The Kansas City, Kansas, Area Chamber of Commerce will feature a fireside chat with Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly and Janis Bowdler, president of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Foundation on Thursday.
Part of the chamber’s annual meeting, the fireside chat will take place at a luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Thursday, April 4, at the Reardon Convention Center, 5th and Minnesota, Kansas City, Kansas. Mayor David Alvey will moderate the discussion.
The event’s theme is “Building Equitable Cities.”
“We are excited at the opportunity to hear Ms. Bowdler’s global, corporate perspective as it relates to our emerging region,” said Daniel Silva, president and CEO of the KCK Chamber, in a news release. “Part of our mission at the Chamber is to propel economic growth and sustainability through strengthening our workforce, empowering small businesses and improving the lives of individuals throughout our region. We are also thrilled to hear Gov. Kelly’s state perspective as the highest ranking elected official in Kansas.”
It will be the first time Gov. Kelly has given a speech to the KCK Chamber.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. recently announced it would expand their branches into nine top U.S. markets, including the Kansas City region. While the firm has had commercial banking clients in the region for decades, as well as more than 454,000 consumer customers and 15,000 business banking customers, their branch presence will be new.
The KCK Chamber event has sold out, with more than 820 guests expected to attend.
Bowdler is the co-author of “Building Equitable Cities: How to Drive Economic Mobility and Regional Growth.” The book offers practical ideas on growing the local economy and increasing opportunity.
The idea of the “equitable city,” where urban areas empower the people to build up their cities, fits in well with what the KCK Chamber and local government are trying to do here, said Katelyn McInerney, the KCK Chamber’s director of marketing and events.