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Message from the President
by Chris Prinslow, Post President |
Dear Post Members,
As I write to you for our quarterly newsletter I've just enjoyed a beautiful spring weekend in Kansas City. It's as if this weather is our gift for enduring another Midwest winter--and this winter has been particularly challenging! I hope that you all feel, as I do, that spring is God's blessing to each of us for enduring the winter.
Earlier this month, the Post held its 3rd Annual Industry Day event in conjunction with UMKC. What a tremendous success. Thanks to all of the Industry Day Committee members, the presenters, the event sponsors, and for all of you who attended the event. We had more than 450 registrations for the event held at Pierson Auditorium on the UMKC Campus.
In additional to federal program briefs from the GSA and regional Corps Districts, the event included technical sessions and a special presentation from Ms. Ester Vassar, National Ombudsman for the Small Business Administration. The following day, the Kansas City District opened its doors to an open house and provided the opportunity for individual meetings with the district's program managers and contracting officers. Just a reminder, the Kansas City District is always open to meet with industry partners. No need for a special event such as the Industry Day event to meet with any member of the Kansas City District team.
YM Award: I am pleased to announce that SAME National will award Ms. Ann Ewy the Young Member Medal at the upcoming Joint Engineering and Training Conference this June in Dallas. Ann is well deserving of this award. She has served the Greater Kansas City Post since her employment with the Kansas City District eight years ago. In addition to serving on multiple Post Committees (Programs Committee, Young Members Committee, Scholarship Committee, & Fundraising Committee), Ann served as the Post Secretary from 2009-2010 and is currently serving on the National Board of Direction. Ann has done so much more for the Post and for the Society than just serving in key leadership positions. Ann has brought her inherent enthusiasm and positive can-do attitude to all of her undertakings with SAME. Congratulations, Ann!
Opportunities to Serve the Post: "Ad Hoc Financial Planning Committee" Over the past several years, the Post and your Board of Directors have operated the financial aspects of this post with great discipline. We were challenged several years ago to build the Post's Education and Mentoring Endowment Fund to be a self-sustaining operation, while still meeting our annual scholarship and mentoring objectives. This plan become known as the "Rossi Report" named after our 2005 Post President, COL(ret) Mike Rossi. As the current president, I believe that it's important for the Post to periodically review our long range financial situation and review/update the facts and assumptions that the Post made when we began implementing the "Rossi Report". I am seeking volunteers from the Post that would be interested in joining an ad hoc financial planning committee. This committee would review the assumptions and conditions of the Endowment Fund and make recommendations to the Board. If you are interested in working on this committee, please give me a call or send me an e-mail.
Vice President's Dinner: Our Vice President's Dinner will be held at Arrowhead Stadium on April 14. This promises to be a fun evening for our entire post membership. Make sure that you register early and just as we did for the social during Industry Day, the Post will continue to celebrate its 80th Anniversary. The Kansas City Post has a great tradition and history of service to the Heartland and to our nation. The VP Dinner Committee is planning a fun filled evening at Arrowhead!
Have a great spring. Enjoy the beautiful weather. I look forward to seeing you at our many post events and activities planned in the upcoming months.
Chris Prinslow, PE
Post President, Greater Kansas City Post |
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Annual Vice President's Dinner |
When: Thursday, April 14, 2011 
Where: Arrowhead Stadium Club
Cost: $50/ticket ($30 for government employees) Tickets include dinner and one door prize raffle ticket. Drinks may be purchased at the full service bar. Please make checks to SAME GKC Post and send to HNTB, 715 Kirk Drive, Kansas City, MO, Attn. Garrett Cross. Payments must be received by April 12.
Attire: Business casual or Chiefs gear
Parking: Please park in lot D and enter the stadium via the main enterance.
RSVP to Garrett Cross (gcross@hntb.com or 816-527-2166)
All proceeds support our education committee activities for 2011. |
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Industry Day, a Great Success for the KC Post
by Jason Meyers |
At the University of Missouri Kansas City (UMKC) on March 9, the Greater Kansas City Post of the Society of American Military Engineers hosted their third annual Industry Day. This event was a partnering of SAME, USACE and the UMKC. The event brought together more than 450 attendees from more than 30 states. Public and private sector individuals and students from UMKC attended.
