July 10, 2021 Tie The Knot Signature Issue

TIE THE KNOT ISSUE ESTABLISHED 1899 | KANSAS CITY’S JOURNAL OF SOCIETY | KCINDEPENDENT.COM | JULY 10, 2021 | $3.00

ESTABLISHED 1899 | KANSAS CITY’S JOURNAL OF SOCIETY | KCINDEPENDENT.COM

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lizabeth Phillips Starr and Captain Edward James Gallagher will meet at the altar on December 30th at Country Club Christian Church in Kansas City, Missouri. The bride-to-be is the daughter of Alicia Noonan Starr of Our Town and the late Mr. John Robert Starr.

Elizabeth is the granddaughter of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Cleaver Noonan of Leawood, Kansas, and Mr. and Mrs. John Philip Starr of Sarasota, Florida. She is a graduate of The Pembroke Hill School. Elizabeth was a Jewel Ball debutante in 2014. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Hamilton College and an education specialist degree in school psychology from the University of Denver. Elizabeth is a practicing school psychologist.

Her groom-elect is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Edward Gallagher, Jr. of Prairie Village, Kansas. Ted is the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. Donald James Bonner of Overland Park, Kansas, and the late Mr. and Mrs. Harry Edward Gallagher, Sr. He is a graduate of The Pembroke Hill School.

Ted earned a bachelor of science degree in management from the United States Military Academy. He is a captain in the United States Army.

THE INDEPENDENT (USPS 260-700) is a magazine of distinguished society, chronicling clubs, sports, and the cultural events scene with complete coverage in Kansas City’s preferred buyer’s market. Published bi-weekly except for December 2021 when we publish the second and third Saturdays. Published

by The Independent Magazine L.L.C., Kansas City, Missouri, and Periodicals Postage Paid at Kansas City, Missouri. The Publisher reserves the right to accept or reject any editorial or advertising material submitted for publication, including photographs. The publisher expressly prohibits the mutilation of this publication and the sale of individual clippings, articles or photographs there from whether or not item is sold in its original form or in combination with any other product, process or article. Unsolicited manuscripts will not be returned. Copyright by The Independent Magazine L.L.C. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher. The Independent POSTMASTER: please send address changes to The Independent, 2400 West 75th Street, Suite 120, Prairie Village, KS. 66208.

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TIE THE KNOT — 2021 —

Mr. and Mrs. Bruce McDonald Reprinted from the June 25, 1921 issue of The Independent.

Take a journey through the pure joy of celebrating weddings. Our pages are filled with the beauty, the details, and the timeless practices of tying the knot. Let’s toast to the happy couples!

Mrs. Lester Davis Castle Reprinted from the April 23, 1921 issue of The Independent.

The McGee-Richards Wedding Party Reprinted from the April 9, 1921 issue of The Independent.

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Photo Credit: Strauss-Peyton

Beatbox Portraits

Engagement

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r. and Mrs. Jeff Allen Girman of Beaufort, South Carolina, are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Claire Alexis Girman, to Nelson Andrew Costello, the son of Mr. and Mrs. David William Costello of Mission Hills, Kansas. The bride-to-be is the granddaughter of Lynne Evans of Westfield, Indiana, Mr. and Mrs. Peter Evans of Ocala, Florida, and Mrs. Jack Girman of DeMotte, Indiana, and the late Mr. Girman. Claire attended East Chapel Hill High School in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and Byron Nelson High School in Trophy Club, Texas. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in journalism from Texas Christian University.

Claire is employed with the Texas Rangers Baseball Club in Arlington, Texas.

Her groom-elect is the grandson of Mrs. Fred Leon Merrill of Mission Hills and the late Mr. Merrill, and Mrs. Vince Costello of Overland Park, Kansas, and the late Mr. Costello. Nelson is a graduate of The Pembroke Hill School. He was a Jewel Ball floor committee member and escort in 2013. Nelson received a bachelor of business administration degree from Texas Christian University. A member of Delta Tau Delta fraternity, he is a vice president with Citi Bank in Dallas, Texas. Theirs will be an April 9th wedding at Wingate Place on Johns Island in South Carolina.

Embrace the Grape

“Wedding planning can be incredibly stressful so do yourself a favor and attend the next KC Engaged Bridal Show! At these shows, you

I Wonder – if you know the couple who cut into the top tier of their wedding cake on their first anniversary and discovered it was made of styrofoam?

can book all your vendors in one place. You can compare vendors within a category, like catering, floral, or dresses. At the end of the

Do You Remember… Planning a wedding reception? The Frank Jones

day you have a great perspective of which companies offer the services you

Company offered seven-year-old whiskey for $1.00 per quart bottle and $10 for a case of 12. The company had three locations: Walnut Street, Grand Avenue, and 9th Street according to the January 1, 1910 issue of The Independent.

need and also align with your vision. Imagine finding four or five perfect vendors for your wedding - all in one day, all at the same place. Now that is stress free planning!” - Jane Monroe, Embrace the Grape

WELCOME To Your New Beginning An urban, casual feel with a touch of timeless class

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Scene ART

By Anne Potter Russ

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KatFour Photo

aving a wedding photographer is a must, even today when everything is digital. A wedding video is also nice, although the bride’s memory of the event might just be more magical without the reminder that her hair wasn’t perfect by hour five. There are also drones, GoPros, and photo booths. But, the most imaginative way to capture the wedding of your dreams is to have the affair painted. Hiring a live-painting artist for your nuptials is the newest, hippest way to make sure the ambiance of the event lives on forever!

Live painting (or even by livestream) is an iteration of “plein air” painting, used to commemorate a wedding with a unique, artistic flair.

If done in person, the artist shows up with canvas, paints, and art supplies, and the actual session of creating the painting becomes a bit of an event within an event. Guests enjoy watching the piece take shape and watching an artist at work in such an unusual setting. The happy couple then end up with a keepsake piece of art that is completely different from anything else that might document the occasion.

Cindy Scott, of Cindy Scott Artistry, called it, “The story of your celebration told on canvas.” Cindy gets to see all of the emotional toasts, the happy families, the wedding cake, and the traditions of celebrating a marriage. She then combines all of those visual and emotional cues into a painting that is like no other.

What are the particulars behind the creation of the painting? Well, Cindy arrives about two hours before the guests, and she sets up and starts scanning the venue (usually the reception) for architectural elements, layout, lighting, colors, etc. She then selects her palette, and starts creating the foundation of the painting.

As the bride and groom move through their night, she captures facial expressions, glances, smiles, and then incorporates them into her work. By the end of the evening, her piece will be on display (safely!) and it is ready for the family to pack up and take home. For one of her wedding consultations, she was asked to do two canvases – one of the ceremony and one of the reception. Done!

Cindy has been honing her artistic skills since childhood – her mother was a “master crafter” and interior Artist Cindy Scott decorator, and her dad built furniture and musical instruments. The artist is honored and humbled to be able to create such intimate works of art for her clients. What she really enjoys in addition to the painting is the pre-celebration clamor. Staff are setting up tables, bands are doing sound checks, and there are lots of conversations everywhere that soon dissolve into the quiet elegance before the couple and their guests arrive. “There is a rhythm to each event,

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which corresponds to my rhythm in creating their art.” Cindy is the grateful recipient of more than what she feels she gives. At one wedding, she met the grandfather of the groom, who proceeded to dance with his bride of 65 years. Admiring Cindy’s painting, he handed her a card from his wallet. On the card was a quote from Ecclesiastes 3:1-11, titled, Take Time. “Take time to think, it is the source of power. Take time to read, it is the foundation of wisdom.

Take time to play, it is the secret of staying young. Take time to be

Hawthorne House

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@The Independent: Kansas City’s Journal of Society

quiet, it is the opportunity to seek God. Take time to be aware, it is the opportunity to help others.

Take time to love and be loved, it is God’s greatest gift. Take time to laugh, it is the music of the soul. Take time to be friendly, it is the road to happiness. Take time to dream, it is what the future is made of. Take time to pray, it is the greatest power on earth. There is a time for everything.”

Applying this wisdom to the recent pandemic and year-plus of not being able to have weddings and loved ones in our midst, Cindy was touched by the relevance of the old words and by the relevance of a committed couple of 65 years still being able to cope with the challenges of today and to embrace the future of their next generation.

“Witnessing that family bond at celebrations is everything… I am so lucky to do what I love to do.”

The Grand Hall

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Stephens College

Practical Hints: From general questions about pricing and setup to the style of live painting and the exact moment you want to be documented (such as the first dance or walking up the aisle), there’s no shortage of details you’ll want to flesh out beforehand. For example, is it important for a couple to have their completed painting in-hand by the end of the night? Or, are they all right with allowing the artist to take it home for additional touch-ups?

Be sure to include the wedding planner in the early stages, so she/he will be able to step in and serve as a point of contact on the day of the event. From making sure that the painter has a place to access water for paintbrushes to providing the artist with a vendor meal, your wedding planner will be there to keep everything moving.

SEE MORE PHOTOS ONLINE AT KCINDEPENDENT.COM.

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LoveStories

humbing through our archives from the past 122 years, we can’t help but smile at the happy faces of wonderful people who have graced our pages. We are delighted to spotlight some of the couples who are celebrating big anniversaries this year. Read on to see their engagement and wedding announcements from yesteryear, accompanied by a recent photo of the couples. Cheers to love in Our Town!

Strauss Peyton

60 YEARS

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r. and Mrs. Irvine Oty Hockaday, Jr. toast one another and accept the best wishes of their fashionable guests at the gala reception at the Kansas City Club following their wedding last Saturday night at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church. They exchanged vows in an aura of white flowers with tiny lights twinkling in the entwining greenery.

The bride, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Wells Jurden, was breathtakingly beautiful in white silk organza fashioned with elegant simplicity. The bridegroom’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Irvine Oty Hockaday, received with the couple, who are at present honeymooning in Paris.

Reprinted from the July 15, 1961 issue of The Independent.

“Talk about your wedding investment at the beginning of your planning journey. I know

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talking about the wedding investment is not always easy. It is better to have hard conversations early on so expectations can be

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set. Sometimes people have different ideas about what actually counts in the wedding investment. A planner can help you navigate the investment and give you a general idea of

Over 100 of Kansas City’s Top Wedding Experts Live Fashion Show, Samples & Prizes Amazing Giveaways and Drawings

the cost of the type of wedding you are hoping to have. The planning journey is so much easier when everyone agrees on where the money will be spent!”- Kindra Browne, Simple Elegance

$1,000 ENGAGED BUCKS for every couple to use at the show!

Do You Remember… Kline’s offered bridesmaid’s dresses at their

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third floor store on Walnut? Our May 18, 1929 issue stated… Gay frocks, as adorably girlish as their youthful wearers, bouffant and floating, slim and clinging, delightfully young and Summer-like. The price of the dresses? Between $16.75 and $25.

I Wonder – who left her diamond ring at the house on the lake, when her nuptials were in Town?

