Techstars co-founder Brad Feld launches $25K matching gift for Startland News donor campaign
October 14, 2020 | Startland News Staff
Editor’s note: The following is an update to Startland News’ Give A Start — an eight-week donor campaign seeking reader support for the nonprofit newsroom. Click here to donate.
One week into Startland News’ donor campaign — the nonprofit newsroom’s first big ask for readers’ financial support — the digital publication is announcing the Brad Feld Challenge.
Brad Feld — startup community pioneer, author and Techstars co-founder — revealed today he and his wife, Amy Batchelor — author and venture capitalist — are providing a $25,000 matching gift from their Anchor Point Foundation to Startland News’ Give A Start donor campaign.
They’ll match reader contributions up to $25,000.
Click here to learn more about the Give A Start campaign. Click here to donate.
“Since 2015, Startland News has helped Kansas City entrepreneurs shout their triumphs from the rooftops — a critical piece of storytelling as the local startup community evolves beyond good ideas written on napkins to the home of powerhouse startups and nine-figure exits,” Feld said in a FeldThoughts blog post announcing the matching gift.
“A thriving startup community also explores its failures, the ongoing challenges plaguing entrepreneurs, and how innovators not only can learn from them but also accelerate past the roadblocks to success,” he continued. “Startland News has been unafraid to identify and confront these issues and grow along with its ecosystem. When the nonprofit newsroom recognized the economic and racial inequity represented in its coverage of mainstream entrepreneurs, it expanded the scope of stories to include more innovators from outside the world of high-growth, high-tech startups and actively opened its platform for the voices of diverse risk-takers, creatives, makers, and small businesses.”
Click here to read Brad Feld’s full announcement of the challenge.
Click here to read more about Brad Feld’s thought’s on diversity as a culture add for startups.
“[Brad’s gift] means the impact of your donations just doubled!” said Tommy Felts, Startland News’ editor said in an email today to subscribers. “Brad gave a start to countless tech startups — many in Kansas City — through Techstars and beyond. Now he’s helping us Give A Start to even more through Startland News’ nonprofit newsroom.”
A monthly or one-time gift to Startland News can help the three-person team of journalists keep its momentum moving alongside the people they cover — from solopreneurs and artists to startup founders with hundreds of workers — amplifying the stories of Kansas City innovation, Felts said.
Click here to donate and join the Brad Feld Challenge.
Featured Business

2020 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
It’s the ultimate stash: How an exclusive cannabis collaboration is bringing smokeware out of hiding
Working with acclaimed fashion designer Whitney Manney is a bucket list collaboration, shared Wandering Bud founder Riley Brain. The handmade ceramic smokeware maker has teamed up with the KC-based fashion label WHITNEYMANNEY to create a limited edition collection of cannabis accessories and stash bags. “I’ve always just really admired Whitney’s work and aesthetic,” Brain said.…
Just funded: Four new Digital Sandbox KC companies scaling products beyond survival mode
Freshly announced funding from Digital Sandbox KC is expected to help four Kansas City startups scale their innovations to market with additional access to investors, resources and a growing network of fellow entrepreneurs. Among the first-quarter Sandbox recipients, Basehor-based Mpruv Sports plans to use the new backing as it releases a series of peer-to-peer, on-demand,…
UMKC pitch contest returning with $90K in prizes; spots remain for emerging startups
The 2023 edition of the Regnier Venture Creation Challenge (RVCC), an annual pitch competition hosted by UMKC, is expected to award $90,000 in equity-free funding to student entrepreneurs and Kansas City businesses. Ben Williams, managing director at the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, shared his excitement for this year’s event — set for April…
He’s building a more welcoming (and eco-friendly) KC, but this entrepreneur’s vision comes with a catch: It isn’t a one-man job
Reda Ibrahim’s home is open to everyone, he shared, especially for those who feel like they don’t belong anywhere. “I have a big magnet toward everyone who doesn’t fit in. I faced a lot of racism; I have faced the struggle to be accepted. [When I came to the United States] seven, eight years ago,…


