

Thank you to our wonderful bus driver, Susan, for keeping us safe during our travels!

Thank you to all our amazing participants who made this trip so special and for making a difference in the world!

Thank you to every generous church that let us stay and have a roof over our heads each night!

Thank you to every business that provided a meal donation to keep us fed!

And thank you to every non-profit organization for letting us pay it forward!

Yeah Buddy! 🤘🏻

Nashville, Tennessee ❤️📍Our celebration city greeted us with amazing weather and a super exciting non-profit to serve! W...
03/21/2026

Nashville, Tennessee ❤️📍

Our celebration city greeted us with amazing weather and a super exciting non-profit to serve! We helped with weeding and mulching the area outside of
Everyone was truly touched by their mission.

The afternoon was as exciting as ever! After visiting the Country Music Hall of Fame, learning about the history of country music and loading up on souvenirs, we went on a picturesque walk to some famous murals, Broadway Street and John Seigenthaler Bridge. What an amazing day of the last service and tourism on the 2026 Pay It Forward Tour!

Thank you to all our volunteers for joining us on this journey!

Last overnight stop in St. Louis and we’ll be off to Ames soon.

Yeah Buddy!

Knoxville, Tennessee 💙📍This morning, educated us on the importance of removing invasive species from our land and we he...
03/18/2026

Knoxville, Tennessee 💙📍

This morning, educated us on the importance of removing invasive species from our land and we helped them clear their nature center of invasive honeysuckle bush! It definitely tested our volunteers’ strength in pulling the trees out, but we tackled it by working as a team 💪

After connecting with nature in the morning, we headed into the city to get some good views from the famous Sunsphere! The last place we visited in Knoxville was the Knoxville Museum of Art.

Nashville, here we come!

Yeah Buddy!

Louisville, KY 💚📍This morning, we did a cleanup of Louisville streets with One of the most exciting finds was five tire...
03/18/2026

Louisville, KY 💚📍

This morning, we did a cleanup of Louisville streets with

One of the most exciting finds was five tires that our volunteers raced to a pickup spot!

For tourism, we visited the Slugger Museum, where many of us tried ourselves in the batting cage and got a factory tour later.

Louisville was fun and Knoxville is next!

Yeah Buddy!

Indianapolis, Indiana 💙📍Indy was such a fun city to serve and explore! We spent the morning packaging pasta and working ...
03/17/2026

Indianapolis, Indiana 💙📍

Indy was such a fun city to serve and explore! We spent the morning packaging pasta and working on food orders at

Our volunteers were amazed by the scale of the operation and impact of this organization on its community! We prepared an equivalent of 5539 meals - a very exciting experience for us!

Afterwards, we headed to the Speedway Motor Museum since we were in the racing capital of the world. And finished our tourism activities by visiting the Fashion Mall at Keystone.

Next up is Louisville, Kentucky!

Yeah Buddy!

South Bend, Indiana 💙📍The morning in South Bend was as impactful as ever, with 1617 meals packed to feed 269 children at...
03/16/2026

South Bend, Indiana 💙📍

The morning in South Bend was as impactful as ever, with 1617 meals packed to feed 269 children at .foodrescue

Amazing Race took place in the afternoon, allowing us to see all the most popular murals of South Bend 🖼️

And we’re off to Indianapolis!

Yeah Buddy!

Milwaukee, Wisconsin 💙📍The first day of 2026 Pay It Forward Tour was a success! This morning, we served Victory Garden I...
03/14/2026

Milwaukee, Wisconsin 💙📍

The first day of 2026 Pay It Forward Tour was a success! This morning, we served Victory Garden Initiative, an organization striving to build communities that grow their own food. Our volunteers helped with so many things - from distributing information about upcoming events around the neighbourhood and picking up trash to chopping up expired produce and creating compost piles for future use! It was sure a very colorful service project 🍎🍉🍍

The afternoon was spent playing fun games and getting to know fellow volunteers!

We are grateful for this rewarding opportunity to help the Milwaukee community 🤍

And we’re off to South Bend, IN!

2026 Chilly Chili Run was a huge success thanks to all our amazing runners! 🤩🤍💙Thank you to everyone who gathered to hav...
03/08/2026

2026 Chilly Chili Run was a huge success thanks to all our amazing runners! 🤩🤍💙

Thank you to everyone who gathered to have fun, connect, and eat good food this chilly morning!

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515 Morrill Road
Ames, IA
50011

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