New life. New Hope. New future.
Renewing Our City by providing services for the community that offer opportunities for a new life, a new hope, and a new future.
our mission & vision
The mission of the ROC Center is to renew our city by providing services for our community with compassion, truth and hope. We will do this by providing services in five areas of impact: Education, Recreation, Business Partnerships, Community Support and Spiritual Growth & Development.
The board members and executive director look to achieve success by working together with community leaders to best care for the community. Located in the heart of the Oakhill-Jackson area of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the ROC Center looks to not only provide new programming for the community but also assist and provide support for organizations that are already serving the community. By Renewing Our City, the ROC Center seeks to serve the community as a thriving hub of activity for youth, families, senior citizens, civic organizations, parks and recreation departments, and more.
Life’s most persistent and urgent question is what are you doing for others?
– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr
Volunteer Opportunities
Areas of impact
EDUCATION
Partnering with Metro High School and offering tutoring, ACT prep courses, ESL, college prep classes and workforce development tools.
RECREATION
Athletics, community game nights, cooking and other life skills
BUSINESS PARTNERSHIPS
Working with businesses in the area to help them grow and develop
COMMUNITY SUPPORT
Providing neeeded serivces such as weekly meals, community garden & neighborhood meetings
SPIRITUAL GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT
Bible studies, worship services & prayer
Meet our Team
LaShunda McFarlanD
Board President
Bridgehaven
LaShunda McFarland grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in the Wellington Heights neighborhood. She loved the town so much she decided to attend college here too. She graduated with her BA in Business Administration from Coe College and currently works at Bridgehaven. Second, only to her love for God is her love for her husband and children. She will celebrate 17 years of marriage to her husband, Matt, this September. They have been blessed with four wonderful daughters. She accepted the board position at the ROC because she knows first-hand what it means to be supported by your community. In return, her passion is to encourage others to live out their unique and God-given purpose. In her free time, she loves to read and create. Her favorite quote is;
“A smooth sailor was never made on calm seas.” – Franklin D. Roosevelt.
KEITH BURG
Board Vice President
Retired
Keith is retired and lives in the Marion, IA area. Keith moved to the Cedar Rapids area over 22 years ago through a job relocation. He is a Certified Master Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma working for various companies throughout the mid-west. Keith worked over 22 years in customer service and outside plant for Consolidated Communications and smaller stints in manufacturing, investments/insurance, utilities, and health care developing and implementing corporate Lean Six Sigma programs and driving significant change in process improvement and culture. Keith accepted Christ at 14 years of age at a Youth for Christ event and has served in leadership positions on several church boards, leads church-wide discipleship programs and, is purposely involved in life groups and community ministries. Keith received a BA in Management from the University of Illinois, Springfield, IL and his Master’s degree in Business Management from National-Louis University, Evanston, IL. Keith and his wife, Glenda have been married for 47 years, have two married daughters and 4 grandchildren. Keith enjoys completing remodeling projects, playing golf and spending time with family.
Steven Wilson
Executive Director
CIRAS
Steven works for CIRAS, a company that creates specific solutions that allow each business, along with its community, to prosper and grow. Prior to that, Steven was the owner of Zoned Strategies (a WCTS, Inc company), a business consultancy that helps businesses become the best they can be by helping them apply the best and brightest strategies, tools and methods to their operation. Steve is the member of several professional associations and serves as an adviser on local and national non-profit boards.
GEORGE BOUNDS
Board Member
General Mills
George Bounds and his wife Brenda have been married 39 years and have 3 daughters and 8 grandkids. George was raised in Indianapolis Indiana and moved to Cedar Rapids, Iowa in the late 70s. He attended Mt. Mercy College in Cedar Rapids and worked for Stouffer’s Hotels for 13 years before joining General Mills where he has been employed for 29 years. George is involved in community service and served as a board member at Oakhill-Jackson community church before transitioning to the board of New City church. George enjoys reading, traveling, working in the yard.
