01 May Tami’s Blog: Five Things I Learned: A Post-Victory Look at our Journey to the Ballot Box

Posted at 15:48h in Tami's Blog by

All of us at Ronald McDonald House Charities of KC are so deeply grateful that Question 2 passed with an overwhelming majority of voters saying YES! (Not sure what I’m talking about? I posted a blog entry about it here, wrote a Kansas City Star editorial about it here, and you can find  more info on our website here.)

First, allow me to extend a heartfelt thank you to all 33,886 of the Kansas Citians who voted yes! That you came out to support us and the families with sick kids that we serve means more than I can put into words.

I learned a lot throughout our (long!) journey to the ballot box.  (Please remind me never to run for public office, it was quite an undertaking!) I’m going to look back with a few reflections, just five of the many things I learned:

  1. People are basically good. People want the best for not just themselves, but also their communities, their families, the world. No one goes to the ballot box—or about their daily lives—actively trying to do harm to others. We naturally seek the good.
  2. People are also nervous. It is also true that these days, trust has to be earned—especially when it comes to the messages being sent to the public. I perceive that all of us have a harder time than we used to believing that anyone will actually do what they say they will do.
  3. Every voice matters. As a social worker committed to inclusion and social justice, I’ve always believed that every voice matters. This election process reminded me that good people, who want good things, can disagree. And indeed, every one of them matters.
  4. Democracy takes time, effort, and careful intention. I was struck by the number of meetings required, the hours spent, the people engaged, the explaining (and explaining and explaining…) that was necessary to make sure that all KC voters had access to clear information about Question 2 so they were able to make informed decisions.  It was more complicated than I expected it to be—and I am ever grateful for all the people who make the system work.
  5. That Teddy Roosevelt quote about being “in the arena”? I think he nailed it. (If you don’t know the saying, it’s here.) I learned through this whole process that it is lot easier to be a spectator than a participant. I think we owe a debt of gratitude to anyone who works in public service (municipal, local, and beyond) because it is no small deal to try and make the world a better place for all of us.

What comes next? We are working with Project Advocates, our owner’s representative, to find the best design and construction partners to make our goal of serving more families come to fruition. We’ve also been working with the City to determine a price for the land.  We will subsequently learn from our surrounding community how we can enhance the greenspace with continued investment.

Oh yeah, and we have some money to raise! A lot of money, actually. We’ll need more than votes for this expansion to become a reality—but more info on our capital campaign will come later.

As we move forward to the next phase of this expansion, we will do our best to ensure that we do so with complete and total transparency, integrity, and an unwavering focus on delivering essential services to families whose children need healthcare.

We will always strive to be good and gracious neighbors and members of our beloved KC community. Thank you for trusting us and supporting us on the road to this crucial victory, and thank you Kansas City for saying YES on Question 2!

Published May 2, 2025