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Engagement Sarah Gudeman Photography

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r. and Mrs. Kristopher Nolte of Seneca, Kansas, are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Kaitlin Marie Nolte, to Alexander James Beal, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Beal of Leawood, Kansas. The bride-to-be is the granddaughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Paul Cleland, Mrs. Alfred Roeder of Seneca, Kansas, and the late Mr. Roeder, and the late Mr. Cletus Nolte. Kaitlin is a graduate of Nemaha Valley High School. She earned a bachelor of science degree in applied behavioral science from The University of Kansas. Kaitlin is employed with Raintree Systems in Temecula, California.

Her groom-elect is the grandson of the late Mr. and Mrs. Wallace Hall, Jr. and the late Mr. and Mrs. Jack Beal. Alex is a graduate of Saint Thomas Aquinas High School. He received a bachelor of integrated studies degree from Washburn University. Alex is employed with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in Kansas City, Missouri. Theirs will be an October 9th wedding at Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca, Kansas.

Tie The Knot | kcindependent.com | July 10, 2021 | The Independent | 11

Love IS LOVE: As same-sex weddings gain acceptance, rampant growth shines on the horizon

By Paul Horsley

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ot all same-sex couples feel a pressing need to get married, but it begins to appear that most do. The United States is home to a half-million legally married gay couples, an increase of nearly 70 percent since the Supreme Court’s Obergefell v. Hodges ruled in 2015 that same-sex marriage was protected under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Marriage inevitably spells weddings, and planners are noticing a shift. A 2016 study by The Knot (the industry leader for nuptial statistics) already found that in the first year after Obergefell, L.G.B.T.Q. wedding spending increased by 85 percent among men and 56 percent among women.

Moreover, some 70 percent of The Knot’s respondents said their wedding would fall under the “traditional” category. This is being borne out in real life: A study by UCLA’s Williams Institute found that from 2015 to 2020 same-sex weddings contributed $3.8 billion to The United States economy.

“We are seeing an uptick,” said Sarah Quinlivan, owner of Quintessential Events in Kansas City, which has been planning same-sex weddings since 2017. “Especially after the Supreme Court decision… we started

Guests arrived at The American thinking they were attending a 20th anniversary party, only to find that it was the actual wedding, complete with vows and rings.

Mike Tsai

seeing more people were feeling like celebrating their marriage in grand fashion.”

Sarah has observed an industry-wide increase in “very elegant and beautiful same-sex weddings” and added that she expects a future of “more and more such weddings, especially on the higher end of the scale.”

Kansas Citians have been unusually accepting of such bonds, Sarah said, adding that “our industry would love, love, love it if there were more same-sex weddings happening.”

Granted, many recent weddings have been between couples who have already been together for a while, and who finally decided to “make it legal.” On a warm beach in Fort Lauderdale, Darren Sextro was wading in the Atlantic Ocean one day when he suddenly looked up and gasped at what he saw.

A small plane was flying across the surf with a banner trailing behind it: “Will you marry me, Darren Sextro?”

Standing beside him was John Rensenhouse, Darren’s life-partner since 1999, who had devoted no small amount Mike Tsai

Bottling your own “event beverage” is a special touch for a wedding.

John Rensenhouse and Darren Sextro’s wedding, which was held on December 29, 2019, was delayed somewhat because John appeared in two performances of Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s A Christmas Carol that day.

12 | July 10, 2021 |

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of effort in planning the moment. Darren stared at John, who smiled and said nothing. (The answer was yes.)

“The airplane flew around nine times, it felt like it was never going to end,” Darren said with a laugh. “People on the beach were rushing toward us and taking photos. …

I felt so self-conscious that, when it was all over we just left and got lunch.”

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The wedding was a few years in the Speaking just days after their planning, but in 2019 Darren and wedding (which Sarah helped plan), John staged an elaborate event at The as they honeymooned in Charleston, American that was announced as a South Carolina, they said they already “celebration of their 20th anniversary felt “different” now that the marriage as a couple.” was official. “We feel stronger,” said It was supposed to be a secret that Danny. “Family has always been this was actually their wedding, important, and we wanted to ‘lock but that morning The New York together’ so that we could emotionally, Times splashed a huge wedding spiritually, and legally protect each announcement on the back page of other.” its Sunday Style section. ( John and Unlike same-sex couples of previous Darren, both board members of generations, Danny and Reed viewed Kansas City Actors Theatre, are fairly their wedding as a pretty normal well known in the New York theater thing, as did apparently everyone scene.) “So the cat was out of the bag involved. “We’ve received great for a lot of people,” Darren said. “Still, treatment everywhere,” Reed said, there were some people who said “from the venues to the County Clerk they had no idea it was going to be a wedding.”

Both said that when they first got to know each other in 1999 (they met at a Unicorn Theatre production of Prelude to a Kiss), neither imagined they would ever be able to marry legally. “For men of our generation, it was just unfathomable,” Darren said, adding that in contrast “young gay people just assume that it’s an option for them.”

But unlike Darren, who wanted to avoid the fuss, sign documents in a courtroom, and dash off to a European honeymoon, John found it important to hold a formal, public and all the way to the bakery. The wedding.

Obergefell decision leveled the “Getting married was something playing field across the nation, which I was raised to think impossible,” John is huge for families like ours.”

Danny Zaslavsky and Reed Erickson with their children, Lleyton and Liam said. “Two men? No way.” But after the How do you behave at a gay Supreme Court ruling, he felt this was wedding? The same way you do at any something he had to do. wedding. People often attend their first same-sex wedding expecting “It was politically necessary to confirm our love as something true something unusual to happen, “hoping that something out of the box in the world, and that it be acknowledged publicly. I never thought such will happen,” Sarah said. “Guests are fully ready to take on and enjoy a thing would be possible and when that changed, we wanted to step whatever cultural aspects are going to be presented to them.” through that open door.”

Sarah’s first same-sex wedding party asked if they could have In retrospect, Darren said he can’t believe he was so apathetic about fire-breathers greeting guests as they arrived at the venue. “And I said, the idea of a wedding. “It was really quite a memory, and people just Well, why not? … It’s your wedding, so let’s do it. And they did it, and it seemed to love it. … For those several hours, they just seemed so happy was awesome. People were stopping on the street to take photos.” to be there. So why deny people that happiness?”

Sarah encourages freedom, though she said tradition generally John and Darren are among the millions of gay Americans who will prevails. “No matter who they’re marrying, we challenge our people to be tying the knot in the coming decades. And Sarah, whose firm just be themselves: You do you.” specializes in weddings that are a bit outside of the ordinary, is eager and willing to help out.

“My company focuses on telling people’s stories,” she said. “We don’t necessarily do cookie-cutter weddings. We do more one-of-a-kind… weddings. That’s likely why we have gotten so many gay weddings, because we’re not scared of the challenge.”

A wedding is, after all, “one of the only days in your life that you can truly do what you want to do,” she said. “The people you love the most are there just to celebrate being in the presence of two people starting, or continuing, their lives together.”

This was certainly the case for Kansas Citians Danny Zaslavsky and Reed Erickson, whose wedding this June brought together a joyous group of family and friends. In the five years they’ve known each other, Danny and Reed have become such an established couple that many of their friends thought they were already married. But they decided it was crucial to make a public declaration of their bond.

Jewish and Episcopal traditions were honored at the ceremony, which was held on the lawn of the Kansas City Convention Center Grand Ballroom, with their friend Doug Anning officiating. A boisterous reception at The Bardot followed.

“Getting the chance to stand up in front of everyone and make these SEE MORE PHOTOS ONLINE AT KCINDEPENDENT.COM. promises to each other was really important,” said Reed. It was of equal importance that the couple’s sons, Liam and Lleyton, be a part of the Reed Erickson and Danny Zaslavsky celebration, he added: “to share our commitment to each other and to them.”

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The Bridal Party: (Front row) Dylan Becker, Jackson Brett, and Johnny Sheahan (second row) Becky Brady, Laura Ecklund, Cara Olson, Meg Robertson, and Katie Bolin (third row) Sarah Brill, Angie Wehling, Amy Cosgrove, maid of honor; the bride and groom, Colin Burns, best man; Teddy Fields, and Blake Carsey (back row) Reilly Chandler and Trent Martin

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auren and Brennan Burns were finally able to celebrate their marriage with family and friends on May 22nd at Indian Hills Country Club. Having had an intimate ceremony in August of 2020, the happy couple was feted with a beautiful reception to commemorate the union. The stunning wedding party included Amy Cosgrove, maid of honor; and Colin Burns, best man.

Love Stories The Ken Taylors

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50 YEARS

r. and Mrs. John Andrew MacDonald (Daisy Marie Park) are seen at their Mission Hills Country Club reception following their September 18th wedding at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. The newlyweds, whose parents are the John E. Parks and the William Estes MacDonalds of Shaker Heights, Ohio, are honeymooning in the Hawaiian Islands and will be at home after Tuesday at No. 516 Mahoning Court, Buckeye Village in Columbus where the groom is a graduate student in business at Ohio State.

Reprinted from the October 2, 1971 issue of The Independent.

The Independent - In The Know Since 1899 14 | July 10, 2021 |

@The Independent: Kansas City’s Journal of Society

Culinary Curiosity

By Anne Potter Russ

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ver wondered what the traditions are in other countries when it comes to weddings? Do others revere wedding cake as much as we do? What would you serve if you wanted to incorporate some delicacies from other parts of the world? We’ve put together a summary of sorts for sumptuous samples and tasty traditions from all corners of the globe! In purely alphabetical order, here is what we found:

Brazil: The cookies served at weddings are called Casadinhos, meaning “married.”

The cookies form a sandwich, held together by marmalade, honey, jam, or cream.

They are then rolled in sugar and wrapped individually, after which they are called, “Bem Casados,” or “well married.” They symbolize the sweet union of bride and groom.

Bulgaria: In Bulgaria, it’s the groom’s mom who greets the bride at the party with

Brazilian Casadinhos

wine and a loaf of honey-drizzled Pitka, the “butter bread.” The bride, her mother, and other women in the family bake on the Thursday before the wedding. The rising dough represents the growing family, and, at the reception, the couple tears it in a wishbone-like contest; whoever gets the larger half is said to have the upper hand in the family.

China:

Wedding banquets in China are grand events, and usually consist of eight courses. Peking Duck is a staple at most Chinese wedding celebrations.

The duck is highly symbolic and meant to represent happiness for the new couple.

Ducks are known to mate for life. Served whole, it implies the completeness of the new couple.

France: For the French newlyweds, a must-have is Croquembouche. It is a work of art, and at the same time, a delightful “tree” of profiteroles. Each little ball of dough is filled with crème patissiere, bound together by threads of caramel. Each piece has to be made individually, and then stacked so as to look good and be sturdy at the same time. No one wants a fallen Croquembouche on their wedding day.

Greece:

Savory rules the wedding day in Greece. A bread salad is the go-to meal for the wedding feast. January and June are considered ideal times to get married because they were ruled by Hera, the goddess of marriage and fertility. This hearty first course includes lettuce, sea scallops, crab, calamari, and mussels.

