All Stories

Erin Christensen, KC Tech Council

KC Tech Council elevates apprenticeship leader to COO, concluding succession plan after CEO’s departure

By Tommy Felts / June 1, 2022

A leading advocate for the region’s tech community announced this week a promotion from within as the KC Tech Council transitions to new leadership after longtime CEO Ryan Weber left the organization this spring. Newly-announced chief operating officer Erin Christensen, who has served as the tech council’s program manager since October 2020 and leads its…

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ReStore donations

Bring out your good: Un-Dumpster Day launches Saturday with mission to de-clutter

By Tommy Felts / June 1, 2022

As residents across Kansas City prep for the final weekend garage sales of the spring, a locally-launched website is offering an easier — and more environmentally sustainable solution: connecting those who have personal items to donate to the people, pets and nonprofits that need them. “What we thought was, ‘Why not make a one-stop drop…

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Missouri ranks 7th in electric vehicle use, but access to charging remains a key barrier

By Tommy Felts / May 27, 2022

Editor’s note: This story is part of a series on climate change in the Kansas City region produced by the KC Media Collective to support and enhance local journalism so every person in Kansas City can lead a richer life. Members of the KC Media Collective are KCUR 89.3, American Public Square, Kansas City PBS/Flatland, Missouri Business Alert, Startland…

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Chris Goode, Ruby Jean's Juicery

Junior Achievement honoring Ruby Jean’s founder with its 2022 KC Innovator Award

By Tommy Felts / May 27, 2022

A group hoping to inspire the next generation of leaders, thinkers and doers has tapped a young entrepreneur with a healthy appetite for expansion as its next KC Innovator Award winner. Chris Goode, founder of Ruby Jean’s Juicery, is set to be honored with the award Nov. 1 during the Junior Achievement of Kansas City’s…

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DJ Stewart, Journey Pro Wrestling

Put a ring in it: Journey Pro enters the ‘Era of Agnes’ with new location on KC’s East Side

By Tommy Felts / May 27, 2022

Founder combines passion for wrestling, fighting cancer in latest show Every window was broken. A solid foot of trash covered the floor. And there was a strange smell coming from the bathrooms. Yet, DJ Stewart stepped into the abandoned section of the Agnes Arts Center and knew it was going to be the perfect home…

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Norman Kump, Kansas City National Security Campus (KCNSC); Simon Williams; and Venita Thurman, Grandview High School

Real-world ready: Honeywell partners with local high schools, offering full-time careers to Grandview graduates

By Tommy Felts / May 27, 2022

Simon Williams wasn’t interested in college; he instead saw a professional path after high school that avoided costly and time-wasting diversions. “I just didn’t want to start my career four years later, with almost $100,000 in the hole,” said the recent Grandview graduate and new hire at Honeywell as an assembler adjuster. The U.S. Department…

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Customers line up for an early release of bourbon at Holladay Distillery

Thirsty fans line up as Weston distillery resurrects pre-Civil War Missouri bourbon

By Tommy Felts / May 26, 2022

Editor’s note: The following story was originally published by Flatland, the digital magazine of Kansas City PBS and a fellow member of the KC Media Collective. Click here to read the original story or here to sign up for the weekly Flatland email newsletter. This is a historic moment for the folks at Holladay Distillery in Weston, Missouri, and also a big deal…

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Chef Zaid Renato Consuegra Sauza of Pirate’s Bone Burgers pivoted in the face of the pandemic, turning his original dine-in concept into a carryout-only model; photo courtesy of Pirate's Bone Burgers

Survival rates for new biz in MO, KS lag national average; What’s getting in their way?

By Tommy Felts / May 26, 2022

Editor’s note: The following story was originally published by Flatland, the digital magazine of Kansas City PBS and a fellow member of the KC Media Collective. Click here to read the original story or here to sign up for the weekly Flatland email newsletter. Colorful balloons, ribbons, unlimited drinks, food and of course music. There was everything at the ribbon cutting…

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Startup pitch at a 2021 NMotion Venture Studio event

NMotion adds ‘concierge’ investment accelerator for early-stage founders; applications close May 30

By Tommy Felts / May 24, 2022

Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by the NMotion startup accelerator, but was independently produced by Startland News. Following NMotion Venture Studio’s successful launch in 2020, Nebraska’s largest and only startup accelerator is adding a new high-touch opportunity to its lineup: NMotion Growth Accelerator.  “Five out of the 10 companies that came through the NMotion…

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Santosh George, Grace George, Meredith George, and Mary Ann George at the dedication of Studio 3030 at Operation Breakthrough's Ignition Lab

Donations honoring late podcast host, comedian fund ‘place of peace’ for young creators; recording studio dedicated to Mathew George

By Tommy Felts / May 24, 2022

Friends and family of the late podcast host Mathew George gathered to celebrate the dedication of Operations Breakthrough’s newly-debuted recording studio on what would have been Mathew’s 27th birthday. “What could have been a really depressing day was more celebratory, like it would have been if he were still here,” shared Mary Ann George, mother…

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