Kansas City, KS - VisionWalk 2010

This year’s Kansas City VisionWalk was a chilly 94 degrees compared to last year, and it was a GREAT day! More than 300 participants enjoyed walking around Kauffman Gardens and Theis Park to celebrate our fundraising efforts in support of the Foundation and the critical research it funds. Our teams and families did another amazing job of fundraising. We are still collecting donations over the next month to get as close as we can to our goal.

We want to give special thanks to our Walk Chair, Brent Donelan; Family Chair, Heather Buster; Honorary Walk Chair, Walt Bodine; guest speaker, Dr. Salvatore Stella from the UMKC Vision Research Center; KC Chapter President Terry Super, and a very strong Walk Committee including: Paige Mead, Lisa Rickards, Angee Donelan, Sharon Soltz, Wendy Weiner, and the Smith Family. Your leadership and dedication to the VisionWalk was the driving force behind our success.

We would also like to thank our sponsors: Golfer KJ Choi; Lead Sponsor: Walmart Vision Centers; Regional Sponsor: Enhanced Vision; Selective Site Consultants, Inc.; Sam's Club Grandview Store; Scott and Amy Francois; Blackwell, Nill & Francois Orthodontics; Heartland Foundation; Dr. Steve Gialdi and the Oak Grove Medical Clinic; Heather Crane; and Barbara Deas. Also, a special thank you to the many community sponsors and in-kind donors who made Saturday such a great day for so many. Smoothie Factory was a treat, especially in the heat!

We would like to give special recognition to Kohl's, Best Buy and Sprint for bringing a huge group of volunteers from their locations throughout Kansas City, and to Ken Meek who did an AMAZING job as our Volunteer Coordinator. In his first year as our Emcee, Pete Weber did a great job as he led us through the stage presentation. Brooke Pernice brought her guitar all the way from California to sing songs from her new album to the crowd (check out her new CD here!).

And finally, a HUGE thank you to all the Team Captains, walkers, and volunteers! Your support, dedication, and energy made the day a true success.

We also want to highlight the top Kansas City VisionWalk teams and their captains, all four of which raised more than $3,000 each. Congratulations on an amazing performance!
• MARIO BROTHERS, Amy Francois ($4,100 and counting!)
• LIGHTSAVERS, Lindsey Smith ($3,100)
• PAIGE'S PEEPS, Paige Mead ($3,000)
• BT'S BUNCH, Elaine Tieman ($3,000)

Here are the All Stars who INDIVIDUALLY raised over $1,000 each. Nice job!
• Amy Francois
• Bev Archibald
• Elaine Tieman
• Lea Hodson
• Sydney Pernice
• Terry Super

Kohl's helped us select the Best T-Shirts: PAIGE'S PEEPS and BROOKE'S BAND tied as champs (with LIGHTSAVERS in second and VENTI'S VISIONARIES in third).

And we also recognized the Largest Walk Team: TEAM WENDY won for the second year in a row with 54, Hunter's Heroes in second with 30 and Silverstein Eye Centers in third with 18).