Speakers

Tracey Osborn Oltjen, President of the OP Chamber of Commerce, joins our weekly meeting to discuss the Overland Park Chamber, it's history, impact from 2020, and it's goals for the future.

Tracey is responsible for the strategic direction of the Chamber’s leadership, advocacy and economic development activities.  With over thirty years of experience in the chamber profession, Tracey previously served chambers in Missouri and Oklahoma, joining Overland Park in 2004.  

An advocate regionally and nationally, Tracey serves on the US 69 Corridor Expansion Advisory Committee, KC Rising Steering Committee and Overland Park Rotary Club Board. She served on the Johnson County Charter Commission and boards of the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives, Kansas Chamber and Johnson County United Way. She serves as Trustee on ACCE’s Benefits Trust and served as chair of ACCE’s Certified Chamber Executive Commission, president of both the Kansas and Missouri state Chamber Executives associations and was co-chair of the first Missouri/Arkansas/Kansas/Oklahoma Chamber Executives Conference. 

She is a summa cum laude graduate of William Jewell College with Bachelor of Arts degrees in English and communication. She is a graduate of the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for Organization Management - Southern Methodist University, Leadership Kansas, Kansas City Tomorrow and the Sunflower Foundation’s Advocacy Fellowship. In 2014 she was named to the Power 100, the Kansas City Business Journal’s first list of the region’s most influential leaders as well as its subsequent lists. In 2015 the Overland Park Rotary Club presented her with Paul Harris Fellow recognition.

Sean Putney is the CZO (Chief Zoological Officer) of the KC Zoo. He joins our meeting to discuss the impact of 2020 on the Zoo.

Sean is originally from Meadville, Pennsylvania, a small town just south of Erie. He went to college at Bowling Green State University in NW Ohio and graduated with a BS in Biology with an emphasis in marine closed systems. He spent two years at the Cataline Island Marine Institute off the coast of Los Angeles where he taught visiting students about marine biology, oceanography, island ecology, and a few more ologies during the school year and was a dive master during the summers.

In 1994, he moved to Omaha and was an aquarist for the soon-to-be-opened aquarium at the Henry Doorly Zoo. He spent the following 13 years learning, growing and advancing in Omaha and eventually was in a curatorial position there.

In 2007, he moved to the Kansas City Zoo to expand his horizons as an animal curator. In 2012, he became the Director of Living Collections. In 2015, he expanded his role to help with the facilities department and his title became Sr. Director of Zoological Operations.

In 2019, he landed in his current role as Chief Zoological Officer where he helps lead the Living Collections, Facilities and Animal Health Departments.

He has been married for 25 years. He has one adult son who is married, teaches in the Joplin area, and has given us a wonderful 18 month old grandson.

His youngest son is a sophomore at NW Missouri State who is a dual major in finance and accounting.

Justin Meyer, the Deputy Director of Aviation - Marketing and Air Service Development, joins our weekly Rotary meeting to discuss the ongoings at the airport.

Justin rejoined the Kansas City Aviation Department in April 2014. As the Deputy Director of Aviation – Marketing and Air Service Development he leads the marketing, communications and customer service efforts for the Kansas City Aviation Department’s two airports. Additionally, Justin works with airline planners to increase flights and add new routes from Kansas City International Airport (MCI).

Justin received his Aviation Management Degree from the Florida Institute of Technologiy in Melbourne, FL.

Tim Cowden, KC Area Development Council President joins the weekly meeting to talk all things KC Development.

Tim Cowden leads the strategic direction and vision for the Kansas City Area Development Council from global positioning for the KC market to KCADC investor and client relationships. The KCADC team drives new corporate attraction in partnership with economic development leadership across the 18-county, two state Kansas City region. Tim has more than 30 years of experience in economic development, including senior positions in Texas, Utah, and Kansas City. He has been with KCADC since 1998.

Cowden and his team successfully work with a variety of business types reflecting the diverse strengths of the Kansas City region. These include investments focused on advanced manufacturing, corporate headquarters, shared services operations, information technology, logistics/distribution, and animal, bio and life sciences.

KCADC is a three time #1 “Best in Class” Regional Economic Development Organization according to the Development Counsellors International “Winning Strategies” survey of national site location consultants, conducted every three years.

He graduated with a B.A. degree from the University of Oklahoma. Tim is married to Monique and they have four children: Sarah, Joe, Anna, and Jack.