Jones County Community Foundation, Making Amber Community Club More Accessible

Welcome to Amber, Iowa, just a short drive from Anamosa and home of the Amber Community Club, famous in Jones County for their regular pancake breakfasts.  So famous in fact, they attract more than 400 people each year for their pancakes alone.

When Club President, Joe Wagner noticed that its facilities weren’t accessible for everyone, he knew something had to be done. “One gentleman was in a scooter and he was able to get in the breakfast because we already had a ramp on the backdoor,” he says.  “The only thing is that you can’t get into the bathrooms and even the bathrooms we had were not handicapped accessible.”

Using a grant from the Jones County Community Foundation along with community support, the Amber Community Club is now more welcoming.

 “We’re hoping anyone with any disability could come and enjoy the facility and our pancake breakfast,” says Joe.

Improvements included a new sidewalk with a wheelchair ramp as well as handicapped accessible bathrooms.

The project is not the first supported by the Foundation. Two years ago the one-room building received a new roof.

Brought to Amber in 1967, the community club building was once the Wayne Zion parish hall. The building was moved from its location beside Wayne Zion Church, two miles down the road to Amber in May 1967.