Evening at the Square 2024

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American Public Square at Jewell, along with Host Committee co-chairs, Dr. Valerie Chow & Judge Jon R. Gray (ret.) and Regina & Bill Kort, will host our annual event, Evening at the Square, on Monday, December 9 at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.

This year’s event will feature a conversation between New York Times opinion columnist, Bret Stephens, and the former Governor of the State of Massachusetts and American Public Square National Advisory Board Member, Deval Patrick.

The 2024 Founder’s Civility Award will be presented to community leaders, Sally & Ramon Murguia, and we will celebrate our 10^th anniversary by recognizing the accomplishments of American Public Square founder and Board Chair, Amb. Allan J. Katz (ret.).

Bret Stephens

Bret Stephens is an opinion columnist for The New York Times and the founder and editor-in-chief of SAPIR, a new quarterly devoted to issues of Jewish concern. He has previously served as editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem Post and as foreign-affairs columnist of the Wall Street Journal, where he was also deputy editorial-page editor. He is also a founder, with chess champion Garry Kasparov, of the Renew Democracy Initiative, a non-profit dedicated to defending democratic institutions at home and abroad.

Bret was raised in Mexico City and educated at the University of Chicago and the London School of Economics. He is the author of “America in Retreat: The New Isolationism and the Coming Global Disorder” (2014). His awards and honors include the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary, the 2019 Ellis Island Medal of Honor, and three honorary doctorates. In 2022, the government of Russia banned him for life.

He lives near New York with his wife, Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim, a music critic. They have three children.

Deval Patrick

Deval Patrick is Senior Advisor to The Vistria Group, a private investment firm that invests for both financial return and positive social impact. He is also the David R. Gergen Professor of the Practice of Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. From 2022 to 2024, he was Co-Director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Kennedy School. He is the founder and, from April 2015 to December 2019, was Managing Partner of Bain Capital Double Impact, a similar impact investment fund. From January 2007 to January 2015, he served as Governor of Massachusetts. He has been a senior executive in two Fortune 50 companies, a partner in two Boston law firms, and by appointment of President Bill Clinton, the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights in the United States Justice Department. He is a Rockefeller Fellow, a Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute, and the author of two books. Mr. Patrick earned an AB cum laude from Harvard College and a JD from Harvard Law School.

Ramón & Sally Murguía

Ramón and Sally Murguía, residents of the Argentine neighborhood in Kansas City, Kansas, exemplify a shared commitment to community service and social progress. This power couple combines legal expertise with grassroots volunteerism to make a lasting impact on their local community and beyond.

Ramón, owner of Murguía Law Office, has provided legal services to small businesses and individuals for nearly four decades. A trailblazer in Latino philanthropy, Ramón chairs the Greater Kansas City Hispanic Development Fund (HDF), which he helped establish. Under his leadership, HDF has awarded over $10 million in scholarships to more than 5,000 scholars, primarily first-generation college students. Ramón’s influence extends nationally through his 18-year tenure on the W.K. Kellogg Foundation Board of Trustees and his role in organizing an alliance of major Latino-led foundations across the country.

Sally, formerly a partner at Dietrich Davis et al., has dedicated herself to grassroots volunteer work since 1996. She currently chairs the board of the Argentine Betterment Corporation and volunteers with various public school and community programs. Sally’s efforts were instrumental in creating the Argentine Neighborhood Development Association, which she chaired from 2004 to 2013.

Together, Ramón and Sally led a volunteer community effort to raise $2 million for a new $6 million public library, which opened in 2012. Their collaborative spirit extends to their professional lives, with both holding leadership positions on various non-profit and corporate boards. Ramón serves on the boards of Country Club Bank, W.K. Kellogg Company, Union Station Kansas City, and the Kansas University Endowment Association, while Sally has experience as a board member and chair for organizations like Foxwood Springs Living Center and Country Club Christian Church.

Both fluent in Spanish and graduates of prestigious institutions, Ramón and Sally continue to reside in the Argentine neighborhood where Ramón grew up and where they raised their now-adult children, R. Miguel and Amalia. Their unwavering dedication to community development, education, and social equity has left an indelible mark on Kansas City.

The Amb. Allan J. Katz Internship Fund

In celebration of its 10-year anniversary, American Public Square at Jewell is establishing the “Amb. Allan J. Katz Internship Fund” to honor the accomplishments of our founder, Allan Katz.

Today, APS operates a highly-sought internship program through its Civics Engagement Initiative.  During the academic school year, collegiate interns participate in and oversee the APS Student Committee with support from the APS Civics Education Associate. Students work together to increase civic engagement throughout their student body by hosting events and offering their peers opportunities to convene and discuss pressing local, regional, and national issues. Additionally, summer interns partner with APS staff in hands-on work that spans a number of aspects of organizational operations, including marketing, program planning, development, and more.

The Internship Fund will ensure the continuity and growth of this valuable program, providing opportunities for students while supporting the mission of American Public Square at Jewell.

Through the Evening at the Square campaign, our goal is to raise $50,000 to help cover intern stipends for the next several years.  Should you wish for your gift to be allocated to the Internship Fund, please contact Alana Muller, APS Community Director, at Alana@AmericanPublicSquare.org or (816) 601-1001.

Lead

William Jewell College

Presenting Sponsors

McDonnell Foundation

Sue Seidler Nerman & Lewis Nerman

Presenting Partner

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

Platinum

Stacy & William Pratt

Leslie M. Westbrook & Paolo Frigerio

Jack and Glenna Wylie Foundation

Gold

Jennifer & Bud Bacon

Ann Baum — Kenneth G. and Ann Baum Philanthropic Fund

Dr. Valerie E. Chow, M.D., & Judge Jon R. Gray (ret.)

Enterprise Bank & Trust

Ellen & Irv Hockaday

Mary & Mark Jorgenson

Kansas City Chiefs

Amb. Allan Katz (ret.) & Nancy Cohn

Donna & Ward Katz

Jim & Becky Pruett

Shook, Hardy & Bacon, L.L.P.

Charlie & Jeanne Sosland

Silver

Sarah & Jon Baum

Mary & Tom Bloch

Howe Street Group

Jill Ingram Reynolds

Bill & Regina Kort

Janet Mark & Frank Lipsman

Jerry White & Cyprienne Simchowitz

Bronze

Peggy & Andrew Beal Family Fund

Merilyn & Dr. Loren Berenbom, M.D.

Claire & Denton Bishop

Jeff & Stevi Brick

Rebecca & Harper Coulson

Peggy & Terry Dunn

Mike & Debra Gerken

Rev. Adam & LaVon Hamilton

JE Dunn Construction

McCownGordon

Martina & Patrick McLarney

Alana Muller & Marc Hammer

Charlene & Max Muller

Fred and Jami Pryor Foundation

Lisa & Charlie Schellhorn

Drs. Jessica & Benjamin Stone

Jeannine Strandjord

Jamila & Dr. Michael Weaver

Beth & Karl Zobrist