Karen Hankins

Karen Hankins is extremely passionate about giving back to the community, and her enthusiasm is contagious.

Through Target Corporation, Karen Hankins has been the captain of the store’s volunteer committee for three years. All of her volunteerism is done through volunteering her time and energy to organize teams who execute volunteer projects for education and the arts. Over the course of Karen’s three years as store captain she and her team have consistently logged the most volunteer hours for the district.

Karen has created a culture where team members look forward to the volunteer opportunities she organizes. The volunteer committee meets monthly and makes blankets for Project Permanency, among other projects. The committee also stuffed 200 Easter eggs for Mosaic, an organization that helps challenged adults with their needs. Other major events Hankins has been involved in are Walk America, which raises money for the March of Dimes, Habitat for Humanity, Read Across America, and National Adoption Day. Along with these major events, Hankins reviews and approves donation requests for small nonprofit organizations.

Karen's contributions are not limited to her activities through Target. She is an active member of the State of Nebraska’s Foster Review Board and has volunteered for them for nearly two years. The Board reviews cases every month so foster children do not stay in foster care longer than necessary, and the children are reunited with their birth parents or placed in a permanent home. She reviews up to eleven children per month – and there is no stipend for this service. The recommendation are made to the courts and considered by the judge.

Additionally, Karen visits foster care houses through Project Permanency. She brings every foster child a backpack filled with supplies, books, a handmade blanket and a life book.