Month: April 2016

KCKCC’s Jazz Cabaret to be April 21

Jazz music is filling Kansas City Kansas Community College later this month as the college will be the host to the annual Jazz Cabaret.

The Jazz Cabaret is at 6 p.m. April 21 in Upper Jewell on the KCKCC main campus, 7250 State Ave. Tickets are $20 for the public and $15 for students, children over 5 years old and seniors 60 and over.

Music during the Jazz Cabaret will be provided by the KCKCC Jazz Combo, Vocal Jazz Ensembles and Student Jazz soloists. In addition, it will feature a catered dinner by Wyandotte BBQ, complimentary drinks and a silent auction. Boulevard Brewing Co. is providing the beer and wine will be served as well. The event is a fundraiser for Music Department student travel.

The theme for this year’s Jazz Cabaret is Soul Train. Guests are encouraged to wear clothing from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Music will feature jazz arrangements of pop tunes from the last 40 years.

“The music performed at this event will be a fusion of jazz standards from the Great American Songbook and popular music classics from artists such as Michael Jackson, The Beatles and more,” said John Stafford, director of choral activities at KCKCC. “There will also be a silent auction of artwork by Janet Mason and other items from corporations in the Kansas City metropolitan area.”

For more information or to purchase tickets, contact Stafford at 913-288-7137 or by email at [email protected].

Kelly Rogge is the public information supervisor at Kansas City Kansas Community College.

KCKCC to honor NJCAA Hall of Famer Burleson Saturday

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC

The only two persons to have their baseball uniforms retired at Kansas City Kansas Community College will be honored at the Blue Devils’ final two Jayhawk Conference Saturdays.

Recently retired coach Steve Burleson will throw out the first pitch when KCKCC is host to Highland this coming Saturday at 12:55 p.m. while the family of the late Michael Haen will throw out the ceremonial first pitch when the Blue Devils entertain Allen County April 16.

“We want to honor Coach Burleson on his induction into the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Baseball Hall of Fame,” said KCKCC head coach Matt Goldbeck. Burleson will be formally inducted at ceremonies during the 2016 NJCAA World Series in Grand Junction, Colo., May 30-June 4.

The retired numbers of Burleson (No. 17) and the late Haen (No. 12) are emblazoned on the outfield wall of KCKCC’s new baseball complex.

Burleson ranks No. 13 on the all-time list of NJCAA wins, compiling a 1,136-691 (.614) record in a 36-year career. Only the second coach in the Jayhawk East to win 1,000 games, Burleson’s teams won seven Jayhawk Conference championships and three Region VI titles. Named Coach of the Year four times, Burleson also became the first active coach to be inducted into the KCKCC Athletic Hall of Fame in 2013.

Haen was an assistant to David Klein when KCKCC started baseball and was named head coach after Klein stepped down following the 1978 season. However, he was never able to coach a game. A Kansas City, Kan., reserve police officer, he was accidentally shot and killed by a fellow officer July 18, 1978. Haen was at the scene of an auto accident when a man broke out of a crowd and took Haen’s gun. A gun fight ensued and Haen was caught in the middle and accidentally killed by a shot by a Wyandotte County deputy sheriff.

A popular instructor at KCKCC where he taught in the Social Science Division and helped found the law enforcement program, the Kansas City, Kan., Police Academy on the college campus bears the name, Dr. Michael Haen Police Academy.

Haen’s widow, Joanne Haen of KCK ; their three children, Pier, Micah and Nichole; and other family members are expected to be on hand for the April 16 first pitch.