Events

Each summer, 30 youth ages 14 to 16 commit to a two-year position working on the BoysGrow farm. For many, it’s their first paid job — an experience that teaches them responsibility, teamwork, and core vocational skills in areas such as culinary arts, construction, agriculture, marketing, and mechanics. Through hands-on work and mentorship rooted in farming and entrepreneurship, the boys gain a sense of pride, identity, discipline, and a practical understanding of the business world.

Open to all, join via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82983167785

Public Media has faced immense headwinds in the last decade, none more disruptive than the recission package passed by Congress in July of 2025. Sarah Morris, General Manager of KCUR, Kansas City’s NPR station, discusses the warning signs and the decisions made in advance of the federal funding claw back, and the changes necessary to make KCUR sustainable well into the future.

Biography: Sarah Morris

Sarah Morris was named General Manager of KCUR 89.3, Kansas City's NPR affiliate, and 91.9 Classical KC in 2021. Both are a service of the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC). KCUR is home to three major collaborative journalism services: the nine-state Harvest Public Media, the statewide Kansas News Service, and the NPR regional Midwest Newsroom, which provides investigative and in-depth reporting for Kansas, Iowa, Missouri and Nebraska.

During her early tenure, Sarah helped create the Midwest Newsroom, as well as a local news collaborative, the KC Media Collective, which includes six nonprofit media organizations. She secured a $1 million, three-year grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to support this effort.

She also launched KCUR Studios, which currently produces podcasts of local and national interest, reaching an average of 100,000 people each month. Prior to her current position, Sarah spent nearly two decades in various leadership positions in the private and nonprofit sectors. Most recently, she was Assistant Vice Chancellor of Strategic Marketing and Communications at UMKC, which included oversight of KCUR, from 2004-2020.

Sarah currently serves as a board member for the Station Resource Group. She is a 2024 Public Media Diversity Fellow of the Riley Institute at Furman, received an MBA from Baker University and a Bachelor of Science-Journalism degree from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

Please contact Board Chair, Karyn Eppler, for details.  eppler.karyn@gmail.com

The Urban Ranger Corps of Kansas City will hold their Urban Rendezvous XIV at the College Basketball Experience. Among the Honorees at this year's Rendezvous is our own Nancy Shawver!

Kansas City University Medical School

Jennifer Montgomery is a Rotary Peace Fellow and global human rights advocate with over 25 years of experience in advocacy, program management, public administration, and strategic communications. She spent a decade as the Director of Human Trafficking Education and Outreach for the Kansas Attorney General’s Office and is a subject matter expert on human trafficking and Gender-Based Violence with the Attorney General Alliance Africa Partnership for Justice.

In 2021, she was awarded a competitive Rotary Peace Fellowship at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. The focus of her fellowship initiative was transforming conflict-based sexual violence through arts-based inquiry, differentiation and storytelling with women in extreme poverty. In response to her work with at-risk women and girls in Africa, she partnered with three Ugandan professional women to form Magenta Girls Initiative (MGI), an international NGO mobilizing community support for girls’ education and empowerment. MGI is dedicated to lifting vulnerable women and girls in Africa out of generational poverty through psychosocial support, education, and vocational skills training. Jennifer currently serves as President and CEO.

In 2025, Jennifer partnered with Kansas Rotarians in her home District 5710 on The Intersection to Care (ITC) project, a comprehensive reentry and support initiative for women who have experienced trauma and exploitation. As part of this effort, she designs and facilitates a healing arts program that fosters emotional safety, resilience, and self-expression. Her work contributes to the project’s broader goals of addressing trauma, promoting empowerment, strengthening long-term stability through skills training and housing support, and reducing recidivism among participants.

Jennifer holds a B.A. in Communication Studies from the University of Kansas, an M.A. in Arts Education from the University of Florida, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation from Makerere University. Jennifer is an elected member of the Rotary Peace Fellow Alumni Association Board of Directors and a regular speaker at Rotary clubs, district conferences, and zone institutes across the United States and Africa. Last year, she was selected and trained as a Rotary Positive Peace Activator for the North America and Caribbean Cohort. She is also a Paul Harris Fellow.

