Julie Rudman didn’t set out to start a nonprofit at first. She was looking for support after her breast cancer diagnosis in 2023, and when she could not find what she was looking for, she went ahead and built it.

Band of Angels bridges the gap between kids who want to play music and the instruments that make it possible. The organization collects used instruments from the community, refurbishes them to as-good-as-new condition, and donates them to kids who come from financially difficult backgrounds.

Art as Mentorship empowers young people to write their own success stories. Enrique and his band founded the organization around one guiding question: what would have made the difference for kids like us?

Our kids get busier, more distracted, and dads can feel like they are losing connection and don’t know how to help. Father’s Club was built around a simple belief: that showing up makes a difference.

Founded in 1987 and based in Independence, Missouri, Mother’s Refuge has provided shelter, safety, and comprehensive support to over 2,000 mothers and babies in the greater Kansas City area.

In our April Community Minute, Jeremy Marks sat down with Rosana Polanco, Co-Founder of
Embrace Your Shine (EYS). While the conversation focused on their upcoming campus, the
data behind their mission reveals a hidden crisis in our own backyard.