Speakers

Midwest Adaptive Sports is a 501.c3 non-profit organization focused on positively impacting the lives of those with physical, cognitive, emotional or behavioral challenges through adaptive recreational and competitive sports.  Offering hope, encouragement and the ability to achieve to people with wide range of abilities MAS empowers athletes and enables them to grow physically, cognitively, socially, and emotionally.

Their mission is to provide therapeutic recreational and competitive sports programs for individuals with disabilities. Their objective is to have fun, build independence, self-esteem, confidence, physical development and socialization. They strive to enhance active participation in all aspects of the community by promoting the concept of ability through integration, public awareness and education.

Matt Bollig has been involved with adaptive sports for 6 years. He has been with Midwest Adaptive Sports (MAS) since August 2016 and has served as the Director of Wheelchair basketball and Youth Sports. During his time with MAS, he has enjoyed going to meetings and talking about/planning all of the ways to make Kansas City one of the most well known cities for adaptive recreation. Matt works in and spends his free time playing wheelchair basketball, hunting and working on grants and fundraising to build MAS into a bigger and better organization.

Amie Walter, Senior Community Development Manager for the American Cancer Society, will be joining our weekly meeting to present about public health and cancer prevention. Additionally, she will review how much ACS is funding in research in the KC Metro area.

Stan is the the Co-Founder & CEO of Operation BBQ Relief. Operation BBQ Relief was founded in May 2011 in response to a need for relief efforts in tornado-stricken Joplin, Missouri, a community of about 50,000 residents. Volunteers from competition BBQ teams from eight states answered the need to help feed displaced families, police, fire, National Guard and emergency personnel.

They were able to serve over 120,000 meals over 13 days. Food was delivered to shelters, hospitals, senior living communities and the Humane Society. Volunteers loaded food into vehicles and delivered directly to families in the impacted areas. The operation was made possible by all who contributed food and supplies and funding from across the country.

Operation BBQ Relief continues to respond to natural disasters and other situations to help feed displaced residents and emergency personnel.