Twenty-six companies purchased exhibit booths and more than 15 companies sponsored the event. Dean Kevin Truman introduced himself to the attendees and spoke about UMKC's School of Computing and Engineering and his desire for UMKC to serve the needs of the engineering community in Kansas City. Industry Day presentations were made by a variety of personnel from industry, academia, and the military. Program briefs were conducted by USACE district engineers from Kansas City, Tulsa, Omaha, St. Louis, and Region 6 of the GSA. Presentation topics included NetZero Military Construction, MEGA Contract Acquisition, Missouri River Recovery Sediment Management, P&L Railroad Bridge Kentucky, Kansas City District's Design Support to Afghanistan Program and Office of the National Ombudsman. Professional development hours were also awarded to attendees.
 Following the conference, a social event was held at the AMC Marquee. Attendees battled the Big 12 basketball tournament traffic and had a great time. The efforts of this event raised over $60,000 for the post and made it possible for SAME to donate $5,000 to the Dean Kevin Truman's engineering department. The event was a great opportunity for students at UMKC to network and look for future internships and job opportunities. Students attended the event at no cost and there were presentations tailored to them.
The following day one-on-one meetings were held with the Kansas City District contracting officers and program managers who met with participants from small businesses and large corporations.
The event was chaired by Chris Prinslow, USACE. The committee included:
Jason Meyers, Burns & McDonnell
Al Osborne, Amy Lines, Kleinfelder
Arthur Saulsberry and Larry Myers, USACE
David Howe, Black & Veatch
Bill Yord, Louis Berger
Scott Opie and Scott Perkins, Wilson and Company
Tom Poer, HNTB
Melissa Kelly, Poole Fire Protection
Jackie Hacker and Merrill Watt, Jackie Hacker and Associates
Kevin Truman, Dean of Engineering and Technology UMKC
This event was an overwhelming success and the post is planning to hold next year's event again at the UMKC campus on the last Wednesday in January.
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Introduction of New GKC Post Board Members
by Amy Lines |
 The January luncheon for the Greater Kansas City SAME Post celebrated the installation of new board members. The new Board of Directors serving membership is as follows:
President: Christopher Prinslow, USACE
Vice President: Matt Metcalf, Tug Hill Construction
Secretary: Jackie Hacker, Jackie Hacker Associates
Treasurer: Kent Dvorak, Terracon
Immediate Past President: Mark Loes, Kleinfelder
Director ('09-'11): Robert Crain, Burns & McDonnell
Director ('09-'11): Al Osborne, Consultant
Director ('09-'11): Rex Ostrander, USACE
Director ('09-'12): Jessie Miller, Berger Devine Yaeger
Director ('09-'12): Dave Howe, Black & Veatch
Director ('09-'12): Rob Rastorfer, HNTB
Director ('09-'13): Doug O'Neill, JE Dunn Construction
Director ('09-'13): Rich McCollum, HDR
Director ('09-'13): Jason Meyers, Burns & McDonnell
Contact information for the Board as well as Committee Chairs is located on the GKC SAME Post website at www.samekc.org. |
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2011 Missouri River Texoma Regional Conference
Registration is now open! |
 The Greater Kansas City Post is pleased to host the Missouri River TEXOMA Regional Conference this summer. The event will be kicked off Tuesday, August 23rd with a golf tournament and icebreaker social that evening.
Help the Post celebrate 80 years of tradition in excellence. This is a fabulous opportunity to build personal relationships, expand individual knowledge, or increase company visibility. Look forward to a full educational and technical program including Federal Program Briefings in the region.
Sponsorships and Exhibit Space
There are many options available for registering as a conference attendee as well as other activities. Sponsorship opportunities and exhibit spaces are now available using Eshow. Please visit the Greater Kansas City Post website at www.samekc.org and click on the Missouri River Regional Link for a complete list of registration instructions, menu selection for sponsorship/exhibit space, directions, and other event details as they become available.
