Archive for category: Community

By Gina Stuelke, CEO of Kenton Brothers

There is a sorrow that words struggle to hold—a grief so deep that it changes everything you thought you understood about life, loss, and hope. That’s the grief that parents endure when a child dies. And it’s exactly the heartbreak that Alison’s Angels GPS (Grieving Parents Society) has set out to walk beside.

The Story Behind the Name

Alison’s Angels was born from unimaginable loss. On March 24, 2013, Alison Elizabeth Reynolds passed away at 24, unexpectedly, due to complications from brain damage sustained from a lack of oxygen. Her parents discovered firsthand how isolating grief can be—and how desperately they needed someone who truly understood what they were going through. Over time, they found solace in connecting with other grieving parents, sharing stories, and offering mutual support. Out of that journey, they created Alison’s Angels: not to erase pain, but to walk through it together.

Their mission is clear: to support newly grieving parents and families, offering emotional care and resources when the unthinkable happens.

What Alison’s Angels Does

When grief arrives, it doesn’t come with a roadmap. Alison’s Angels fills that void with compassion and connection:

• Peer-to-peer support — One of the core principles is enabling grieving parents to speak with others who’ve navigated similar pain. The acknowledgment, empathy, and wisdom gained from those “further along” can offer solace when logic fails
• Stories shared — The organization curates stories from many parents, showing that grief doesn’t look the same for everyone—and that’s okay.
• Whispers of Hope — This book (available at no charge to grieving families) collects real journeys through parental grief. The aim is not to give easy answers—because there are none—but to let readers know: you are not alone.
• Support groups & resources — Locally, Alison’s Angels offers monthly in-person meetings in Independence, MO (for example, part of Eastern Jackson County’s Compassionate Friends) as a place to ground one’s grief in community.
• Resource library — From books on grief to other organizations (e.g. GriefShare, The Compassionate Friends chapters), they help families find tools to sustain hope in dark times.

Their ethos is humble: They don’t promise to “fix” grief. They promise to help carry it—together.

October 6: A Day on the Course for a Greater Cause

This is the third year that Alison’s Angels held its Charity Golf Tournament on October 6, 2025, at Lakewood Oaks Country Club in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. The event was designed not only to bring together golfers, sponsors, and donors, but to fuel the mission: ensuring grieving parents and families have access to emotional support, connection, and practical help when they need it most.

Because of generous sponsors, each year’s tournament has been able to expand its reach, host more participants, and make a bigger difference.

Why the Golf Tournament Matters

Someone might ask: why a golf tournament?

• Building awareness — It’s a public, visible way to let more people know about Alison’s Angels and the issue of parental grief.
• Raising funds — Events like these help underwrite the mission: support meetings, resource development, outreach, and free services like the Whispers of Hope book.
• Community engagement — This isn’t just for those who’ve lost a child—it’s for all of us. It brings people into the conversation, into empathy, into action.
• Honoring memory — Each stroke, each donation, each volunteer hour is a tribute: to Alison, to others who have died, and to the lives of the parents who carry on.

A Call to the Heart

If you’re reading this and feeling moved:

• Maybe you’ve walked this road yourself—if so, know your story is not invisible. Alison’s Angels would be honored to walk alongside you.
• Maybe you haven’t experienced this particular pain, but you care about people. Your kindness, presence, or financial contribution can make an immeasurable difference.
• Maybe you play golf, love community events, or work with teams. Then next year’s tournament might just be your chance to bring purpose to play.
• Maybe you’d like to contribute a monetary or in-kind contribution help offset event costs and ensure more of the funds raised go straight into programs for grieving parents.

You can reach out to Alison’s Angels via info@angelsgps.org to ask about playing, sponsoring, volunteering, or giving.

Grief may be relentless, but it doesn’t have to be solitary. Alison’s Angels exists because no parent should feel like they must suffer alone in silence. Thank you to the Reynold’s family for opening your hearts to help others!

To learn more and get involved, please visit the Alison’s Angels website.

By Gina Stuelke, CEO of Kenton Brothers

“Team work makes the DREAM WORK!”
– Alan Lubert RMHCKC

Back in the July, KB’s Kulture Club enjoyed a tour of the Ronald McDonald House in KC to learn more of how we could be a partner to support them and the families they serve.

One suggestion was to provide goodie grab bags for the families to enjoy during their busy schedules always on the go. So, KB started a food drive with our team! Our efforts produced three large boxes of food plus $300 in cash donations. We filled up over 250 ‘grab + go’ bags, 2 shopping bags of refrigerated Sargento protein packs, and some sweet treats for Halloween. KB’s Shawn Hamilton + Alison Hackathorn were huge players in making this all happen –Special thanks to the both of them!

A special thank you goes out to our favorite grocery store family at Cosentino’s Food Stores, for helping us with packaging materials and discounted pricing for the items we purchased to give to RMH. They’ve been serving KC for over 75 years!

Our Mid-Missouri office also got in on the fun and provided Breakfast for Dinner to the RMH in Columbia!

Thank you to Ronald McDonald House Charities for making a huge difference in the lives of so many—and keeping families close to their sick children so they can get the care and support they need!