Video: Operation Breakthrough helping kiddos reach their full potential
November 9, 2017 | Bobby Burch
Founded in 1971 by two nuns, Sister Corita Bussanmas and Sister Berta Sailer, Operation Breakthrough serves more than 450 children daily with a mission to provide a safe educational environment for children in poverty.
The has adapted through the decades to meet the needs of Kansas City’s low-income community, Operation Breakthrough CEO Mary Esselman said. Implemented three years ago, the makerspace includes such zones as textiles, studio arts, chef’s corner and construction/toy hacking, she said. It’s part of an effort to expand early childhood development beyond merely teaching toddlers how to pick up a book, Esselman said.
Welcoming select children from ages 6 weeks to 13 years, the center also includes such health-related programs as a USDA-approved meal program serving more than 1,000 meals a day, occupational and physical therapy, speech and language therapy, a dental clinic, and an on-site Children’s Mercy clinic.
Learn more about the center with the video below.

2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Digital Sandbox startup Fast Democracy building non-partisan social database for tracking legislation
Today’s political climate demands not only a better-informed public, but accurate tools to help voters arm themselves with timely information, said Sara Baker, co-founder of Fast Democracy. The Kansas City-based startup — one of four early-stage businesses recently accepted into Digital Sandbox KC — aims to help people “touch their democracy” through its non-partisan web…
Tech Scouts: Your pitch ideas could help defend the US; Aug. 12 application deadline nears
The U.S. Department of Defense isn’t just bullets and bombs, said Jack Harwell. A five-day October event — “Encountering Innovation,” which is organized by the DoD and the Small Business Development Center’s Kansas office — gives entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch innovative solutions to a panel of the DoD’s “tech scouts,” said Harwell, advisor at…
Flyover Capital celebrates $63 million sale of its second portfolio firm Agrible
In a deal that further validates the vibrancy of the Midwest tech scene, leaders at Kansas City-based Flyover Capital are lauding the sale of its second portfolio firm since its launch in 2014. Flyover — a venture capital firm whose mission is to fuel the next generation of tech startups in the Midwest — is…
Techweek KC speaker lineup spans blockchain and 3D printing to fintech and inclusion
Techweek KC has released a diverse docket of events, panels and speakers that aim to inspire and mobilize the area’s tech and entrepreneur community. Now in its fourth year, Techweek KC returns Oct. 8-12 with national tech, venture capital, nonprofit and blockchain leaders, said Drew Solomon, senior vice president of business development at the Economic…
