
Our People
A message from our CEO, Chris Rosson:

At United Way of Greater Kansas City, we hold steadfast to our commitment to do things differently and to bring about real transformational change in our community.
Over the last year, your passion and generosity has continued to inspire every aspect of the work we do. It’s enabled us to lead and power some exciting, new efforts to make sure people who are struggling, and who may even feel like they’ve been forgotten, can find a partner that places trust and resources within their communities to enhance the opportunities for health, education, and financial stability for all.
This year, we brought our community together for the first-ever campaign kickoff at Kauffman Stadium. It was the perfect celebration to launch the workplace campaign giving season. The relentless dedication of all the employee campaign managers, corporate champions and volunteers who come together to make these efforts a success is simply phenomenal. The time, talent, and energy you invest ensures essential services like 211 that thousands of our neighbors rely on day in and day out can continue without fail.
Building a better Kansas City includes a dynamic roadmap of thoughtful and progressive action. We’ve invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into keeping the shelves of community food pantries fully stocked, at a time when sky-high grocery prices have made it nearly impossible for working families to get by each month without assistance from our community partners. We rolled out one-time inflation assistance in the form of debit cards to help our most vulnerable neighbors cover the increased cost of living. We secured $3.35M in additional state grant funding to prevent homelessness for up to 600 local families through our eviction prevention program.
And we’re partnering with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to heavily invest in nonprofit partners led by and primarily serving communities of color. These nonprofits are striving to uplift those long held back – yet they often find it hard to get investor and financial industry backing. United Way’s Nonprofit Catalyst Grant Fund is breaking those barriers, and we can’t wait to see the generational impact this funding resource will have.
The momentum is powerful and growing. I’m excited about where we’re headed and deeply value your support. We hope you’ll continue to invest your time, resources, and voice. There are a million ways to be United. What’s yours?
Our Leadership Team

Chris Rosson
Chief Executive Officer

Nora Freyman
Chief Marketing Officer

Jessica Blubaugh
Chief Development Officer

Precious Stargell-Cushman
Chief Impact Officer

Ann Gaffigan
Chief Operating Officer

OUR STAFF

Amber Abram, Manager, Communications and Events
Cheryl Adler, Vice President, Finance
Carol Allbritton, Manager, Philanthropy
Hannah Boehm, Director, Events
Libby Buss, Senior Executive Assistant
Hilda Caballero, Donor Services Assistant
Sean Callahan, Director, Data and Insights
Andres Chaurand, Manager, Community Impact
Stephanie Clark, Manager, Development Operations
Brittany Connor, Director, Corporate Partnerships
Amelia Crowl, Vice President, Corporate Partnerships
Kristen Engelbrecht, Director, 211
Jackie Feeney, Vice President, Philanthropy
Jadell Foutz, Staff Accountant
Jared Freemon, Director, Finance & Accounting Services
Karen Gettinger, Director, Community Impact
Safiyah Grant, Accounts Payable Specialist
Justin Grawe, Manager, Corporate Partnerships
Amy Haas, Senior Administrative Assistant
Ayannah Haskin, Senior Community Resource Navigator
Lauren Hogle, Manager, Corporate Partnerships
Kenzi Hoyle, Vice President, Corporate Partnerships
Nikki Jones, Director, Donor Services
Todd Jordan, VP, Community Impact & Exec. Dir. 211
Callie Knust, Resource Center Manager 211
Jolanta Liu, Director, Grants & Development Operations
Jim MacDonald, Senior Vice President, Community Impact
Kera Mashek, Director, Communications
LaTrice Parker, Resource Specialist 211
Dionne Pleasant, Director, Philanthropy
Chrissy Rapp, Vice President, Operations
Nichelle Renaud, Donor Services Assistant
Andriana Sanchez, Manager, Facilities
Joey Schmidt, Director, Corporate Partnerships
Brian Shapley, Afterhours Contact Center Manager
Sammy Snow, Manager, Corporate Partnerships
Pete Stedman, Vice President, IT Development
Brooke Tippin, Director, Events
Lenetta Warren, Day Contact Center Manager 211
Demetria Warrior, Program and Operations Specialist
Taylor Westbrook, Manager, Corporate Partnerships
Dustin Wolfe, Vice President, Corporate Partnerships
Essence Yancey, Director, Community Impact

Board of Trustees
Board Officers

Laurie Roberts
Parris Communications
Board Chair

Greg Sweat
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kansas City
Board Vice Chair

Patrick (Duke) Dujakovich
Greater Kansas City AFL-CIO
Board Secretary

Bill Johnson
Kansas City Board of Public Utilities
Board Treasurer

Our Board Members
Mario Azar, Black & Veatch
Mary Bristow, J.E. Dunn
Tom Carignan, CommunityAmerica Credit Union
Irene Caudillo, El Centro, Inc.
Shellie Clausen, Heartland CocaCola Bottling Company
Dia Covington aka Dia Wall, KSHB-TV
Dan Crumb, Kansas City Chiefs
Patrick (Duke) Dujakovich, Greater Kansas City AFL-CIO
Ed Elder, Colliers-Kansas City
Amy Hatch, Polsinelli
Dana Jermain, Deloitte
Bill Johnson, Kansas City Board of Public Utilities
Shannon Johnson, UMB Bank
Carol Levers, Kansas City, Kansas Public Libraries
Marshall Lockton, Lockton
Shawn Long, The University of Kansas Health System
Steve Mills, Spire, Inc
Laurie Minard, Garmin
Mark Moreland, Lockton
Mike Perry, Hallmark
Rosemary Podrebarac, Attorney, Private Practice
Chris Rosson, United Way of Greater Kansas City
Troy Schulte, Jackson County Government
Dred Scott, Kansas City Civic Council
Greg Shondell, Heathwood Oil Co., Inc.
Art Silva, Helzberg Diamonds
Greg Sweat, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kansas City
J. Randall Vance, Sunderland Foundation
Rick Viar, Southern Bank
Ginger Williams, OPTUM
Robin Winner, Synergy Services
Kevin Zimmermann, Bank of America