School supply drive needs donations

The Salvation Army needs help in providing school supplies to more than 1,000 needy children in the Kansas City area.

The Salvation Army School Supply Drive runs through Aug. 6. All types of school supplies are needed, particularly backpacks, three-ring binders, spiral notebooks, folders, pencils, pens, crayons, markers, paper, paint, erasers and scissors.

Grad focuses on success

Christina Fancher, RN, BSN, Overland Park, recently finished her orientation week at Menorah Medical Center but has already received recognition for her ideas about quality improvement.

Fancher started as a nurse intern in 2008. This spring she received an HCA Innovators award for a proposal she wrote about the COAT Method.

Fancher, who graduated from Research College of Nursing in May, created the COAT Method to improve quality on the telemetry unit where she works at Menorah.

July 28 Community Calendar

July 29

The Kansas City National Association of the Remodeling Industry holds its monthly lunch meeting from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Hillcrest Country Club, 8200 Hillcrest Road. For reservations, e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call (913) 362-8833.

Powell Gardens presents the summer reading program "Ladybugs and Butterflies" at 2 p.m. at the Waldo Library, 201 E. 75th St. Participants will learn how ladybugs fly and the life cycle of a butterfly, make a craft, and release ladybugs in the library’s garden. Call 701-3486 or visit www.kclibrary.org for information.

Author James Loewen will discuss his book "Lies My Teacher told Me About Slavery and the Underground Railroad," beginning with a reception at 6 p.m. at the Central Library, 14 W. 10th St. To R.S.V.P. call 701-3407 or visit www.kclibrary.org.

Annual party returns to Swope Park

Play all day at Party in the Park from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, July 24, in Swope Park, Meyer Boulevard and Swope Parkway.

In celebration of National Recreation and Parks Month, community members can enjoy free or low-cost, family-friendly activities throughout the day.

At 1,805 acres, Swope Park is one of the largest urban parks in the United States and home to many of Kansas City’s finest attractions including the Kansas City Zoo, Lakeside Nature Center, Swope Memorial and Heart of America Golf Courses, Kansas City Wizards training facility, Southeast Community Center, and Starlight Theatre.

July 21 Community Calendar

Ongoing

The exhibit "Color in Freedom: Journey Along the Underground Railroad" continues through Aug. 1 at the Central Library, 14 W. 10th St. Art by Joseph Holston is featured, representing his interpretation of the journey hundreds of slaves took to gain their freedom. Holston is an artist known for his use of color, abstract forms and expressive lines. For information, visit www.kclibrary.org.

July 22

Paul Mesner Puppets presents "Anansi the Spider" at 2 p.m. at the Waldo Library, 201 E. 75th St. The show is a lively, humorous adaptation of four classic folk tales from Africa and the Caribbean. The stories feature a trickster spider that sometimes gets tricked himself, and they offer universal lessons of wit and cleverness. For information, visit www.kclibrary.org.

TLC for Children and Families hosts a two-day fundraiser at Terrace on the Green, 5341 W. 151st Terrace, Leawood, to raise funds to support programs. The event is from 6 to 10 p.m. Thursday and includes a wine tasting, auction, food and entertainment from local artist Sean McNown. The 2010 Tastes & Tees Golf Tournament is Monday, July 26 at Blue Hills Country Club, 777 W. Burning Tree Drive, Kansas City, Mo. Registration for the four-man scramble, open to men and women, starts at 11 a.m. with a 12:30 p.m. tee time. Cost includes 18 holes of golf with cart, lunch, dinner, awards and prizes. TLC provides services to abused and neglected children, young adults in need of transitional living services, truant and runaway youth, and families facing domestic violence. Visit www.kidstlc.org for information.

Foundation helps agencies serving women, children

The Women’s Foundation of Greater Kansas City has a mission – to enhance and improve financial self-sufficiency and career advancement in a comprehensive way for women and girls in the metro area.

To support that effort, the foundation will donate $250,000 to local organizations that provide assistance to women and girls. The foundation has offered the funds since 1993.

"We have really increased our funding over the last couple of years," Dawn Oliver, foundation executive director, said. "We were even more determined with the way the economy has gone, and we recognize that organizations really need help now. So we’re working really hard to make sure we can keep it at that level."

The funds come from interest generated from the foundation’s endowment and unrestricted endowment gifts, Oliver said.