Get ready for a jazzy evening as we celebrate what our clubs have accomplished and how your donations make a difference locally and globally.

 Live Jazz
 Golden Tickets
 Silent Auction
 Wine & Whiskey Pull
 Roaring 20’s Costumes Encouraged!

Please contact Board Chair, Karyn Eppler, for details.  eppler.karyn@gmail.com

Location: American Jazz Museum 1616 E. 18th St., Kansas City, MO 64108

Holiday gift party for the Women Veterans housed at Saint Michael's Veteran's Center

Help support KC GIFT and have some fun -- Date: Wednesday Dec 10, 6-9 pm at Hotel Kansas City & Nighthawk, 1228 Baltimore Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri 64105.

Tickets are $15 and support KC GIFT. Get tickets and info: https://donorbox.org/events/830974/steps/choose_tickets

Bring non-perishable food items to an upcoming club meeting and leave your donations in the designated Harvester's box. Harvester’s is facing critically high demand, and our donations truly matter. Find a list of their most needed items here.  (No glass, please)

Amy J. Coffman is a civic strategist and longtime advocate for immigrant inclusion, with deep roots in both Missouri and Alaska. Raised in Blue Springs, Amy spent much of her adult life in Anchorage, where she earned a degree in Linguistics from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. She served for eight years as staff to members of the Alaska State Legislature and later joined the Mayor’s Office in Anchorage, where she led the city’s Welcoming Anchorage initiative to advance equity and belonging.

In 2019, Amy returned to Kansas City and now serves as Co-Chair of Welcoming KC, helping build municipal systems that ensure multilingual residents can access public services and feel a sense of welcome. She is also the Founder of Lighting Up Language, LLC—a consultancy she launched to help nonprofits, government agencies, and businesses create linguistically and culturally inclusive practices that serve diverse communities with clarity and care.

Operation Full Plate Service Project

Operation Full Plate event

Bring non-perishable food items to an upcoming club meeting and leave your donations in the designated Harvester's box. Harvester’s is facing critically high demand, and our donations truly matter. Find a list of their most needed items here.  (No glass, please)

In my presentation, I’ll share a glimpse into my personal journey with hearing loss—how discovering it at a young age shaped my life and how I’ve learned to embrace it as a strength. I’ll also talk about my path to earning the title of Mrs. Kansas International and how that experience gave me a powerful platform to advocate for hearing health. My call to action is simple yet vital: prioritize your hearing health, schedule regular screenings, and help break the stigma surrounding hearing loss. Together, we can create a world where hearing health is part of overall wellness.

Bio

All members are invited to a social event to formally welcome and induct our new members on Monday, January 5^th from 5-7pm.  The event is casual with beer, wine and light hors d'oeuvres at Therese McGill’s home located at 8424 High Drive in Leawood.  This will be an opportunity to formally welcome new members and to get to know one another  outside the normal weekly meetings.

A signup sheet will be circulated at club meetings between now and the event.

If you’d like to RSVP sooner, please contact Therese at theresemcgill@icloud.com or text her at  913-485-5151 or also contact Randy Steinman at RotarianRandy6040@gmail.com or call 913-927-2393.

Let’s party!

Operation Full Plate event

<p>LAST DAY!!&nbsp; Bring non-perishable food items to an upcoming club&nbsp;meeting and leave your donations in the designated Harvester&#39;s box. Harvester&rsquo;s is facing critically high demand, and our donations truly matter. Find a list of their most needed items&nbsp;<a href="https://links.clubrunner.email/ls/click?upn=u001.6f6nHae1WHC1Jsk7nRti873Ue5A2E5BbnCUPKFxHUKkPgFQ-2BMSsbYl5rVU2YFkmHXKwP3aUFLr7aV0wgyOh8ddFuuyytV0w4JEzpn09G-2F4w-3D2jpN_153fQQK3UWhc5cLAGizDX5M87nEgkHr-2FkaE-2BtBCtKmAj-2BFK2nh3haBNpDJsqstwIEZfuGc972oP025e2wnh5wszoeMHydNKFE6ZiJD2AGLuflL6o0Eg3olnABCafcqHvXuLEJuCwmDFLmCeTFx533F2UDyHxs5HPpOiGbzLJAm36izQHwOfnYA53yZsJpxYwQdYpZn1mssVVwvOSDpCrvCjMUEGKeo8q4NTRwbKTEktqvxiW41xxCONFRxZb2KQMpFjM14PyRYjUG7REzBcx2iRDLjfGbjfyXTI-2F29f-2FckYMU1zxqN32w3IQpsd3wmhtAegc5qMQ6oVTPwtVajrm8jZHv3Oyk1-2FGfFD7V8cUkz8-3D" target="_blank"><span id="TSRSpan_2">here.</span></a>&nbsp; (No glass, please)</p>