Bulgarian Pitka

Chinese Peking Duck French Croquembouche

Greek Bread Salad

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“What does “all-inclusive” mean? It means less stress, less hassle, and a cost that is similar or less than a piecemeal approach to wedding planning. It means your event can be more easily customized and changes are more easily managed without miscommunication. It means everything that is essential to making your event successful is right where it needs to be and not dependent on deliveries. All-inclusive means you’ll have a choice for involving some outside vendors or none at all. You’ll absolutely have the coordination needed to ensure a beautiful and memorable wedding day!” - Abbey Chingren, Loose Mansion

16 | July 10, 2021 |

@KCIndependent

India:

Even with the brilliant colors, the flowers, the henna, the veils, and the music, food still stands strong at an Indian nuptial celebration. Lasting up to a week, the wedding celebration is a marathon! Guests dine on Naan, curried dishes of sorts, roasted potatoes, and vegetables. Post wedding, alcoholic beverages are included, and sweets are incorporated. While there is no wedding cake, the couple feed each other bites of honey and yogurt.

Italy: Of course, Italians know how to celebrate! In addition to the antipasti, which is a staple of Italian cuisine, guests at weddings are served “bowties.” These are twists of fried bread covered in powdered sugar, and are believed to bring good luck. Often, guests are also given gift boxes with candied almonds to represent the sweet and bitter (better or worse) aspects of life.

Japan: One of Japan’s most famous wedding rituals is called the San-San-Kudo, during which

Indian Naan and Curried Dishes

the bride and groom take turns sipping sake from three different cups of varying sizes stacked on top of each other. The first three sips represent the three important couples: the bride and groom and each of their parents. Ku, means nine and is considered a lucky number. This moment seals the marriage and represents the newly formed and unbreakable bond.

Korea: In Korea, many of the foods served on the wedding day have direct symbolic meaning. Long noodles, called Kuk Soo, are for long life. The main dish at a wedding reception is known as a Kook Soo Sang, or “noodle banquet.” Made of wheat flour in a light, anchovy-stock broth, Janchi-Guksu are topped with foods in the colors that represent the five natural elements which are the key to Eastern medicine — wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. Often those are green zucchini for wood, reddish carrot for fire, an egg to cover both yellow for earth and white for metal, and black seaweed for water. A dessert called Yak Shik is a sticky rice ball sweetened with brown sugar and speckled with raisins, pine nuts, and chestnuts, which symbolize children. Brides enjoy having chestnuts and dates thrown at them, and they try to catch them in their dresses. The number they catch indicates how many children they will have.

Sweden: In this country, special occasions, especially nuptials, are celebrated with a Prinsesstarta, or princess cake. This confection is made of layer cake and consists of alternating layers of cake, jam, pastry cream, and whipped cream. The whole cake is covered in an overlayer of marzipan, which is traditionally dyed green. Small details such as powdered sugar, icing swirls, and a pink rose are common to add for embellishment.

United States: A wedding cake is the ultimate reception dessert in the vast majority of America. It’s a frosted fertility symbol, a combination of flour (usually made of wheat, a cross-cultural sign of abundance) and sugar, which is associated with wishes for a sweet life. The tiered cake we know today may date back to 17th century France, when a baker frosted a tower of sweet buns, starting a trend; or to 18th century London, when cakemaker William Rich created a cake inspired by the spires of St. Bride’s Church in order to impress his true love.

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When consulting with reception venues and caterers, it helps to know what capabilities are available. We reached out to our friends at the Kansas City Marriott Downtown, and the response was very reassuring. According to Dustin Hocumbrink, director of sales and marketing, “With more than 35 years’ experience, Executive Chef Ronnie Kotz has the palate and talents to deliver a phenomenal culinary experience customized to a variety of cultures. But if an event requires a special touch that we need assistance with, we are also happy to discuss involving an outside specialty caterer. It is always exciting for our events team, banquet service staff, and culinarians to find ways to incorporate beautiful, colorful décor and international cuisines into our special event packages.”

Japanese San-San-Kudo

Korean Yak Shik

American Wedding Cake

“As Landers’ Visions celebrates 30 years of operation, we continue to break industry standards. We recommend starting with a static look and building excitement throughout the evening with your desired color, theme, and style. Providing fair and transparent pricing to meet our client’s budget is essential to our mission. Alongside pricing, we’re flexible when it comes to the location of your ceremony and reception. From backyards to massive venues, we’ve truly done it all. Our experienced staff will not disappoint your expectations when it comes to innovation and transparency.” - John Collins Landers, Landers’ Visions

Tie The Knot | kcindependent.com | July 10, 2021 | The Independent | 17

LoveStories William H. Haney

Because your big day should be

40 YEARS

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lizabeth Ann Bloch and Paul Uhlmann III, whose engagement is revealed by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Wollman Bloch. The bride-elect, a Jewel Ball debutante, class of 1978, attended The Barstow School and The University of Kansas where her sorority was Pi Beta Phi. She plans to graduate in July from the University of Missouri, Kansas City. The son of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Uhlmann, Jr., attended Pembroke-Country Day School and graduated cum laude from Occidental College. He earned an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, and is currently vice president of Standard Milling Company. Theirs will be an autumn wedding.

Reprinted from the June 13, 1981 issue of The Independent.

Stephen Locke

our first look at the gorgeous ballroom will leave you breathless. This is the beginning of a memorable evening for you and your guests. Our beautiful hotel is the perfect setting for your special day.

Our experienced team is dedicated to working with you on every planning detail so you can simply relax and enjoy an unforgettable celebration.

Contact KEYLI KAMIN | Catering Sales Manager keyli.kamin@hilton.com. presidentkansascity.hilton.com 1329 Baltimore, Kansas City, MO 64105 Allie and Tucker’s Hilton President wedding reception Photo credit Melissa and Beth Photography

30 YEARS

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r. and Mrs. Mark Collins Thompson, the former Amy Gerard Wiedeman, were married in an evening ceremony at Visitation Church on April 6th. Amy is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Theodore August Wiedeman and Mark is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Byron G. Thompson. The evening of the 5th found the Thompsons feting the young couple with a bridal dinner at Mission Hills Country Club. The Wiedemans chose The Carriage Club as the site to honor the newlyweds with a wedding reception immediately following the ceremony. The newly marrieds honeymooned in Hawaii and are now at home in Town.

Reprinted from the May 11, 1991 issue of The Independent.

“Start the day with a special surprise for your new bride and your life together. We suggest a pair of earrings that, like your love, will never go out of style.” - Kristina Klug, VanBrock

18 | July 10, 2021 |

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Nuptial Jefferson May Photography

(Front row) Newlyweds Danielle Rose Conforti and Ashley Kelly Conforti (second row) Ally Tucci, Crystal Calderon, maid of honor; Lydia Carson, and Claudia Selsor, maid of honor (third row) Michael Tucci, Nick Conforti, best man; Alexandra Tucci, Deonna Carson, Kilee Sharbutt, and Amber Clouse

A

shley Marie Kelly and Danielle Rose Conforti were married on May 1st at The Pavilion Event Space in Kansas City, Missouri.

Ashley is the daughter of Dana Kelly of Miami, Oklahoma.

Danielle is the daughter of Kim and Nick Conforti of Kansas City. On the evening of April 30th, the couple hosted a rehearsal dinner at Piropos. Crystal Calderon and Claudia Selsor served as maids of honor.

Nick Conforti, brother of the bride, was the best man. The bridesmaids were Deonna Carson, Lydia Carson, Amber Clouse, Kilee Sharbutt, Alexandra Tucci, and Ally Tucci, along with Michael Tucci who served as a bridesman. A beautiful reception was held at The Pavilion following the ceremony. The happy couple is planning a honeymoon to Tahiti.

They are at home in Kansas City, where Ashley is self-employed as a hairstylist, and Danielle is a mental health therapist with Synergy Services in Parkville, Missouri.

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Mahler And Moonlight: Orchestra love stories begin with shared values

By Paul Horsley

D

uring a chilly December walk on the grounds of the National World War I Museum and Memorial, Duke Lee stopped, kneeled, and asked Rena Ishii for her hand in marriage.

The proposal did not come as a huge surprise. Since Rena’s arrival in Town a year earlier, to fill a temporary post at the Kansas City Symphony, the couple had fallen seriously in love. They had even discussed marriage. But the Japanese-born violinist still found it amusing that

On May 13, 2013, exactly five months after Duke Lee proposed to Rena Ishii, the couple was married at Loose Mansion.

Duke, an easygoing violist from Texas, would resort to such a well-worn American tradition to declare his intentions.

“She thought it was kind of cheesy that I actually went down on one knee,” said Duke with a laugh, as the three of us chatted recently over tea. “But yeah, it worked out.” Afterward, they treated themselves to dinner at Café Provence, and the following May at Loose Mansion they exchanged vows in front of a small gathering of family, friends from around the world, and Symphony colleagues.

Music brought them together, but their union was a long time in the making. They came from drastically different worlds. Rena spent the first two decades of her life in Kobe, the daughter of two school teachers. As a teenager, she experienced the horrific earthquake of 1995. Family members lost homes, friends lost loved ones. “The sight of my destroyed hometown was heartbreaking,” she said.

After studying violin briefly in Tokyo’s insular music scene, Rena was relieved to come to The United States in 2001, where she earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music and sought further studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Duke received perhaps a more typically American upbringing, filled 20 | July 10, 2021 |

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with Houston traffic and Texas football. His father was an architect.

His parents, having immigrated from Korea before Duke was born, encouraged him and his sister to study music even though they themselves were not musicians.

And study they did. Duke benefited from the Rice University/Shepherd School of Music’s superlative string faculty throughout high school. He began on violin, but “there was a shortage of violas in the ensemble,” he said. One day, Rice’s Kenneth Goldsmith suggested he try the viola.

“I had success with it right away.”

Duke earned a bachelor’s degree at Ohio’s Oberlin Conservatory of Music and a master’s degree at the Juilliard School of Music. He was a fellow at Miami’s New World Symphony before joining the Kansas City Symphony in 2006, shortly after Michael Stern’s arrival as music director.

Five years later, Rena walked into his life, appearing in a Symphony rehearsal one autumn day in 2011 to join the violin section.

Orchestra circles are small, so it was a bit of a miracle that the two hadn’t met before this. But when Duke and Rena held their first extended conversation, during a party at a Symphony colleague’s Roeland Park home, they felt an instant comfort level that quickly grew into a close friendship. “We are not social butterflies,” Rena said. “We prefer one-on-one interaction to parties.”

Falling in love is a complicated thing, but among other things it implies a common worldview. “It was kind of like a shared temperament,” Rena said of that first conversation, alone on the deck of their friend’s house. “Neither of us was super-talkative. But we kind of listened to each other. It wasn’t like either of us was talking ‘at’ the other, we were just calmly talking there on the deck.”

For musicians, a “meeting of the minds” also means discovering that you agree on musical things, in addition to any romantic feelings you

might be harboring. “We have similar opinions,” Rena said. “We usually like the same conductors, or we usually think the same violinist is awesome. So, during the car rides home, we always talk about what we thought about the concert: How it went, who we liked.”

The couple’s first challenge was getting Rena through the audition process so she could hold a permanent position in the Symphony. Duke served as her “audition coach” – After five years in Kansas City (he is currently acting assistant principal violist), he had a general sense for what the committee would be listening for in the “blind audition.”