For registration questions please contact:
Catherine Lamanske
816-718-2048
lamanskecatherine@att.net
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RVP Medals Bestowed Upon Kansas City Post Leadership
by Jerry Adams |
Jerry Adams, Missouri River Region vice president and vice president of Berger Devine Yaeger Architects, assisted by Merrill Watt, 2007 recipient of the Walter O. Bachus Gold Medal, presented Regional Vice President Medals to three distinguished Greater Kansas City post leaders. Mark Loes, immediate past post president and director of federal marketing at Kleinfelder, received the Regional Vice President's medal for outstanding leadership for a banner year in guiding the Post to new heights.
Chris Prinslow, United States Army Corps of Engineers, received the Regional Vice President's medal for his leadership, organizational skills and steering of the organization as it met its corporate donations to the scholarship fund. Mr. Prinslow moves into his second year of leadership as incoming post president.
Jacker Hacker, Jackie Hacker and Associates, received the Regional Vice President's medal for continued support of the Small Business Program and her leadership and mentorship to young members.
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President's Awards
by Mark Loes |
 President's Awards were presented to ten volunteers who fulfilled positions supporting Post operations in 2010 at the January luncheon. Those receiving awards for Outstanding Service were:
Board of Directors - Jason Meyers of Burns & McDonnell, Jeff Campbell of J.E. Dunn and Ted Hartsig of Olsson Associates.
Officers - Phil Dula of CAPE for Vice President, Ann Ewy of USACE for Secretary and Kent Dvorak of Terracon for Treasurer.
Committee Chairs - Amy Lines of Kleinfelder for Communications and Doug Dreiling of Lochner - BWR for Sustaining Member.
Committee Members John Brake - Fellows and Garrett Cross of HNTB for Programs.
Please acknowledge their contribution to the success of our Post. |
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1931: The Greater Kansas City Post Beginning
by Tom Poer |
In 1931, the Star-Spangled Banner was adopted as the United States National Anthem. That year saw unemployment increase to 16.3%, with the understanding that the stock market crash of 1929 was having far-reaching effects. The US government convicted of Al Capone on tax fraud charges and sentenced him to 11 years in Alcatraz. As people did not have money to buy new cars, many car manufacturers went out of business. A great success of the time was the completion of the Empire State building. A small local community in Nevada, named Las Vegas, made the decision to legalize gambling. The Midwest craved water for their crops as a crippling drought brought on the dust bowl.
Amidst a challenging time for the US, on March 9, 1931, T.L. Jonah signed the charter for the Greater KC Post. Our first Post President T.L. Jonah and Post Secretary, J.M Wheat met in Washington DC, with SAME Leadership to indoctrinate the Greater KC Post.
Still true with the actions we carry on today, the Post charter reads: "It shall be the purpose of this Post to promote the aims of The Society of American Military Engineers and the interests of the National Defense, by fostering closer personal relations between the members of our Society, by stimulating the interest of the profession in engineering preparedness, both personal and material, for the defense of our country, by the dissemination of engineering information bearing on defense, and by maintaining the high standard and traditions of the profession of military engineering."
Their signatures began a great journey for our post.
Over the past eight decades, members of the Post have supported our nation and our community through hundreds of events. We have brought the best of the public and private together to problem solve and find the right solutions. Individual members and sustaining member firms have contributed to major civil works projects including the establishment of the Missouri River navigation channel, construction of Truman Dam, and many local levee projects along the far-reaching river system within the US Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District. Our members have worked locally on projects supporting Ft. Riley, Ft. Leavenworth, Whiteman AF Base, Ft. Leonard Wood and many other installations in the area. Our members have cleaned up thousands of sites to provide environmental benefits to our lands.
