Piper superintendent to speak at Annual Meeting

Dr. Jessica Dain, the superintendent of the Piper School District, will be the keynote speaker at the 36th Annual Meeting of Business West. Dr. Dain, who came to Piper in July of 2020, has more than 27 years of experience in education as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, district director and assistant superintendent. She has served area school districts including DeSoto, Shawnee Mission, Blue Valley and Olathe before coming to Piper. Dr. Dain received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Emporia State University and a doctorate from St. Louis University.  She and her husband, Dr. Todd Dain, are the parents of three children. Information about attending the Annual Meeting is attached.

Shepherd’s Center holds annual benefit sale

 The Shepherd’s Center of Kansas City, Kansas, is holding its annual nut sale with products from Farmstead Nuts and Treats, a locally owned small business. For more information or to order, see the website www.sckck.org/2021FarmsteadNuts.pdf or telephone 913-281-8908.

Connect the Dotte plans historical tour

The Connect the Dotte organization, in cooperation with the Kansas City, Kansas, Area Chamber of Commerce, will sponsor an all-day History and Culture Tour Saturday, Oct. 2. It will start with breakfast at 9 a.m. at Moose Lodge #1999 and then proceed to the Rock Island Bridge, the Kansas State School for the Blind, Wyandotte County Lake, Legends Outlet and Rowe Ridge Vineyard and Winery. For more information, telephone the Chamber of Commerce at 913-371-3070. Connect the Dotte is a networking organization founded by Melissa Hereford, an American Family insurance agent that meets at 8:30 a.m. the second Tuesday at Rowe Ridge.

NFM wins tax appeals case

Nebraska Furniture Mart stands to gain $1.5 million as a result of a favorable ruling from the Kansas Board of Tax Appeals. The ruling came down earlier this month which said the giant retailer should receive a refund on its property taxes. If the ruling holds, the refund would come from the Unified Government and school districts.

BPU executive recognized

Bill Johnson, the General manager of the Kansas City Board of Public Utilities, was recently recognized as one of 250 “Most Powerful Leaders” in Greater Kansas City as noted by Ingram’s Magazine. Johnson is a past-president of the Kansas Municipal Utilities, a member of the American Public Power Association and a past-president of the Kansas-Missouri Chapter of the American Association of Blacks in Energy.

Monarchs’ President named ‘Executive of the Year’

Jay Hinrichs, the President of the Kansas City Monarchs baseball team, was recently named “Executive of the Year” by the American Association league. He took over the day-to-day operations of the baseball team in 2020 after the team didn’t play that year because of the pandemic. The franchise rebranded the team as the Monarchs early this year and won the league championship.

Members always welcome

All Business West members are welcome to attend the organization’s monthly board meetings. The meetings are held at 12:30 p.m. the third Wednesday of each month in the Board Room at The Dotte Spot Bar and Grill, 8123 Parallel Pkwy. in the Arrowhead Center. Those wishing to eat lunch should come at noon and order off the menu.

For questions or comments, telephone 913-766-4300 or 913-406-6266 (cell) or email [email protected].