Danielle Jones, PhD, MPH

Danielle joined AWHONN in 2022 as the organization’s first Vice President of Accountability, Belonging, and Culture.  She previously served as director of the American Academy of Family Physicians’ Center for Diversity and Health Equity (CDHE). In this role, she operationalized the strategic priorities of the AAFP’s Board of Directors and executive leadership on issues of workforce diversity, health in all policies, medical education and practice tools that advance equity. 

Prior to joining the AAFP in 2017, Danielle served as Director of Maternal Child Health for March of Dimes Kansas and a Fellow with the Army Public Health Center at Fort Leavenworth KS advising the Senior Commander of the Combined Arms Center. Both roles involved the development and implementation of equity focused health promotion strategies to reduce disparities in maternal mortality, preterm birth, substance use and suicide by addressing the social determinants of health, policy, systems and infrastructure.

Danielle’s service to the Kansas City area includes board appointments to organizations like Uzazi Village, KCKCC Foundation, Reach Healthcare Foundation, United Way of Greater Kansas City, and Young Women on the Move.  She also holds an adjunct faculty appoint at the University of West Florida Department of Public Health. 

Danielle completed her doctoral degree from the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Health Policy and Management where her research on unconscious bias has led to the development of evidence-based curriculum and training for faculty. She also earned a Master of Public Health from the University of West Florida and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Missouri Kansas City.

Join us for a brief get-together before the KCPD Crime Lab Tour.  Club Member Robert Armstrong has graciously offered his business, Two Sugars Coffee at Beacon Hill, as a gathering spot before the event.

Vocational Service Committee: Tour of the Kansas City Police Crime Lab.  Sign Up Sheet at meetings or email Eileen Cain

Please contact Board Chair, Karyn Eppler, for details.  eppler.karyn@gmail.com

First Lieutenant Roger D, Coldsnow distinguished himself by exceptional heroism in connection with military operations against a hostile armed force.  At 2:45 AM, on 21 August 1968, Battery B, 6^th Battalion, 84^th Artillery was subjected to a violent rocket, mortar, automatic weapon and ground attack inflicted by two battalions (600+) of North Vietnamese and main force Viet Cong.  Lt. Coldsnow’s fighting force consisted of one half of an artillery battery - 50 men and 3 howitzers.  Immediately after the attack commenced, Lt. Coldsnow, with complete disregard for his own personal safety, positioned himself between two howitzers, completely in the open.  He directed their fire in illumination and high explosive direct fire missions.  His skill and courage enabled his guns to place timely and accurate fire on enemy positions.  Lt. Coldsnow’s exemplary performance and complete disregard for his own personal safety was largely responsible for the successful defense of his battery’s position.

Lock It for Love fundraiser with Grandparents for Gun Safety to buy gun locks for Swope Health

Lock It for Love fundraiser with Grandparents for Gun Safety to buy gun locks for Swope Health

Chef Shanita McAfee-Bryant, founder and Executive Director of The Prospect KC, will share her journey from chef to changemaker and the organization’s mission to address food insecurity, workforce development, and economic mobility on Kansas City’s Eastside. In this presentation, she will introduce the innovative food-based solutions The Prospect KC is using to disrupt poverty from culinary job training and case management to community meal programs and social enterprise ventures. Attendees will learn how food can be a catalyst for change and how community partnerships, like those fostered by Rotary, can help build a stronger, healthier, and more equitable Kansas City.

Please contact Board Chair, Karyn Eppler, for details.  eppler.karyn@gmail.com