The post has provided community support and service and has helped encourage our local youth through education and mentoring to improve engineering and sciences for our nation. We have sponsored hundreds of students with thousands of dollars in scholarships, provided coaching for math, encouraged and celebrated success of teaching math and sciences, worked hand-in-hand with local students to create community benefits, helped hundreds to prepare for professional testing, and sent dozens of students to engineering summer camps.
Join us today, in our 80th year, as we make new relationships, share our knowledge, improve our competencies and make our nation and our community a better place!
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Greater Kansas City Post Celebrates 80 Years of Service
by Melissa Kelley |
 In order to properly recognize the 80th anniversary of the Post, an 80th Anniversary Committee was created. The members of the committee include Amy Lines of Kleinfelder, Tom Poer of HNTB and Melissa Kelley of Poole Fire Protection. The mission of the committee is to thank the membership for their contributions to our longevity and celebrate the continued success and achievements of the Post. The committee engaged Katie Gall from BDY to create a special 80th anniversary logo that features the SAME shield and logo and recognizes the Post's service since 1931.
The celebration was officially kicked off at Industry Day on March 9 and included a slide show featuring a photographic history of the Post and an anniversary celebration at the social event after the conference. The committee has also planned other exciting ways to recognize 80 years of service, including a banner for display at all Post events, a separate 80-year page on our website, a special commemorative coin (intended as a token of appreciation for all of the members who are active in supporting the Post) and a commemorative polo shirt for Post leaders and volunteers throughout the year. |
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SAME Engineer's Week
by Bill Yord |
On Thursday, February 24, the SAME Kansas City Post hosted four tables for the 60th annual Engineer's Week Lunch at the Kansas City Marriot Ballroom in downtown Kansas City. At first the SAME planning committee for this event thought that two tables would be adequate to host the SAME members who would be interested in attending. It turned out that four tables had to be secured for the event to accommodate forty SAME KC Post members along with several members from both the KU and the UMKC SAME Student Chapters.
Dr. Gerald E. Galloway, Jr., P.E., Ph.D., spoke. Dr. Galloway is a Glenn L. Martin Institute Professor of Engineering, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and an affiliate Professor, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, where his teaching and research focus is on water resources and natural disaster policy and management.
The luncheon began at 11:45 a.m., with exhibits beginning at 11:00 a.m. in the lobby. The top student winners from MATHCOUNTS, Bridge Building, and FutureCities competitions were honored during the luncheon. Award winners from the Western Chapter MSPE and Eastern Chapter KSPE were also honored.
In addition to attendance at the banquet, the SAME Kansas City Post also sponsored a booth and a presentation was made to Dr. Kevin Truman, Dean of the UMKC School of Computing and Engineering for a UMKC scholarship. |
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Greater Kansas City Post 1st Quarter Meetings
by Amy Lines | |
Installation of New SAME Board Members
January 27, 2011
Engineer's Week
Guest Speaker: Gerald E. Galloway, P.E., Ph.D.
February 24, 2011
FEMA Region VII
Guest Speaker: Jim Donley
March 31, 2011
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Building the Next Generation of Engineers
by Conti Engineering |
In support of Engineering Week (February 20-26) and the S.T.E.M (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curriculum, The Conti Group launched a series of events to encourage high school and college students across the United States to pursue careers that will help provide a diverse and vigorous workforce for the future of the construction industry.
To kick off Conti's Engineering Week activities, a Conti Gulf Coast project manager spoke to a group of students at a New Orleans, LA high school about the importance of S.T.E.M. subjects and how those studies translate to solving real world problems. "Raising awareness of and a passion for the positive contributions and quality of life improvements that engineers make to society is an endeavor that we hope will inspire students to pursue a career in construction," said Kristen Olson, vice president of human resources for Conti.
Additional outreach efforts include a program manager lecturing about Program Management in Practice at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Project managers will lecture at Texas A&M University in College Station, TX and Bucknell University in Lewisburg, PA about the job opportunities and responsibilities a civil engineering graduate can expect when entering the workforce.