“Auditioning is really hard,” Rena said of the process of competing against dozens of the nation’s best musicians.

“You can’t imagine how stressful it is.”

Rena was in fact already tentatively planning to move back to Cleveland, or even Japan, after the Kansas City post expired. “Then I met him, and… at that point, our goal was for me to win the audition.”

In March 2013, she nabbed the permanent post. Two months later they married, and within a year their “happily ever after” began with the birth of Leon, who is now seven. Next came Anton, now five, and Owen, age two. Then two years ago Rena’s parents, Shunji and Miwa, moved from Japan to live with the couple and help care for the boys.

Music is still central in the household.

Leon and Anton are making substantial progress on the violin. “We tried to push for different instruments,” Rena said. “But they are so used to seeing us do this. They were like: No, no, no, we want to do what you do.” The couple also tries to allot some time for exercise each day, and the boys are taking taekwondo.

It is like-mindedness that has allowed the couple to flourish. Yet each quietly admits to differences, and these are often the very traits they love most about each other.

“One thing I love and respect is her sense of priorities,” Duke said. “Her head is screwed on right. She’s definitely family-first, but she also just wants to be a good, respectful human being… to do what’s right.”

Duke was 26 when he arrived in Kansas City, “but I was mentally a kid,” he said.

“I became an adult here.” Rena remembers Duke’s warm, respectful manner, and his attentiveness. “He has always paid attention to what I need,” she said. “And his natural patience has proven invaluable for parenting.”

“I love the way that he is with our kids,” Rena said. “As a father he is very dedicated and devoted.” While Duke’s laid-back approach might have frustrated her initially, they have learned to meet in the middle. “I’m very impatient, I want results right away,” Rena said. “He taught me to do things in a way so that, while things

SEE MORE PHOTOS ONLINE AT KCINDEPENDENT.COM.

Rena Ishii and Duke Lee with their children, Leon, Anton, and Owen

might not happen right away, it is probably more effective over a longer time frame.”

Rena and Duke joined a half-dozen other couples at the Kansas City Symphony when they tied the knot: a surprisingly common phenomenon. Because of the cloistered nature of a classical musician’s day-to-day activities, in almost any American orchestra you will find a handful of wedded couples.

“An orchestra musician is such a specific breed of human being,” Duke said. “So we generally gravitate toward each other, because we understand each other. We know what we’ve had to go through.” Plus, he added, people whose work activities are focused primarily on weekend evenings “are not going out on Friday and Saturday nights. We’re not hitting the bars.”

At the most fundamental level, Rena and Duke have succeeded because they share a worldview, one in which music and family are uppermost. “My core values align with hers,” Duke said. “That’s why this has worked.”

Photo Credit: Bailey Pianalto Photography

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e v Lo A Little Magic

Eric and Emily Lund with Mila Lund and Flower Girl Maci Lund

Flower Girl Maci Lund with Emily Lund

I Wonder – if a certain gentleman will take to mourning at the news of the marriage of his heart’s desire to a luckier fellow?

epagaFOTO

Kenzie Ledom with Ring Bearer William Ledom at the wedding of Madeline and Sam Logan

Flower Girl Emma Logan with Andy Logan at the wedding of Madeline and Sam Logan

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Jana Marie Photography

Flower Girl Stella Salmans had a wonderful time at the wedding of Lauren and Brennan Burns.

Flower Girl Lucy Jager was all smiles at the wedding of Lauren and Brennan Burns.

Flower Girls Stella Salmans and Lucy Jager Strauss-Peyton

SEE MORE PHOTOS ONLINE AT KCINDEPENDENT.COM.

Strauss-Peyton

Suzette, little daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harold Bell, in the frock she wore at the Drage-Harvey wedding.

Reprinted from the October 14, 1922 issue of The Independent.

MRS. WEBSTER WITHERS TOWNLEY the former Newell McGee, with her small nieces, Georgette Richards and Allene Snyder, flower children at her recent wedding.

Reprinted from the October 6, 1928 issue of The Independent.

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HOMEGROWN Living The Independent Life

Let’s Get To Gifting

By Kelsey Potts

Wedding season is back, and it is better than ever! The celebrations are elevated, and the guests are elated to be part of the party.

With so much love and thought poured into a wedding day, family and friends play a key role in determining the details. Gifts of gratitude and love should be exchanged with those who brighten the big day.

As a small business gift shop owner, I adore working with brides to find the perfect little something. I built my business with the intention of “gifting should be thoughtful, not overthought,” and I truly believe that gift giving is a universal love language.

I set out to love on local to find a few of Our Town’s most creative and thoughtful gifts that mix traditions and trends.

You May Now Gift The Bride Vows are not the only thing that the bride and groom exchange on their wedding day. It is a tradition that a bride or groom exchange gifts prior to the ceremony to ignite excitement and take away any stress that lingers. Gifts are meant to be fun, festive, and thoughtful to show that the person you are spending the rest of your life with understands you. Just like a marriage, these gifts are often high quality and built to last.

Right down the yellow brick road is Made in KC, the go-to for local makers and a designer hub for all things Kansas City. “We have quite the collection of glass and drinkware that brides and grooms not only gift to their wedding party but also to each other,” said Keith Bradley, Made in KC co-founder.

Creating a curated collection of hand selected gifts based on a Kansas City theme is easy to do with Made in KC. A bride or groom can easily put together a gift basket full of some of their favorite things and know that these items will be part of a new life together.

To add a twist to gifting barware, pick a design specific to the area of town you live in, and add a card that says, “cheers to cold beers and many years!”

TIVOL’s rich Kansas City roots and family-forward business make them a trusted jeweler for many brides and grooms. With more than 100 years of sparkling success, TIVOL offers high quality pieces and exceptional customer service that keeps buyers coming back.

A go-to-gift from the groom is often a wedding band that has been selected to pair perfectly with an engagement ring. “Trends come and go but wedding rings are forever,” said Annie Steinert, creative manager at TIVOL. TIVOL can guide a groom to select a wedding band based on a wish list created by the bride, or help a couple design a unique style together.

A blushing bride looking to make her groom swoon can explore the gift of a watch. A watch is a timeless, classic gift that symbolizes the importance of making time for who and what matters most. Add in a twist with a personalized card that says, “I will love you until the end of time.”

TIVOL enjoys being part of a love story and will go above and beyond to add that extra little sparkle to a special moment. “We recently were part of such a sweet moment with a bride and groom. The groom previously had selected jewelry for his bride and asked us to display the gifts in the window. He brought his bride by for a peek in the window, and she was surprised to find it was all for her!” exclaimed Annie.

While the bride and groom are the stars of the show, the real VIPs are the people who raised them. Parents and grandparents are easy to love on with a gift that says, “thank you for getting me here and for who I am today.” TIVOL’s traditional selection of designs, such as pearls and simple, yet stunning earrings, are sure to add a little extra charm to a grateful message.

24 | July 10, 2021 |

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I Do Crew My favorite part of my wedding was having my absolute favorite people around me for an entire day. It really is a rare treat to have the most important people in your life all together to celebrate you. As a bride or groom, it’s important to select a gift that is not only unique, but a balance of personality of both the recipient and the wedding vibe.

I chatted with Katherine Blauwiekel, the talented creator of Anne-Marie Designs, to find the perfect bridesmaid gift. Anne-Marie Designs is a local design studio that offers luxury jewelry and accessories made from a mixture of clay, precious metals, gemstones, and freshwater pearls.

Katherine knows the positive power from having strong people and connections in your life.

Bridesmaids are the bride’s hand-selected friends, who are there for her before, on, and after her wedding day.

“I come from a long line of creatives, and I am who I am today because of my grandmother, my mother, and my daughter. So I named my business Anne-Marie Designs, which is a combination of each of these important women’s names,” said Katherine.

The sky is truly the limit with Anne-Marie Designs, where each custom design is made specifically for a bride and her bridal party. “My brides will show me an inspiration picture of their wedding bouquet. I then create a design pulling in textures, colors, and florals to match,” shared Katherine.

Once a design is created, Katherine offers various earring styles to each bridesmaid to pick which best suits her style. Anne-Marie Designs offer a cohesive keepsake by specializing in color matching and custom bridal design.

“Something special I offer is adding texture to my designs by using the mother of the bride’s gown or lace to inlay on the clay. I will then build a floral design on top to create a one-of-a-kind earring that brings something old and new together for the bride,” added Katherine.

Anne-Marie Designs offers everyday and luxury lines that fit many brides’ styles and budgets. Recent expansion to the event design includes napkin rings and hair pieces, which are exciting additions to add the perfect punch of personalization to weddings.

Groomsmen gifting is easy to do with the help of the one-stop-shop, Made in KC, which features socks, t-shirts, bottle openers, delicious snack packs, and more that shout and show Kansas City pride. With eight distinctly different locations around Town, a groom can find a combination of great goodies to gift the guys.

“Shopping local is often overlooked for the wedding industry. It’s not only important to our economy to shop local, but it speaks to Kansas City’s character when you gift local. We have an amazing selection of unique and thoughtful gifts right here in Kansas City,” said Keith Bradley, Made in KC co-founder.

On our wedding day, my husband gifted each of his groomsmen a Sandlot Goods vintage hat from Made in KC. We staged a fun photo in front of an iconic Kansas City background with each groomsman wearing his hat. This photo is one of our favorites, and something we will cherish forever. epagaFOTO

By shopping local and making gifting dreams come true by working directly with a gifting company in Our Town, the spirit of Kansas City is not lost. Made in KC has a dedicated coordinator to work as a gifting guide. Perhaps it is a placard holder of barbecue sauce at the reception, or a gift bag of goodies representing Kansas City, the options are endless to add creativity and connection to each gift. “I suggest adding a consumable that is something unique to KC and a takeaway gift that guests can easily travel home with,” said Keith.

Not only is the selection of gifts, gadgets, and gear at Made in KC unique to Kansas City and made with love by local makers, so many of the items are practical and something the wedding party will use on the wedding day and beyond.

Photo Credit: Bailey Pianalto Photography

Tie The Knot | kcindependent.com | July 10, 2021 | The Independent | 25

Give A Warm Welcome

Kristy Marshall Photography

Another piece to the perfect day is having guests come from near and far to celebrate the love of two people they care about. Whether you’re thanking guests when they arrive at their table seat, or surprising out-of-towners with a gift in their hotel room, acknowledging their presence is important.

Megan Pence, gifting guru of Locally Gifted KC, specializes in curated gift boxes that feature products proudly sourced directly from Kansas City makers. Locally Gifted offers a polished and yet personal look, that sets the tone for the weekend by welcoming guests to Kansas City with a fantastic and festive gift box.

“Wedding welcome boxes are often overlooked or pulled together at the last minute.

I think they are an opportunity to set the tone for the weekend and acknowledge the guests who have traveled far to help celebrate the big day,” said Megan. Megan suggests keeping the boxes practical. “Simple, sweet, yet sophisticated,” she added.

Thread the details from the wedding into a box by including a weekend itinerary, gift tag, or decorated sweet treat. Megan often works directly with Nellie Sparkman, stationery designer and wedding planner, to make sure no detail is left behind from start to finish. Nellie suggests including personal favorite spots, happy hours, or to-dos with the weekend itinerary for guests.

