Saturday events

Parade, festival planned for Juneteenth in KCK

A Juneteenth event is planned on Saturday, June 18, in Kansas City, Kansas.
The event will be based at the Village Initiative, 3004 N. 27th St.


The day will open with a parade starting at 10th and Quindaro, and ending at 27th and Quindaro.


Parade participants will include the Afro American Cowboys, area drill teams and exotic car enthusiasts. Law enforcement and first responders also plan to participate.


At the end of the parade, those attending may enjoy entertainment at a main stage from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Local celebrities will perform and African American community leaders will be honored.


Singers including Sosha Oshaye, Carlton Rashad, Ja’Ron ‘Jay Melody’ Nichols and other guests are planning to participate.


There will be a variety of food trucks, vendors selling clothes and jewelry, and tables to encourage better health.

Celebration at Kaw Point Park today

The Juneteenth celebration sponsored by We Buy Blakck will be from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, June 18, at Kaw Point Park, 1403 Fairfax Trafficway, Kansas City, Kansas.

More than 100 vendors are expected to attend. There will be food, activities for children and live music.

Avenue of Life holds celebration today

Avenue of Life, 500 N. 7th St., Kansas City, Kansas, will hold a Freedom Day Juneteenth Celebration fro 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, June 18.

The family event will include free food, games, a bouncy house, as well as COVID vaccinations and testing.

Democrats to meet

Patrick Schmidt, a Democratic candidate for the 2nd Congressional District, will be the guest speaker Saturday at the Wandotte County Third Saturday Democratic Breakfast meeting.


The program will begin around 9:15 a.m. Saturday, June 18, at Las Islas Sports Bar and Grill, 4929 State Ave., Kansas City, Kansas. Those attending may start gathering around 8:15 a.m. at the location.


Also speaking at the June 18 meeting will be Democratic candidates who face opposition in the Aug. 2 primary election. Candidates will have four minutes each to speak.


The cost of the breakfast is $10, or $7 for students and those on limited incomes. There is a sponsor for those students who attend for the first time.
The meeting is open to Democrats. It’s not necessary to purchase a breakfast to attend.

Chicago Red Stars to visit KC Current Saturday


The Chicago Red Stars will visit the KC Current at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 18, at Children’s Mercy Park, Kansas City, Kansas.

The match will stream on Paramount+. Tickets are available at https://seatgeek.com/chicago-red-stars-at-kansas-city-current-tickets/national_womens_soccer/2022-06-18-7-30-pm/r/5667476.

Milwaukee Milkmen visit Monarchs tonight

The Milwaukee Milkmen will visit the Kansas City Monarchs at 6 p.m. Saturday, June 18, at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas.

The game will be on the Monarchs Broadcast Network, and a video stream will air on aabaseball.tv.


Tickets to Monarchs games are available by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

Explorers provoke nightmares for the Monarchs

by Jaxson Webb, Monarchs

The Kansas City Monarchs (20-10), for the first time this season got swept by division rival, the Sioux City Explorers (14-15).

Monarchs’ starter Matt Hartman did all he could on the mound, but it still wasn’t enough for the series finale victory.

Game three of the road series in Sioux City, Iowa, served to be a low scoring pitchers duel.

Matt Hartman of the Kansas City Monarchs reached a personal best on the season six innings pitched on Thursday evening, allowing just two runs off six hits. Hartman threw a scoreless first inning but surrendered a run in the bottom of the second inning off a single to center from Blake Tiberi (1-0).

The Monarchs answered the Explorers later, but it wasn’t until the top of the fifth inning when Kansas City used a pinch of small ball to tie things up. Kevin Santa gave himself up by using the short game with a sacrifice bunt to move the baserunners to second and third. The very next at-bat, Joel Booker delivered a sacrifice fly to center field to bring in Pete Kozma (1-1).

The eight-year big leaguer, Kozma had himself a night offensively by recording two doubles and scoring the only run for the Monarchs.

Sioux City’s starting pitcher, Patrick Ledet, kept his flawless record on the mound intact by getting the victory, going seven innings with just one run, three walk, and striking out nine batters.


The tide of the game was really shifted in the bottom of the seventh inning when a single was delivered by the Sioux City offense, followed by a throwing error by Joel Booker, advancing Nate Samson in to score (2-1).


Kansas City had chances here and there throughout the game, including a bases-loaded opportunity in the bottom half of the eighth, but the Explorers defense and pitching held tight to escape the threat.


A member of last season’s championship team made his season debut for the Monarchs after being signed earlier this week. Right-handed pitcher Justin Donatella was called on to throw the home half of the eighth inning. Donatella did his part on the hill by recording one strikeout and keeping the hometown Explorers scoreless to give his offense a chance for some late-game heroics.

Sioux City’s Max Kuhns came in to slam the door shut and secure the series sweep for Sioux City. Kuhns struck out all three batters he faced in the bottom of the ninth.

The loss dethroned the Monarchs from the top spot of the West Division standings, falling just one game back of the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks.

The next Monarchs game will be at 7 p.m. Friday, June 17, at Legends Field against the Milkmen of Milwaukee who are currently in second place of the American Association East Division. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

Rep. Davids calls for increase in refining capacity to lower gas prices

U.S> Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., joined Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois and Abigail Spanberger of Virginia in calling on President Biden to help reopen recently idled oil refineries.

This would increase refinery capacity temporarily and lower the cost of gas without sacrificing long-term clean energy production goals, according to Rep. Davids.

In addition to pushing this immediate action, Rep. Davids has repeatedly urged the President and Congressional leadership to move forward on long-term energy and inflation solutions, including fixing our supply chains, making more goods in America, and investing in our clean energy economy.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, domestic refining capacity is down to 17.9 million barrels per day, almost as low as it was in 2010.

At the same time, global refining capacity has declined by 3 million barrels per day, even as demand has returned to pre-pandemic levels.

This shortage of oil refining capacity is the result of an unprecedented wave of refinery closures as demand for fuel plummeted during the COVID-19 pandemic—but many refineries could come back online quickly with the right assistance.

Rep. Davids and her colleagues urged the President to take action in a new resolution, stating: “in order to ensure sufficient refining capacity to reduce fuel prices and prevent fuel shortages in the near term, the President should use authorities granted him by the Defense Production Act of 1950 to provide targeted technical and financial assistance to restart certain idled refineries for a limited time.”

The resolution’s focus on a short-term increase in capacity is to address the current price spike facing consumers while also avoiding long-term impacts on the climate, noting that “restarting idled American oil refineries for a limited time could reduce gas prices and cool inflationary pressures without endangering our climate goals.”

Rep. Davids has been focused on lowering costs for Kansans, including gas prices:
• Last week, she successfully pushed the IRS to increase a tax break for small business owners and self-employed folks who rely on a vehicle for their business.
• She voted to crack down on price gouging by oil and gas companies, who have made record profits this year, despite rising gas prices.
• She introduced legislation to suspend the federal gas tax through the end of the year, saving Kansans 18 cents per gallon at a time when gas prices are reaching new highs.
• After voting for bipartisan sanctions against Russian oil, she called on President Biden to take immediate action to protect American consumers from uncertainty and rising prices, including by temporarily suspending the federal gas tax.
• Following Rep. Davids’ calls to take action on rising gas prices last fall, President Biden released 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. He has now authorized the largest release in history: 1 million barrels a day for six months.
• Rep. Davids remains committed to long-term energy and inflation solutions, releasing an inflation action plan last week with the New Democrat Coalition that’s been called Congress’s “best inflation plan yet.”

  • Story from Rep. Davids’ office