Founded in 1951 by the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE), Engineering Week is among the oldest of America's professional outreach efforts. The National Engineers Week Foundation, a formal coalition of more than 100 professional societies, major corporations and government agencies, is dedicated to ensuring a diverse and well-educated future engineering workforce by increasing understanding of and interest in engineering and technology careers among young students and by promoting pre-college literacy in math and science. |
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Treasurer's Report
by Kent Dvorak | |
February 2011 January - February 2011
Total Expenses $ 8,246 $17,564
Net Income $ 2,602 $46,429
Endowment Balance $358,318
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2011 Greater Kansas City Post
Sustaining Members | |
AECOM ■ Affinis ■ AMEC ■ ARCADIS ■ Argus Consulting Inc. ■ Arrowhead Contracting Inc. ■ Barr Engineering ■ Berger Devine Yaeger ■ Bhate Environmental Associates ■ Bibb Engineers ■ Black & Veatch Special Project Corp. ■ Brown and Caldwell ■ Burns & McDonnell ■ Cabrera ■ CAPE ■ CDM ■ CH2MHILL ■ Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc. ■ Coastal Environmental Group, Inc. ■ Coastal Environmental Consultants ■ Conti Federal Services Inc. ■ Continental Mapping Consultants ■ CTI Associates Inc. ■ Cyntergy AEC ■ Dimentional Innovations, Inc. ■ DLR Group ■ EA Engineering Science & Technology Inc. ■ Eaton Corp. ■ Ecology and Environment Inc. ■ EMR Inc. ■ Environmental Chemical Corp ■ Foth ■ Geotechnical Services, Inc. ■ GLMV ■ Greenleaf Construction Company ■ Hanson Professional Services, Inc. ■ HDR ■ Health Facilities Group ■ HMN Architects ■ HNTB ■ HydroGeoLogic Inc. ■ Jackie Hacker & Associates ■ JE Dunn Construction ■ JMD Enterprises ■ Key Construction ■ Kleinfelder ■ LMG Construction Services LLC ■ Lochner ■ Los Alamos Technical Associates, Inc. (LATA) ■ Lusio Solid State Lighting - A Division of Lightwild ■ Mark One Electric Company Inc. ■ Mason & Hanger ■ Massman Construction ■ McCownGordon Construction, LLC ■ McKinzie Construction Inc. ■ McTech Corporation ■ ME Group Inc. ■ Midland Surveying ■ MKEC Engineering Consultants Inc. ■ Midland Surveying, Inc. ■ Multivista - Kansas City ■ Munlake Contractors, Inc. ■ MW Builders ■ MWH ■ Olsson Associates ■ P/Strada LLC ■ Parsons ■ Patti Banks Associates ■ PBS&J ■ Poole Fire Protection, Inc. ■ Professional Environmental Engineers, Inc. ■ Professional Services Industries Inc. ■ Prudent Technologies ■ Remediation Services ■ Rosemann & Associates PC ■ Sabatini Architects Inc. ■ SAIC ■ SCS Engineers ■ Sealaska Constructors ■ Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc. (SEH) ■ Seneca Environmental Services ■ Sevenson Environmental Services Inc ■ Siemens ■ SKE International ■ Smith & Boucher ■ Smith Seckman Reid Inc. ■ SM Wilson ■ Soil-Tek of MidAmerica ■ Sorella Group, Inc ■ Stanley Consultants Inc. ■ Stantec Consulting Services ■ Strategic Value Solutions, Inc. ■ TapanAm Associates ■ Tepa ■ Terracon Consultants Inc. ■ Tetra Tech Inc. ■ The Louis Berger Group Inc. ■ The Primus Group ■ The Ross Group Construction Corp. ■ The Shaw Group Inc. ■ The Walsh Group ■ Tidewater Inc. ■ Tompkins Architects ■ TranSystems Corporation ■ TSI Engineering ■ Tug Hill Construction ■ United Excel Corporation ■ URS Corporation ■ Walton Construction ■ Waste Management ■ Woolpert ■ Wilson & Company |
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Annual Sponsors
2011
Red Level
JE Dunn HNTB Louis Berger Terracon Wilson & Co Burns & Mc SAIC Coastal White Level
Black & Veatch |
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Welcome New Sustaining Members!