Locally Gifted will work to learn the style and personality of the couple in order to create a box that adds in a few of their favorite things, while mixing in practical weekend must-haves.

Sample Box Contents: • Water Bottles • Hangover Kit • Sweet Treat (Christopher Elbow) • Savory Delight (Topsy’s or local barbecue nuts) • Weekend Itinerary • Custom Gift Tag

Beautiful BEGINNINGS THE SECRET INGREDIENT TO EXQUISITE WEDDINGS & EVENTS FOR 25 YEARS

Weddings can be overwhelming. With proper planning and execution, we alleviate stress and deliver the wedding of your dreams. We are proud of our awards and recognition, but we became wedding planners because we love creating an unforgettable wedding for you, your family and guests.

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The Locally Gifted Box goes beyond brightening the guest’s day.

For every box purchased, a flat dollar amount of each gift box is reinvested in our community through a charitable donation to Children’s Mercy Research and Rose Brooks Center. “When I brought this concept to Kansas City, it was important to me to not only support local makers, but also the community. Both of these local organizations are close to my heart and make an enormous impact on our community,” said Megan.

From welcoming guests to a thoughtful thank you to a mother of the bride present, Locally Gifted will make it easy for the gifter and heartfelt for the receiver. Megan has a true talent for floral design and often includes local, beautiful blooms into personal gifting boxes perfect for everyone.

Thanking guests for traveling shows the importance of having each person there and that their presence has not gone unnoticed. We are lucky to have talented makers, designers, and business owners right here in Kansas City who help to spread the Midwest magic.

SEE MORE PHOTOS ONLINE AT KCINDEPENDENT.COM.

Photo Credit: Bailey Pianalto Photography

Rachel’s Reads

W

edding season has officially returned! After the quiet of last year, the summer weather has arrived and brought with it an extremely full calendar of ceremonies, showers, and parties.

Weddings can certainly bring out the best and the worst in us: family drama, seating charts, food choices, and fancy locations.

Here are a few books centered around weddings to get you in the seasonal spirit.

Seating Arrangements by Maggie Shipstead Highlighting how difficult those seating plans can be, this novel explores the Van Meter clan as they gather at an exclusive island for the wedding of their daughter to the appropriate Greyson Duff. This social satire has real bite.

The Wedding by Dorothy West Set in Martha’s Vineyard in the 1950s, this novel follows the Coles family as they come together to celebrate the wedding of their favorite daughter, Shelby. Members of the insular Black community called the Oval, the family has to come to terms with Shelby’s decision to marry a white jazz musician.

The People We Hate at the Wedding by Grant Ginder This book shows how weddings (and family) can certainly bring out the worst in us. Paul and Alice are forced to attend their half-sister Eloise’s posh wedding, and, in doing so, have to reckon with their own relationship issues. The results are comical.

His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie We meet Afi on her wedding day, with the slight hiccup that her future husband, Elikem, has decided not to attend the ceremony. Selected by Elikem’s mother who doesn’t approve of his current romance, and with a financial gift in store for her mother if she goes through with the wedding, Afi might not have a love match but this is a fantastic read.

A French Wedding

by Hannah Tunnicliffe What sounds more romantic than a wedding in the French countryside?

A washed-up rock star invites his five college friends to his house for a weekend as he wants to declare his love for his best friend, Helen. The table is set for some secrets, romantic entanglements, and a wedding none of them expect.

The Wedding Date

by Jasmine Guillory Alexa and Drew meet during a power outage while stranded in an elevator and Alexa leaves the elevator pretending to be Drew’s girlfriend and his plus one for his ex’s wedding. The obvious chemistry between the two makes this a fun read.

Brick Lane by Monica Ali This debut novel is set in the East End of London and follows two Bangladeshi sisters, one who has eloped for a love marriage, and the other pledged in a traditional arranged marriage. It is a great examination of love and marriage, continuing to explore their relationships long after the wedding.

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides This novel reminds us why we keep returning to this timeless genre as the heroine, Madeline, writes her academic thesis about the marriage plot. As she studies great English novels, two very different men present her with that fundamental choice about what kind of life she truly wants to lead.

Happy Reading!

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Toast To Olde Tymes

By Heather N. Paxton Strauss-Peyton

“We’ve only just begun to live White lace and promises…”

I

f the words you’re hearing in your head are, “A kiss for luck and we’re on our way…” – well then, dear reader, you’re probably as shocked as we are to realize that Karen Carpenter’s vocals were gracing wedding receptions more than 50 years ago. The hit song “We’ve Only Just Begun” was on The Carpenters’ Close to You album, which was released in August 1970. Math has never been our strong suit. There are a number of couples we still think of as “young marrieds” who are approaching – or have already celebrated – their Golden Anniversary. Ask them about the old days, and they may recall when salad bars were a new concept. (Our favorite was at Harry Starker’s, a steakhouse on the Plaza. If memory serves, the plates were pewter and kept on a bed of ice.

Radishes never tasted so good.)

Who had the first 50th wedding anniversary in Our Town? That we can’t tell you. More than a hundred years ago, though, The Independent took note when

William H. Haney

MRS. FRANCIS GREGG FOSTER formerly Ann Vivian Pew, whose wedding on Wednesday was a fashionable event of the season.

Reprinted from the June 23, 1928 issue of The Independent.

The Ken Taylors

Miss Enid Ann Jackson, before her marriage on April 20, 1921, to Rufus Crosby Kemper at St. Luke’s Church in Tacoma.

Reprinted from the April 17, 1971 issue of The Independent.

Mrs. Kemper and two admiring beaus enter the dining room where one hundred guests are assembled for dinner and dancing. Thomas Jefferson Wood, Jr., (left) and Crosby Kemper, Jr., their wives and Mrs. Jan Kemper Stevens of Palm Beach were hosts for the black-tie party.

Reprinted from the May 1, 1971 issue of The Independent.

The sign on the laundromat on Southwest Trafficway told the story – that the Crosby Kemper, Srs., were celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary that day (April 20th).

A little detective work turned up the Joseph H. Bruenings as the A and J who had arranged the novel “greeting card.”

Reprinted from the May 1, 1971 issue of The Independent.

28 | July 10, 2021 |

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Mr. and Mrs. Francis Gregg Foster (center) hosted a party perfect to toast their Fiftieth Anniversary, and the clan gathered on the terrace at the Kansas City Country Club, Mr. and Mrs. Alfred Brooks of Denver (left) and Mr. and Mrs. Marc Lucas of Sedona, Arizona.

Reprinted from the July 8, 1978 issue of The Independent.

Carrie Waldauer Rice and Max Rice were the honorees. In the February 28, 1920 issue, our scribe (who was apparently quite young and, alas, not terribly tactful) reported: “The Rice family, Mr. and Mrs. Seymour and Mr. and Mrs. Max, were celebrating the elder couple’s golden wedding last Monday by a theater party at the Shubert and a supper party at Summerland.

The bride and groom looked as though they had been married twenty years rather than fifty, and Mrs. Rice is so charmingly good looking. Her beautiful auburn hair is now white, but she retains her looks, just the same. I sometimes wonder if Blanche will ever be as beautiful an old lady as her mother, Mrs. Judah, and her mother-in-law.

“The Rice’s [sic] are using a taxi because their fine new Cadillac was stolen a couple of weeks ago. The motor thieves seem to like Cadillacs.

“Besides that calamity, a burglar was chased out of their Armour Boulevard home a day or two ago. Fortunately he didn’t get any valuables.”

Carrie and Max Rice celebrated 63 anniversaries prior to his death at the age of 86 in March 1933. According to the Kansas City Star, the two had wed at her parents’ home near Holmes Street and Missouri Avenue. (The Waldauers, who had moved to Kansas City from St. Louis, later were remembered as being among the first people in town to own a piano.) Max came to America from Germany at the age of 14. He had lived in Baltimore, Maryland, and St. Joseph, Missouri, before making Kansas City his home in 1869.

He worked primarily as a wholesaler for clothing companies and one rubber company until late in his career. In 1910, Max became a representative for Old Crow Whiskey. Prohibition led to his retirement. At the time of his death, the Rices were residents of the Thomas Carlyle Apartments on the Country Club Plaza.

It is unfortunate that we don’t have a photo in our archives of the Rices on their 50th. In happier news, we have pictures of a variety of Golden Anniversary celebrations. The brides and grooms shown here all were wed during the years when Carrie and Max Rice were setting an example for marital longevity – and lived long enough to hear the music of the Carpenters.

The Ken Taylors

Mr. and Mrs. Hyman Brand mark a golden date, their 50th Wedding Anniversary, at a celebration at Hotel Muehlebach. Hosts for a reception on April 2nd in the Imperial Ballroom were the Arthur Brands and Mr. and Mrs. David Levitch.

Mr. and Mrs. Gilmer Meriwether, Jr., recreate their June, 1920, roles of bride and groom at the pre-celebration of their Golden Wedding Anniversary on December 26th.

Reprinted from the January 10, 1970 issue of The Independent.

Reprinted from the April 22, 1967 issue of The Independent.

Paul Robinson

Bridal Party Principals Gather For Golden Wedding: Mr. and Mrs. Boyd W. Harwood are shown with their maid of honor and sister of the bride, Miss Elizabeth Ranson, Columbia, Missouri, Thomas Harwood, Chicago, best man and cousin of the bridegroom, Mrs. Ned Lydick, Fort Worth, flower girl.

Reprinted from the June 14, 1947 issue of The Independent.

Painting Petunias Art on a Towel embraces the fun side of life.

All towels are 100 percent cotton machine washable.

Each towel is hand painted to order with a touch of love. Painting Petunias is a creative company that loves to work up custom orders for bridal shower gifts, weddings, or any special occasion in addition to standard designs.

The ever-popular, Kansas City-inspired towels are a great sentiment to give out-of-town guests.

Mr. and Mrs. Gustavus D. Welch with their daughters, Mrs. Robert Q. Sutherland and Mrs. John D. Bowe (of Bernardsville, New Jersey), at the elegant dinner dance on October 9th that marked their 50th Wedding Anniversary.

Reprinted from the October 17, 1970 issue of The Independent.

Designs can be viewed on Facebook and Instagram.

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LoveStories

Art Insider

Stephen Locke

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

25 YEARS

L

ucinda Beth Burlingame and David Thornton Manry Powell were married on November 2nd at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. The bride, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Matthew Burlingame of Lawrence, and her groom, the son of Mr. and Mrs. James Wooldridge Powell, were toasted at a rehearsal dinner at Rockhill Tennis Club hosted

by David’s godparents Al Bohling, William R. Graves of El Dorado, Kansas, and Janet Manry Altmann. The gala reception was held at The Kansas City Country Club hosted by the parents of the bride and groom. Following a honeymoon to the island of St. Martin, the newlyweds are at home in Town.

Reprinted from the December 28, 1996 issue of The Independent.

Kelsey Mahoney

David Riffel

Flowers and Birds in an Autumn Setting. Chinese, 15th century.

Hanging scroll, watercolor on silk, silk mount.

Image: 5 feet 6 inches x 44 inches. Mount: 9 feet 12 inches x 46 inches.

Purchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust, 35-249.

T

10 YEARS

A.

Marie McMorris of Our Town and Mr. R. Grant DeMuth of Guntersville, Alabama, are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Hillary Breece DeMuth, to Adam Michael Winzenried, the son of Anita Winzenried of Our Town. The bride-to-be is the granddaughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Donald L. McMorris and Mrs. Lorene Grant Weller of Our Town and the late Mr. Donald R. DeMuth. Her groom-elect is the grandson of Barbara Quakenbush of Beloit, Kansas, and the late Mr. Rex Quakenbush.

Theirs will be an October 8th wedding at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. Reprinted from the May 28, 2011 issue of The Independent.

Black Coffee Photo Co.

his treasure from the Ming Dynasty conveys the essence of love with its depiction of feathered couples that are devoted to one another. The large silk scroll is part of the Chinese collection at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. In the foreground are two swans, perhaps migrating from the north, closely attached to one another and resting amid the chrysanthemums of a royal garden. In the upper middle of Flowers and Birds in an Autumn Setting, notice the pair of magpies, intelligent birds that signify joy and happiness. A Chinese legend tells the story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, who were so deeply in love that they spent all their time together and did not complete their tasks. They were separated by the celestial emperor and sent to live on opposite sides of a river. Once a year, magpies formed a bridge, allowing them to be reunited. Because of that, magpies sometimes signify waiting, or a yearlong separation of lovers that can be seen as a rite of passage. Finally, take note of the pair of myna birds sitting on branches on the upper left side. They are noisy birds that are believed to pair for life, and they are commonly seen in Chinese art. As a watercolor on silk, this “bird and flower” scroll is a delicate work that might have been given as a wedding gift. Although not currently on view, it can be enjoyed online through the Museum’s website.

“When a bride holds her bouquet lower, next to her hip, and not in the front center of her gown, she will look taller, more natural, and show off that lovely gown! The bouquet is held in the right hand for her portrait shot and in the left hand when escorted down the aisle.” - Craig Sole, Craig Sole Designs

Ling-en Lu, Associate Curator of Chinese Art

30 | July 10, 2021 |

@theindependentkc

AND BEYOND

BY PAUL HORSLEY

‘ONE GREAT GOOD TRUE THING’: Theater’s love-couples can school us in the art of romance Theatergoers cherish a good love story. We look at some favorite couples from a range of English-language stage works, all of whom teach us a thing or two about living and loving.

Tevye and Golde, Tzeitel and Motel (Fiddler on the Roof); Tevye and Golde were brought together by a matchmaker, so when he asks her if she loves him, she hems and haws before finally saying: “I suppose I do.” There’s something strikingly poignant, in this Jerry Bock/Sheldon Harnick/ Joseph Stein collaboration, about the contrast between the enduring bond of the elders, who grew to love only gradually, and the urgent crush that their daughter, Tzeitel, feels for the young tailor. (“Even a poor tailor is entitled to some happiness,” exclaims Motel.) Tradition and passion can intertwine.

Doug Hamer)

Rose and Troy (Fences); Of all the love stories embedded in August Wilson’s “Pittsburgh Cycle” plays, that of Rose and Troy is perhaps the most vivid. Troy is scarred by discrimination, prison, and a thwarted baseball career: He loves Rose as much as he can. Rose’s love is almost strong enough to tear down the “fences” he has built. That she agrees to raise a child Troy fathered with another woman shows the depths of her love. There’s much more to this play, of course, set against the rough backdrop of being Black in America. But at its heart is the balm that Rose’s love provides for her family’s wounds.

Cory Weaver

Cleopatra and Antony (Antony and Cleopatra); History’s first celebrity couple, Cleopatra VII and Marcus Antonius, have generated more “gossip” over the centuries than Bennifer or Brangelina could possibly imagine: and long before social media! Who else but Shakespeare could twist the exploits of an Egyptian princess and her Roman general (first recorded by Plutarch in the Second Century) into something as lavishly over-the-top as anything Hollywood could concoct? (Think: Romeo and Juliet on steroids.)

Greta Oglesby and A.C. Smith created remarkable chemistry as Rose and Troy in Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s 2017 production of Fences.

Lynn Lane

Kansas City Repertory Theatre presented a lavish production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet in 2017.

Don Ipock

The Lyric Opera of Kansas City’s newly imagined West Side Story of 2018 featured a recreation of Jerome Robbins’ original choreography.

Juliet and Romeo, Maria and Tony (Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story); Shakespeare’s love-couple, like Tony and Maria and all of their other literary progeny, come from different “tribes.” Whether the division be race, religion, nation, or even rival families, the reverberations of this taboo are endless. That a Broadway team (Laurents/Bernstein/Sondheim) would tack a happy ending onto the bard’s tale comes as no surprise. Maria survives so she can teach us all to be better people (ugh). Today we might argue that the very premise of the story (that loving the “other” leads to heartache and/or death) is insidious and archaic. But we still cry at the end.

32 | July 10, 2021 |

@The Independent: Kansas City’s Journal of Society

The audience became part of the production in Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s 2014 Our Town, as Jeff Still led marriage vows between Emily (Linsey Page Morton) and George (Derrick Trumbly).

Emily and George (Our Town); Few plays capture the simple essence of community with the poetry of Thornton Wilder’s 1938 classic. We treasure the young couple’s guileless love partly because we ourselves yearn for its grace, its straightforwardness. That it is cut short by Emily’s

Brian Paulette

Phillip Shinn and Emily Peterson played Madge and Hal in Kansas City Actors Theatre’s 2013 production of Picnic.

Paul Ososki and Lisa Lehnen as Billy and Sylvia were joined by Jan Rogge, David Fritts, Nicole Marie Green, and Jake Walker in Unicorn Theatre’s superlative 2015 production of Nina Raine’s Tribes.

death does not signal the implausibility of this love: It is an injunction for us to live now, while we can. “Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it… every, every minute?” the dead Emily asks. “No,” replies the Stage Manager. “Saints and poets, maybe. They do some.”

Beatrice and Benedick (Much Ado About Nothing); Two people spend so much time exchanging barbs that it falls upon their friends to show them they are in fact made for each other. This archetypical tale has never been more stylishly told than in Shakespeare’s comedy.

Beatrice and Benedick are so busy delivering acidic one-liners (“I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me”) that they don’t recognize that they’re crazily in love.

Sylvia and Billy (Tribes); Nina Raine’s deeply affecting play tells of a deaf boy, Billy, who reads lips so well he’s never had to learn sign language, and Sylvia, who was born to deaf parents but is newly active in the deaf community because she too is losing her hearing. Through her, Billy discovers first love, learns to sign, and wriggles his way out of his insular, dysfunctional family. It’s a play that, without the tender love-interest at its heart, might have been little more than commentary on the politics of persons with disabilities.

Maggie and Brick, Blanche and Allan (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, A Streetcar Named Desire); Each of Tennessee Williams’ “love stories” is about a tormented onstage character and a long-dead beloved. Brick loves Maggie, but he can’t rid himself of the lingering affection for his football buddy, who committed suicide after confessing his love to Brick.

Blanche’s true love is neither Stanley nor Mitch but Allan, her bisexual husband, whose suicide sent her over the edge. It was the 1950s, after all: It’s as if the playwright was pleading for acceptance of sexual minorities long before it was fashionable.

Jerry Jay Cranford and Robert J. Hingula were scheduled to perform as Albin and Georges in Spinning Tree Theatre’s La Cage aux Folles, which was planned for spring 2020 but cancelled due to COVID-19.

Maria and the Baron (The Sound of Music); The partly-true-life story of Maria Kutschera and Baron Georg von Trapp has fascinated audiences for more than 60 years. It is essentially a Cinderella story, but one would be lax to overlook the Rodgers and Hammerstein songs, some of which rank among the best Broadway has produced. Still, who can resist the idea of a humble nun finding love with a fabulously wealthy Baron?

(Isn’t that ultimately what we all want?)

Madge and Hal (Picnic); The characters in this near-perfect drama by Kansas native William Inge feel familiar to Midwesterners. The yearning of first love, stretching across vast acres of wheat and boredom, can indeed drive us to madly impulsive actions. Though we fear that Hal will bring only heartache to the beautiful Madge, as she dashes off to join the emotionally troubled “bad boy” at the end, there’s a part of us that thinks: Maybe this time.

Albin and Georges (La Cage aux Folles); This durable American musical by Jerry Herman and Harvey Fierstein walks a fine line between serious and satire. Albin is a drag star and Georges is his loving, if imperious, husband. They’ve weathered some rocky years together but are united by the news that their beloved son, Jean-Michel, is to marry the daughter of an arch-conservative statesman. The couple’s madcap attempts to ensure their son’s safety help remind them of the reasons they fell in love: Each draws upon the determination, generosity, and compassion of the other.

To reach Paul Horsley, performing arts editor, send an email to paul@kcindependent.com or find him on Facebook (paul.horsley.501) or Twitter/Instagram (@phorsleycritic).

Tie The Knot | kcindependent.com | July 10, 2021 | The Independent | 33

Embrace the Grape

Love Stories

“There are a variety of wedding venue options. Some offer everything you need

Wirken Photography

all in one place, while others require hiring a team of vendors to piece everything together. Only you know how much time and energy you have to plan and manage the various details of your wedding day, so it is important to ask for a detailed list of what each venue includes. This will help you determine which best meets your needs so you can look forward to an unforgettable wedding day.” - Keyli Kamin, Hilton President Kansas City

5 YEARS

M

r. Martin and Dr. Lucinda Vogtsberger of Columbus, Ohio, are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Lindsay Sears Vogtsberger, to Niles Ericsson Jager, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Eric Thor Jager of Mission Hills. The bride-to-be is the granddaughter of Mrs. Henry Vogtsberger of Bowling Green, Ohio, and the late Dr. Vogtsberger and the late Mr. and Mrs. Richard J. Phillips. Her groom-elect is the grandson of Mrs. Paul Dana Bartlett, Jr., of Our Town and the late Mr. Bartlett and the late Mr. and Mrs. Eric Howard Jager.

Theirs will be a May 28th wedding in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.

Reprinted from the January 23, 2016 issue of The Independent.

Do You Remember… The Back Burner, located at 2828 Johnson Drive? It had a Bridal Registry that featured a unique collection of tabletop settings, serving accessories, kitchen necessities and gift for the hostess and the bride as mentioned in The Independent’s June 1, 1985 issue.

I Wonder – if the young engagement party planners aren’t about to be scooped by mama?

“We see couples make the following mistakes: First, couples don’t set a budget up-front, and spend too much early in the planning process. In particular, they overspend on the venue and the dress. This means the couple might have to sacrifice on other areas later, such as the florist and the caterer, areas where they can really tell their story. Second, couples wait too long to hire vendors they like. If you feel a connection with a vendor, hire them. Third, too many couples try to keep up with Pinterest and their friends. Weddings are a couple’s opportunity to share their unique story. Don’t do what everyone else is doing.