DAN DEVORE
Board Member
Cedar Rapids Community School District, Metro
Dan graduated from Jefferson High School in 2000. He graduated from University of Northern Iowa and began his career in education in 2005. He started this work as an at-risk coordinator at Alburnett JR/Sr High School. Dan accepted the Principal position at Metro High School in Cedar Rapids in 2017. He looks forward to continuing to push youth to explore their possibilities and create concrete plans that can help them reach those goals.
ROD DOOLEY
Board Member
New City Church
Rod and his wife, Karen, have lived in Cedar Rapids, IA for 21 years where he serves as co-Pastor of New City Church. Rod is also employed by the Cedar Rapids Community School District where he serves as the Chief of Equity and Office of Learning and Leadership. Rod has served as a lead pastor for 16 years and prior to that, he served as a youth pastor for 4 years. Rod accepted his call to the ministry in November 2000 and was ordained in May 2002.
DEDE FANTROY
Board Member
Cedar Rapids Community School District, Hoover
Deretha lived and worked in Waterloo, Iowa from 1980 thru 2017. She earned a Bacholors Degree from Central College in Pella, Iowa and a Masters Degree in Teaching Middle Grades Mathematics from University of Northern Iowa. She’s also holds an Administration Certificate for grades K-12. She taught for 28 years and spent the last 5 years as an assistant principal at Bunger Middle School. She retired from the Waterloo Community School District in 2013 after 33 years of service. In her tenure there she was nominated several times as a Gold Star teacher and won the award in 2006. She now resides in Cedar Rapids, where she is an active member of New City Church. She enjoys reading, golfing and attending the activities of her three grandchildren.
MATT JENKINS
Board Member
College Community School District, Prairie
Matthew Jenkins is an Iowa native. Born and raised in Davenport, Iowa, Matthew excelled in academics and sports. He attended the University of Nebraska-Kearney on a full athletic scholarship and played for Nebraska’s legendary basketball coach Tom Kropp. During his time as a student-athlete, he enjoyed opportunities to mentor students with special needs and youth that were at-risk.. This passion for leading, mentoring, and teaching resulted in earning a bachelor’s degree in Special Education and a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership. Matthew has served in various educational leadership roles for students and families in the Cedar Rapids area for 13 years. Currently, Matthew serves as an Associate Principal at Prairie High School. Matthew and his wife, Carissa, live in Cedar Rapids raising their 4 children Jariah, Isaac, Isaiah and Jayda.
KaylA JUEHRING
Board Member
New City Church
EMILY POLLARD
Board Member
Aegon Asset Management
Emily came to Cedar Rapids by way of Kansas in the summer of 2017. She grew up on a cattle farm and studied at Kansas State University. Eager to give back to the community she calls home, she accepted the opportunity to serve at the ROC Center. In her spare time, she enjoys staying active in her church, cooking, reading, and exploring Iowa state parks.
DANIEL WINN
Board Member
New City Church
Drop Inn Ministries
Steven works for CIRAS, a company that creates specific solutions that allow each business, along with its community, to prosper and grow. Prior to that, Steven was the owner of Zoned Strategies (a WCTS, Inc company), a business consultancy that helps businesses become the best they can be by helping them apply the best and brightest strategies, tools and methods to their operation. Steve is the member of several professional associations and serves as an adviser on local and national non-profit boards.
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Blog
Introducing Buxton Hall
The main hall here at The ROC Center has been given an official name: Buxton Hall. The area of Buxton, Iowa has close ties to not only the Oak Hill Jackson neighborhood but to the heart of The ROC Center.The historic Buxton, Iowa townsite, located in rural Monroe...
The ROC Center welcomes Kinyange House
Meet our partner Georges Dakonsa, founder of Kinyange House and learn about their vision. My name is Georges Dakonsa. I come from the Democratic Republic of Congo. I have five kids; four boys and one girl. I have an extensive background in diverse fields, and have...
ROC Renovations
If you have visited the ROC Center lately, you probably noticed things look a little bit different. In December, the floors received a little TLC one Saturday morning. The New City Church pastor and Advisory Council teamed up to mop and polosh the tile on the lower...
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