Tepa
Lusio Solid State Lighting - A Division of Lightwild
JMD Enterprises
Tompkins Architects
Smith & Boucher
Health Facilities Group
Continental Mapping Consultants |
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Thank you to Katie Gall at BDY for assisting in the design of the regional logo and the
80-year anniversary logo! |
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Do you have an article you would like published in The Miltarty Engineer or SAME News?
As part of the Education and Training Streamer, submitting articles to these publications is a principal criteria. If you have an article you would like to submit, contact Amy Lines at alines@kleinfelder.com or 913.647.5008. | |
Thank you to Brian Turner for the photography of
Industry Day! |
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Upcoming Dates & Events | |
SAME Meeting
April 28, 2011
11:30 am TBD | |
Annual Vice President's Dinner
April 14, 2011
5-8 p.m.
JETC Conference
May24-27, 2011
Missouri River / TEXOMA Regional
August 23-25, 2011 |
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2011 Officers
President
Chris Prinslow, USACE
Vice President
Matt Metcalf, Tug Hill Construction
Secretary
Jackie Hacker, Jackie Hacker & Associates
Treasurer
Kent Dvorak, Terracon
Immediate Past President
Mark Loes, Kleinfelder
Board of Directors
Robert Crain, Burns & McDonnell
Al Osborne, Tug Hill Construction
Rex Ostrander, USACE
Jessie Miller, Berger Devine Yaeger
Dave Howe, Black & Veatch
Rob Rastorfer, HNTB
Doug O'Neill, JE Dunn Construction
Rich McCollum, HDR
Jason Meyers, Burns & McDonnell | | |
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2011 Committees | | |
Individual Membership
Ron McCutcheon, Mc Kinzie Construction
Sustaining Membership Doug Dreiling, Lochner
Programs
Bill Yord, Louis Berger
Garrett Cross, HNTB Young Members Kyle Kukuk, HNTB
Amy McCurdy
Education & Mentoring Ted Hartsig, Olsson Associates
Scholarship Jessie Miller, BDY PE Refresher Ed Bristow, HDR
K-12 Outreach Rob Rastorfer, HNTB Mathcounts Jason Kling, Burns & McDonnell Student Chapter UMKC Advisor- Skip Johnson, Kiewit UMKC President - Ryan Stobaugh KU Advisor - Pam Maley, EMR
KU President - Bob Brown
Strategic Planning Matt Metcalf, Tug Hill Construction
Design & Construction Rex Ostrander, USACE
Small Business Arthur Saulsberry, USACE
Nominating Tom Kirkwood, Consultant
Auditing Jim Feikert, Henderson Engineers
Awards Tom Poer, HNTB
Communications Amy Lines, Kleinfelder
Historian
Tom Poer, HNTB E & M Investment Dave Howe, Black & Veatch Readiness & Homeland Security Jason Davis, Affinis Corp Joint Engineering Council Joe Davis, Custom Engineering Fort Riley Field Chapter
Deb Porter, USACE
Scott Randle, Terracon
Council of Fellows Chairman
Dave Howe, Black & Veatch Chaplain Larry Myers, USACE CFC Campaign
Jim Feikert, Henderson Engineers
Jessie Miller, BDY
80 Year Campaign Amy Lines, Kleinfelder 2011 Regional Dave Brewer, SCS Engineers Jerry Adams, BDY Mark Loes, Kleinfelder |
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Advertize
in the SAME Newsletter & Web site for 2010!
The Greater Kansas City Post offers advertizing space for quarterly newsletters and on the home page of the NEW Website. Your business card size advertisement or company logo can be added for a cost of $250.00 per year.
Please send your artwork and check to: Amy Lines
Kleinfelder, 7802 Barton
Lenexa, KS 66214. Once your check is received your advertizement will begin in the following issue. |
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If you have articles you would like published in the quarterly newsletter please send them to Mandy Shields at ashields@hntb.com.
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