Plan the day only you can have.”- Sarah Quinlivan, Quintessential Events

REMEMBER WHEN

Wedding Memories 40 Years Ago

A display of gowns from 19th and 20th Century weddings is on exhibit at several places around Town through June 7th. The Kansas City Museum is host to “Something Old, Something New,” featuring wedding attire from 1836-1976 and a gallery of antique Strauss Peyton portraits. To spotlight the show, the Women’s Division of the Museum hosted a preview and tour of the memorabilia. Mrs. Burnham Hockaday greets Mmes. Francis G. Foster, John J. Snyder and Albert L. Gustin, Jr.

The George Reulands flank Jean Svadlenak, Curator of Textiles and Fabrics at the K.C. Museum and creator of the exhibit, while they view wedding clothes worn by Mrs. Reuland’s grandparents, the Frank A. Whites, in 1881.

Reprinted from the May 30, 1981 issue of The Independent.

“Choosing the perfect venue is the first step to all other wedding day decisions. We specialize in the entire wedding weekend – from rehearsal dinner, to elegant reception, to farewell brunch, including LGBTQ and ethnic wedding celebrations.” - Dustin Holcumbrink, Kansas City Marriott Downtown

34 | July 10, 2021 |

@KCIndependent

e v Lo An

E

Adventure

mily Catherine Kerr and Eric Samuel Lund celebrated their matrimony in August of 2020, and then followed the elegant affair with a bike trip up a mountain! After being married in Vail, Colorado, the happy couple proceeded to Aspen for their honeymoon. Equipped with bikes, determination, and a lot of grit, the Lunds biked their way up to the Maroon Bells, an exquisite area of the gorgeous state, then went horseback riding, and finally relaxed by the pool. The couple is at home in Denver, Colorado.

Emily and Eric Lund in Aspen, Colorado

M

ary Carolyn Knop and Kaleb Allen Gilmore were joined in matrimony in June of 2020, and followed the nuptials with an adventurous trip to Costa Rica for their honeymoon. In addition to zip-lining and horseback riding, the couple hiked through the jungle all day in order to arrive at a gorgeous waterfall and Rio Celeste. Much-deserved relaxing resort dining was a highlight for this intrepid pair.

After the tour de force of activities, the couple is at home in Fairway, Kansas.

SEE MORE PHOTOS ONLINE AT KCINDEPENDENT.COM.

Carolyn and Kaleb Gilmore posed

by Rio Celeste.

Kaleb and Carolyn Gilmore enjoyed an evening in Costa Rica.

M

adeline Louise Ledom and Samuel Hurst Logan were married in July of 2020 and then embarked on a honeymoon at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Starting with the exclusive Cloud Camp experience at The Broadmoor, the newlyweds were treated to wilderness experiences, incredible views, camp activities, delicious meals, and being pampered in the majestic shadow of Pike’s Peak. Madeline and Sam are at home in Our Town.

Madeline and Sam Logan explored Colorado Springs on their honeymoon.

The Broadmoor was the perfect place to honeymoon for Sam and Madeline Logan.

Tie The Knot Sponsored by

| kcindependent.com | July 10, 2021 | The Independent | 35

• Calendar OF Events • Cerner Charitable Foundation; Jeanne & Neal Patterson 12-13 Legacy Golf Tournament; Join Cerner Charitable Foundation at the beautiful National Golf Club of Kansas City. Play 18

JULY

The Whole Person; The Big Dill Classic Pickleball and 11 Cornhole Tournament; An inclusive event benefiting the adaptive sports programs with a pickleball tournament and a recreational cornhole tournament. Prize packages will be awarded to the top three teams in each tournament; Chicken N Pickle North Kansas City; 5 p.m. Contact Kim Krueger: 3710 Main Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64111 or 816-627-2220 or kkrueger@thewholeperson.org or thewholeperson.org/bigdill.

Big Brothers Big Sisters Kansas City; Summer Fun for 11-23 Kids’ Sake; The largest annual fundraiser for BBBSKC, with nearly 500 teams and 3,000 participants throughout the month of July.

holes and mingle with colleagues and Cerner leadership. The most rewarding part of the day will be hearing stories of children who have benefited from your generosity; The National Golf Club of Kansas City. Contact Ashley Osborn: 2800 Rock Creek Parkway, Kansas City, Missouri 64117 or 816-201-6385 or ashley.osborn@cerner.com or cernercharitablefoundation.org/golf.

The Regnier Family Wonderscope Children’s Museum of Kansas 17 City; Eat Drink Play; Wonderscope will be open to adults looking to learn something new and have a little fun, too! Complete with games, experiments, and a beer garden, it is sure to be a fun evening; Wonderscope. Contact Kali McGee: 433 East Red Bridge Road, Kansas City, Missouri 64131 or 816-643-6700 or kmcgee@wonderscope.org or wonderscope.org.

Teams of six work together, through the summer, to fundraise online. To celebrate, they enjoy virtual trivia or a party on the lawn at the Liberty Memorial. Contact Paige Engle: 1709 Walnut Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64108 or 816-820-2275 or paige@bbbskc.org or kcsummerfun.org.

Hope House; believe gala; The annual event is a magical and 31 captivating night. Semi-formal attire brings elegance, yet the night is full of entertaining surprises, an inspirational keynote speaker, and

expansive silent and live auction items. Kris Ketz will host for the 32nd year; Loews Kansas City Hotel; 5 p.m. Contact Jennifer Nussbeck: P.O. Box 577, Lee’s Summit, Missouri 64064 or 816-982-2444 or jnussbeck@hopehouse.net or hopehouse.net/events.

I Wonder – if the third in a trio of lovely daughters won’t soon be announcing her engagement?

Royals Charities; 5K & 10K Run/Walk; Join us for a 5K or 31 10K chip-timed race which includes a trip around the warning track at Kauffman Stadium. Participants receive exclusive race

Tails Of Our Town Stephanie Betsill

swag, including a Royals Run t-shirt. Fun vendors round out the family-friendly day!; Kauffman Stadium; 8 a.m. Contact Megan Rowe: 1 Royal Way, Kansas City, Missouri 64129 or 816-504-4149 or megan.rowe@royals.com or royals.com/run.

AUGUST Wayside Waifs; Fur Ball Gala, “Wayside Homecoming”; Purr-pare 7dinner, for a tail waggin’ time at the 2021 Fur Ball Gala. With a gourmet open bars, and a lively auction, this is a night guests won’t furr-get; Overland Park Convention Center. Contact Molly Moody: 3901 Martha Truman Road, Kansas City, Missouri 64137 or 816-986-4409 or mmoody@waysidewaifs.org or furballkc.org.

MOCSA; TriCom Golf Tournament; Enjoy a day on the links! Teams 9followed of four are invited to participate in our annual golf tournament by a great luncheon and awards ceremony. Contact Kassie Sands: 3100 Broadway, Suite 400, Kansas City, Missouri 64111 or 816-285-1324 or ksands@mocsa.org or mocsa.org.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Kansas City; Kids Night Out 13 2021; Enjoy dinner, silent and live auctions, and an interactive program featuring a performance by Maren Morris. Don’t miss it!; Overland Park Convention Center; 5 p.m. Contact Julie Kaul: 4001 Blue Parkway, Suite 102, Kansas City, Missouri 64130 or 816-361-3600 or events@helpkckids.org or kidsnightoutkc.com.

Opes Charitable Foundation; Green Tie Gala; Featuring an 14 inspirational program, three-course dinner, drinks, unique live and silent auction packages, dessert, and dancing; Kansas City Marriott Downtown; 5 p.m.; $250. Contact Andrea Nelson: 6051 North Chestnut Avenue, Suite B, Gladstone, Missouri 64119 or 816-384-2901 or marketing@opescre.com or greentiegalakc.com.

HopeKids Kansas City; Charity Golf Classic; Join HopeKids 23 for breakfast, lunch, silent auction, prizes, networking, and the opportunity to meet amazing HopeKids families; Shoal Creek Golf Course; 9 a.m. Contact Kristin Castle: P.O. Box 11947, Kansas City, Missouri 64138 or 816-372-0311 or kristin@hopekids.org or hopekids.org/kcgolf.

J

ake is a 12-year-old Jack Russell terrier and beagle mix who knows how to have a good time! Newlyweds Elaine and James Egerstrom, who are Jake’s human parents, say he loves going for walks in the park, playing with squeaky toys, and taking lots of naps. Elaine describes him as “loyal, silly, and very clingy.” Jake is known to beg for treats, especially chicken and fish snacks. Who could resist this pooch? Not Elaine and James, that’s for sure.

36 | July 10, 2021 |

@theindependentkc

Kansas City Zoo; Jazzoo; Join as we celebrate Jazzoo 2021! Be a 27 part of the wildest fundraiser in Kansas City, where party animals from across the metro will join one another to enjoy unlimited food, drinks, and entertainment. Jazzoo helps provide food for more than 1,700 animals and supports our Zoo Learning Fund; Kansas City Zoo; 6 p.m.

Contact Susan McFee: 6800 Zoo Drive, Kansas City, Missouri 64132 or 816-595-1209 or susanmcfee@fotzkc.org or kansascityzoo.org.

Cerner Charitable Foundation; Westport Bounce; A tasty tour KVC Health Systems; KVC Kids Classic Golf Tournament; 28 through Kansas City’s Westport neighborhood, hitting hot spots 30 Experience Tom Watson’s signature course, VIP treatment, 18 holes and enjoying cool drinks and signature brunch items; Westport. of golfing, including a golf cart, gifts and prizes, complimentary Contact Ashley Osborn: 2800 Rock Creek Parkway, Kansas City, Missouri 64117 or 816-201-6385 or ashley.osborn@cerner.com or cernercharitablefoundation.org/bounce.

beverages, meals before and after flights, and deluxe golf swag; The National Golf Club Kansas City; 7 a.m. Contact Kim Madden: 21350 West 153rd Street, Olathe, Kansas 66061 or 913-322-4942 or kmadden@kvc.org or kvc.org/golf.

The Farmer’s House; Fall Feast; Our annual Fall Feast is full of 28 fun and heart! Hosted by our amazing Farmers, guests will be treated to signature cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and a scrumptious SEPTEMBER farm-to-table meal. Adding to the fun is live music and silent and Kansas City Museum; The Derby Party; Festivities on the live auction items; The Rumley Tractor Building; 5:30 p.m.; $150.

4 historic grounds will include southern food, beverages with Contact Dana Chatlin: 415 Main Street, Weston, Missouri 64098 or Kansas City distillery labels, beautiful fashion, the race on the big screens 913-706-5803 or dana@thefarmershouse.org or thefarmershouse.org.

Lead to Read KC; Get Schooled: Cheers to 10 Years!; Join us to 28 celebrate Lead to Read KC’s 10-year anniversary. The event will be filled with delicious food, tasty cocktails, interactive experiences, and an awesome raffle — all while experiencing the new Wonderscope’s stunning indoor-outdoor venue; Wonderscope Children’s Museum; 7 p.m.; $125. Contact Laddie Lilly: 6022 North Strathbury Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri 64151 or 479-659-1315 or getschooled@leadtoreadkc.org or getschooledkc.org.

courtesy of Party Trailers, and much more!; Kansas City Museum; 3 p.m.; $75. Contact Paul Gutierrez: 3218 Gladstone Boulevard, Kansas City, Missouri 64123 or 816-513-0726 or paul.gutierrez@kcmo.org or kansascitymuseum.org/events/athtehistoricgrounds.

