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United Way of Greater Kansas City

Fighting for the health, education and financial stability of every member of our community

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United Way leadership with Kansas City Chiefs Coach Andy Reid

Our People

A message from our CEO, Chris Rosson:

At United Way of Greater Kansas City, we believe in the power of community. Our community is facing tough challenges: from soaring costs for housing, utilities, food, and medical care to increased violent crime. Our community is also strong, resilient, and together, finds a million ways to be united.

2023 was a year of building upon a dynamic roadmap of thoughtful and progressive action toward a better Kansas City. We listened and responded to our community’s needs with real-time solutions, which was especially evident as we began 2024.

KC Strong

A call to turn our collective outrage into action showcased the true power of our community. In response to the February 14th mass shooting following the Chiefs parade, United Way partnered with the Chiefs to create the KC Strong fund to quickly and responsibly deploy over $2M in direct assistance to victims and their families, while also supporting work in the areas of violence prevention and mental health, and to assist first responders.

Inflation Relief to Families

Thanks to support from generous community donors, we delivered more than $5.7M in direct assistance, including $1M in prepaid debit cards averaging just more than $900 each to individuals and families in need. While funds were not restricted, we saw the vast majority of dollars were utilized to meet basic, everyday needs including housing, clothing, food and transportation. This is on top of our ongoing commitments in the areas of eviction prevention and utility assistance.

KC Current

This year we were also named Kansas City Current’s Official Charity Partner, and are proudly displayed on the front of kit. This is just one of the exciting new ways we are reaching new audiences and getting creative about how we enhance our impact and reach. As a part of this partnership, a percentage of all ticket and kit sales are directly reinvested back into the community through United Way. Moving forward, United Way and KC Current will be working hand in hand on projects to advance our community.

Catalyzing the Work

In addition to the nearly $8.SM in grants made through Impact 100 and individually designated grants, United Way also invested more than $2M into small nonprofits led by or primarily serving communities of color. This funding has been game-changing for organizations that often face significant challenges in accessing capital. Grant dollars have helped nonprofits hire staff, add programming, expand physical space and so much more. We know it takes diligence, patience, and passion to get where we’re going. Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication to our mission to create a Kansas City where all can thrive.

learn more about Chris

Our Leadership Team

Headshot, Chris Rosson

Chris Rosson

Chief Executive Officer

Nora Freyman Headshot

Nora Freyman

Chief Marketing Officer

Jessica Blubaugh Headshot

Jessica Blubaugh

Chief Philanthropy Officer

Ann Gaffigan Headshot

Ann Gaffigan

Chief Operating and Financial Officer

OUR STAFF

Executive Team

Chris Rosson, Chief Executive Officer

Libby Buss, Senior Executive Assistant to the CEO

Nora Freyman, Chief Marketing Officer

Jessica Blubaugh, Chief Philanthropy Officer

Ann Gaffigan, Chief Operating and Financial Officer

211

Ayannah Haskin, Senior Community Resource Navigator

Brian Shapley, Afterhours Contact Center Manager

Callie Knust, Resource Center Manager 211

Jada Boddy, Quality Assurance Specialist

Latrice Parker, Resource Specialist, 211

Lenetta Warren, Day Contact Center Manager 211

Meghan O’Connor, Resource Specialist

Community Impact

David Bell, Director, Impact Operations

Emily McVey, Manager, Impact Operations and Critical Medical Needs

Essence Yancey, Director, Community Partnerships

Jim MacDonald, Senior Advisor & Solutions Architect

Karen Gettinger, Director, Impact Operations

Kristen Engelbrecht, Director, 211

Todd Jordan, VP, Community Impact & Exec. Dir. 211

Vickie Riddle, Emergency Food & Shelter Coordinator

Development

Amelia Crowl, Vice President, Corporate Partnerships

Brittany Connor, Director, Corporate Partnerships

Cody LeGreca, Manager, Corporate Partnerships

Dustin Wolfe, Vice President, Corporate Partnerships

Evan Rosemann, Manager, Grant and Donor Communications

Gabrielle Jacobs, Manager, Development Operations

Jackie Feeney, Vice President, Philanthropy

Justin Grawe, Manager, Corporate Partnerships

Kenzi Hoyle, Vice President, Corporate Partnerships

Lauren Hogle, Manager, Corporate Partnerships

Sammy Snow, Manager, Corporate Partnerships

Stephanie Clark, Manager, Development Operations

Finance

Cheryl Adler, Vice President, Finance

Demetria Warrior, Accounting Services Specialist

Hilda Caballero, Donor Services Assistant

Jadell Foutz, Staff Accountant

Judy Simonitsch, Donor Services

Kimberly O’Hare, Manager, Donor Choice

Kora Copas, Director, Finance & Accounting Services

Nichelle Renaud, Donor Services Assistant

Nikki Jones, Director, Donor Services

IT

Matthew Applebury, Data Analytics & Salesforce Manager

Pete Stedman, Vice President, Information Technology

Sean Callahan, Director, Data and Insights

Marketing

Amber Abram, Manager, Creative Services

Ayesha Baig, Manager, Events

Brooke Tippin, Director, Events

Hannah Boehm, Director, Events

Kera Mashek, Director, Communications

Virginia Trickey, Manager, Communications

Operations

Amy Haas, Coordinator, Guest Services

Andriana Sanchez, Manager, Facilities

Chrissy Rapp, Vice President, People and Operations

Ecstaci Abraham, Director, People Operations

join our team!

Board of Trustees

Board Officers

Greg Sweat headshot

Greg Sweat

Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kansas City
Board Chair

Dana Jermain

Deloitte
Board Vice Chair

Bill Johnson headshot

Bill Johnson

Kansas City Board of Public Utilities (Retired)
Board Treasurer

Laurie Roberts Headshot

Laurie Roberts

Parris Communications
Immediate Past Chair

Our Board Members

Amy Hatch, Polsinelli
Art Silva, Helzberg Diamonds
Arthur Cheatham, Spire Missouri
Brad Markes, KPMG
Carol Levers, Kansas City, Kansas Public Libraries (Retired)
Chris Rosson, United Way of Greater Kansas City
Dan Crumb, Kansas City Chiefs Football Club
Deonne Christensen, Mazuma Credit Union
Ginger Williams, Kaiser Permanente
Greg Shondell, Heathwood Oil Co., Inc.
Irene Caudillo, Unified Government of Wyandotte County, KS 

J. Randall Vance, Sunderland Foundation
Jason Sinnarajah, Kansas City Royals
Kevin Zimmermann, Community Volunteer
Laurie Minard, Garmin
Mario Azar, Black & Veatch
Mark Moreland, Lockton Companies
Mary Bristow, J.E. Dunn
Michael Youngs, General Motors Fairfax Assembly and Stamping
Michelle Kay, Enterprise Mobility
Mike Perry, Hallmark Cards, Inc.
Penny Postoak Ferguson, Johnson County Government
Robin Winner, Synergy Services

Ron Coker, Burns & McDonnell
Rosemary Podrebarac, Attorney-Private Practice
Ryan McMonagle, Custom Truck One Source
Sara Lancaster, BOK Financial
Shannon Johnson, UMB
Shawn Long, The University of Kansas Health System
Shellie Clausen, Heartland Coca-Cola Bottling Company
Tom Carignan, CommunityAmerica Credit Union

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United Way of Greater Kansas City
4801 Main Street Suite #425
Kansas City, MO 64112
(816) 472-4289
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