Children’s Place; Brews & BBQ; The Young Ambassador Board 9yardThe will host the event featuring delicious food and drinks, music, and games, all while spending time with friends; The Children’s Place; 5 p.m. Contact Sara Boatwright: 6401 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, Missouri 64131 or 816-363-1898 or boatwrights@tcpkc.org or tcpkc.org.

The Head for the Cure Foundation; 19th Annual Head for the Community Housing Wyandotte County (CHWC); Rooftop 29 Cure Metro KC 5K Run/Walk; Join us for a 5K run/walk that 10 for Rooftop Event; Friends and partners of CHWC gather on builds awareness, raises funds, and ignites hope for the Metro Kansas the elegantly-decorated rooftop at The Legends for a relaxing City brain tumor community. Funds raised from this event will benefit The University of Kansas Cancer Center, Solace House, Children’s Brain Tumor Project, and the Brain Tumor Trials Collaborative; 8 a.m. Contact Kelsi Seely: 1607 Oak Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64108 or 816-218-6871 or kelsi@headforthecure.org or headforthecure.org/metro-kc.

Northeast Community Center: Home of Harmony Project KC; 29 Night in Napa; This year, Napa hits the road for the fifth annual event. Enjoy the indoor and outdoor spaces of the Porsche Kansas City building, allowing for comfortable social distancing, fine wine, luxury cars, and great music from Harmony Project KC; Porsche Kansas City; 5:30 p.m.; $125. Contact Kyla Pitts-Zevin: 544 Wabash Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri 64124 or 816-231-7738 or kyla@necc-kc.org or necc-kc.org.

evening of music, drinks, food, and fireworks. Contact Rebekah Swank: 2 South 14th Street, Kansas City, Kansas 66102 or 913-229-3182 or rswank@chwckck.org or chwckck.org.

The University of Kansas Health System; Treads & Threads 10 2021; Under the stars and inside the oval at Kansas Speedway, Treads & Threads is an unforgettable black-tie gala to benefit cancer patient care and includes a gourmet feast from area restaurants, featured headliner, spectacular fireworks, and a dance floor that’s packed ’til midnight; Kansas Speedway; 6 p.m. Contact Fund Development Department: 2330 Shawnee Mission Parkway, Suite 305, Westwood, Kansas 66205 or 913-588-2800 or treadsandthreads@kumc.edu or treadsandthreads.org.

“Excellent hospitality and creating a wonderful experience for all is what we care most about at 1900. We absolutely love to be part of the creative process of planning and coming up with interesting ways to use all of the cool building features, like customizable lighting, recessed art rails, structural ceiling hooks, and even the gorgeous tent for the courtyard. Organization is key to a great event, and there is nothing we love more than a good checklist at 1900!” - Jennifer Cattano, 1900 Building

A Kansas City tradition since 1899

OurTown

by Charlie Podrebarac

Scan the QR Code below or contact Laura Gabriel at 816.471.2800 to start your subscription.

Tie The Knot | kcindependent.com | July 10, 2021 | The Independent | 37

Symphony League of Kansas City; Stardust Ball; Guests will enjoy The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art; C100 Luncheon; Meredith 11 hors d’oeuvres and cocktails, bid on unique auction items at a silent 21 Angrist and Kate Banks will serve as co-chairmen for the event, auction, hear a performance by the Symphony led by Music Director featuring inspiration from Designer Mark Sikes, followed by a luncheon Michael Stern, dine on gourmet entrees, and dance to the music of Lost Wax; 5:30 p.m.; $300. Contact Melanie Fenske: 1703 Wyandotte Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64108 or 913-271-3125 or stardustball@gmail.com or kcsymphonyball.org.

12

Saint Luke’s Foundation; Plaza 10K; The largest race in Kansas and Missouri, with a flat course that runs along the banks of Brush Creek and goes through the heart of the Country Club Plaza; 7:30 a.m. Contact Jennifer McBratney: 901 East 104th Street, Mailstop 100 South, Kansas City, Missouri 64131 or 816-932-5612 or jmcbratney@saint-lukes.org or saintlukeskc.org/ saint-lukes-foundation/plaza-10k-run-walk.

13

HappyBottoms; The Diaper Bowl; A fun-filled, tailgate-style event featuring food trucks, live music, games, and silent and live auctions.

Get your game face on for the main event, a rock, paper, scissors tournament; HappyBottoms Warehouse; 5:30 p.m. Contact Susan Belger Angulo: 303 West 79th Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64114 or 913-940-4450 or susan@happybottoms.org or happybottoms.org.

Reach Out and Read Kansas City; Books On Tap Happy 15 Hour; Enjoy local food and drink, a unique silent auction and raffle items, great music, and time with friends while making a difference in our community. Contact Ellen Quinn: 3901 Rainbow Boulevard, MS 1051, Kansas City, Kansas 66160 or 913-588-2793 or equinn5@kumc.edu or reachoutreadkc.org.

Safehome; Heart on Hope; Join us for a fun happy hour and place 16 your bets on the winning mouse. You can dress-down or up, either way, come ready to place your bets! With unique raffle items, live music, and so much more - you won’t want to miss this; Fiorella Event Center; 6 p.m. Contact Sheena Mikessell: 8745 Ballentine, Overland Park, Kansas 66204 or 913-378-1517 or sheena.mikessell@safehome-ks.org or safehome-ks.org/special-events.

Bags of Fun KC/Gabby Krause Foundation; Black and White 18 Gala; A lively gala including a delicious plated meal, silent and live auctions, raffle, games, and dancing to the upbeat music from the Stolen Winnebagos; Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland; 6:30 p.m. Contact Sandy John: 4118 Baltimore, Kansas City, Missouri 64111 or 816-616-2947 or sandyj@bagsoffun.org or bagsoffunkc.org.

18

Catholic Charities of Kansas City-St. Joseph; Outpace Poverty 5K; The annual event begins and ends at Theis Park. Recruit a team and start training; Theis Park; 8 a.m. Contact Susan Walker: 4001 Blue Parkway, Suite 250, Kansas City, Missouri 64130 or 816-221-4377 or swalker@ccharities.com or outpacepoverty.org.

Johnson County Library Foundation; Library Lets Loose; Our 18 annual signature event is a festive, fun, and interactive fundraiser.

Contact Steph Neu: P.O. Box 2933, Shawnee Mission, Kansas 66201 or 816-419-9812 or neus@jocolibrary.org or jocolibraryfoundation.org.

National WWI Museum and Memorial; Night at the Tower; 18 Join us for our seventh annual event as we celebrate the work of America’s only National WWI Museum and Memorial. Contact

in the remarkable Kirkwood Hall; The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art; 10 a.m. Contact Emily Sanger: 4525 Oak Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64111 or 816-751-1360 or esanger@nelson-atkins.org or nelson-atkins.org.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Kansas City; 4th Annual Tour 23 de Fork; Join us for an evening of exciting culinary demonstrations from local chefs, cocktails, food, live and silent auctions, and a host of fun surprises, all to benefit the Olathe Unit of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Kansas City; 5 p.m.; $175. Contact Julie Kaul: 4001 Blue Parkway, Suite 102, Kansas City, Missouri 64130 or 816-361-3600 or events@helpkckids.org or helpkckids.org.

First Call; Celebration Evening; An annual event to raise awareness 23 about First Call and substance use disorder as a disease. Contact Melissa Gard: 9091 State Line Road, Kansas City, Missouri 64114 or 816-800-8060 or mgard@firstcallkc.org or firstcallkc.org/celebration.

Planned Parenthood Great Plains; THE event; Join us as we 23 reflect on the resilience and innovation of our patients and team throughout the past year at an indoor/outdoor space for cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and food trucks!; Fire House KC; 6 p.m.; $125.

Contact Maggie Haynes: 4401 West 109th Street, Suite 200, Overland Park, Kansas 66211 or 913-345-4696 or maggie.haynes@ppgreatplains.org or plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-great-plains.

Olathe Health Charitable Foundation; 21st Annual OHCF Golf 24 Classic; Tee off for a great cause and help raise funds to support the Hospice House. Morning and afternoon sessions are available. The 2021 chairman is Brian Schrotenboer; Sycamore Ridge Golf Course; 7 a.m.; $350. Contact Natalie Ward: 20375 West 151st Street, Suite 325, Olathe, Kansas 66061 or 913-791-4213 or natalie.ward@olathehealth.org or bidpal.net/ohcfgolf.

The Whole Person; An Evening in Paris - Night of Independence 24 Awards; Honoring individuals and organizations that support the mission to assist people with disabilities to live independently. This creative black-tie event of giving features silent and live auctions, entertainment, exquisite food, and more; The Abbott; 6 p.m. Contact Terri Goddard: 3710 Main Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64111 or 816-627-2220 or tgoddard@thewholeperson.org or thewholeperson.org/paris.

Children’s Mercy; Dream Big Day; We walk together to celebrate 25 the advances in pediatric research and raise awareness and funds for local patients. This family-friendly event welcomes teams of current and former patients, families, friends, and community supporters, and features an awareness walk, games, activities, crafts, and more; Crown Center Square; 8:30 a.m. Contact Gracie Hastings: 2401 Gillham Road, Kansas City, Missouri 64108 or 816-302-0202 or dreambigday@cmh.edu or dreambigday.org.

Cross-Lines Community Outreach; Community Outreach 25 Gala; Join us for a fabulous evening of fine dining, music, and a thrilling live auction with opportunities to win unique prizes and experiences; The Abbott; 6 p.m. Contact Christina Hofer: 736 Shawnee Avenue, Kansas City, Kansas 66105 or 913-281-3388 or christina@cross-lines.org or cross-lines.org.

Debbie Bass: 2 Memorial Drive, Kansas City, Missouri 64108 or 816-888-8106 or dbass@theworldwar.org or theworldwar.org/nightatthetower.

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The Independent Kansas City’s Oldest Magazine 38 | July 10, 2021 |

All editorial photos were submitted by the event’s sponsoring organization, unless otherwise stated.

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Associate Publisher • Jenny Owens Hughes Art Director • Lisa M. Shea Editor • Nancy Sachse Web Editor • Annie England Account Executives • Christin Painter, Allie Shondell Contributing Writers • Heather N. Paxton, Kelsey Potts, Anne Potter Russ, Nicole Jacobs Silvey Performing Arts Editor • Paul Horsley Cartoonist • Charlie Podrebarac Office Manager • Laura Gabriel

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Do You Remember… The Glass & China House ad in the January 7, 1956 issue of The Independent? It stated, The happiest brides use our BRIDAL REGISTER to list their china, silver and crystal preferences. Brides-to-be will find extensive variety in patterns, from the finest houses and valuable assistance from our bridal consultants.

The on Society

e v Lo The Memories

A sweet moment was captured between Flower Girl Maci Lund and her uncle, Eric Lund, the groom.

Wishing newlyweds everywhere a beautiful “happily ever after.”

Rae Barber Photography

Tie The Knot | kcindependent.com | July 10, 2021 | The Independent | 39